My new life verse as of the past 5 years is Jonah 3:1.  God has taught me the past few years of my life that "His grace is TRULY greater than my sin."  As long as we are alive, God's will for us does not change.  Jonah ran and ran and ran from God and was even willing to kill himself before he would do what God wanted of him.  But once God was finished fixing his mind in the belly of that great fish, God's will for Jonah was exactly the same as it was before he ran.  HE never changes but we do if we let Him have His way.

Born: 5-8-61 on a Marine base in North Carolina.  The 4th of 5 children.

Introduced to Jesus in 1969 and immediately started preaching every Saturday to all of the neighborhood kids I could gather.

Surrendered my life to preach November 12, 1975

Graduated from Oak Forest Christian Academy in 1979

Graduated from Bob Jones University in 1983

Ordained 1984

Traveled in evangelism, taught and youth-pastored from 1983-1989

Married Kelly (Barthel) October 1989 (two children - Babbi (93) Donovan (98)

Youth pastored until 1992

First Senior Pastor position was in Oak Forest, IL from 1992-1993

Founded and pastored Hope Community Church, Oak Forest, IL 1993-2003

(Masters work done at Trinity in Newburgh, IN and Doctoral work done at Northwest Graduate School, Seattle, WA)

Hobbies - preaching & sports (Tiger Woods PGA golf on PSP)

"As the son of a career Marine the motto of a "Few Good Men" was ingrained in my psyche at an early age.  I have done my best, as did Jesus, to surround myself with a "few good men and women" who are willing to do WHATEVER it takes (I Corinthians 9:22) to make Christ-followers (disciples) in our culture.  I want to leap and dare and dance for the Savior.  My personal mission statement is "His last words are my first concern."