When I was 18, God shook my world and exposed the hypocrisy and self-righteousness that had marked my life. I grew up in a Christian home, had amazing parents who served the Lord –my dad was even a pastor! I figured out how to act like a good Christian pretty early on, and eventually I mastered the art. That is, until the Summer of 2006, when was given the opportunity to serve overseas in Costa Rica, and had my life changed forever. God put me on a new course that summer…
Discipleship training
When I got back home, I knew God wanted me to grow in my knowledge of Him. My dad encouraged me to check out Eternity Bible College, and soon after I decided to pack up and move across the country. This was before Eternity was fully-accredited, and some of my friends encouraged me to look elsewhere, but I knew what I had to do. I wasn’t in it for the degree, my desire was to pursue God and follow His call on my life.
Building a foundation
Within my first week of attending Eternity Bible College I knew God was going to rock my world. The professors helped tear down everything I thought I knew, and then re-built my foundation on God’s Word. Not only did I learn from my professor’s lectures, I also learned from their example. They were so passionate about following God and telling His story! They were committed to offering a solid Biblical education without shackling students with debt, even if that meant considerable financial sacrifice. It takes faith to give up security for such a vision, and I’ve carried that lesson with me back out into the mission field.
Making disciples…
I am currently writing this from Horqueatas de Sarapiqui in Costa Rica. Two years ago God called me back, along with my wife Allison and our three children. We’re currently in the construction phase of building a family-based orphanage with an organization called 6:8 Ministries. My wife and I plan to move into the house soon, and will hopefully receive our first child by the end of the year. Our goal is to have ten family homes, where we can host four to eight orphan boys that will be raised into godly men. These children will not only get a roof over their head –they’ll get a family. They’ll get a mom and dad who will model the grace, forgiveness, and love of God.
My hope is that my wife and I will model the same things we learned at Eternity. That we will live intentionally; faithfully trusting God and working towards His purposes which are way bigger than we could imagine.
