I was blessed to have a Christian mother and was saved a little before my fifth birthday. Though my understanding was simple, it was genuine. I understood that I was sinful, deserved eternal separation from God in hell, and that Christ is the only way to salvation. I also understood that Jesus died to pay for my sins and that He is the only way to be with God. I prayed and asked Jesus to forgive me of my sins and to receive the salvation that Christ alone offers. I spoke with the pastor at our church (who questioned me and observed me for a period of time) and I was baptized as soon as the pastor was assured of my genuine conversion (I’m thankful for that, btw).
At some level, I can remember struggling with a calling to ministry even as a child. This struggle is something that grew over time and at sixteen, I committed my life to vocational service through the church. The Lord graciously began using me in whatever context I was in to provide pastoral care and servant leadership through preaching, teaching, counseling, worship, service, and administration. In these circumstances, the Lord has led me and others into a deeper, more intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. This is truly a constant source of joy!
I have served in churches at some level as long as I can remember, but I count my start to ministry as being December 23rd, 2001, when I delivered my first sermon (Christmas Sunday morning). I had served in many capacities before this, but this marked the beginning of serving in more official capacities. Since then, the Lord has used me in many churches and many positions from simple volunteering to pastoral staff.
In preparation for ministry, I attended North Greenville University and graduated in 2004 with a B.A. in Cristian Studies (Theology and Practical Ministry). I took a year after NGU to work with a church plant and try to prepare for Seminary. I attended The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and graduated in 2009 with an M. Div. in Counseling. For those not familiar with an M. Div., it is much larger and more in depth than other masters degrees, typically taking about four years. Since then, we have served in a few different churches
I have worked since the eighth-grade and have been blessed with a wide variety of jobs. My first job was working in a woodshop, making kitchen cabinets. Over the years, I held a number of other positions from trade-oriented jobs, to catering, to even making drive-shafts (“Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might” – Ecclesiastes 9:10).
I have been studying and practicing the martial arts for a long time, and have been an instructor since 1996! I have achieved the rank and title of Master Instructor in two different styles; Shaolin Kempo Karate and American Freestyle Karate, in addition to ranking in several others. The Lord has always used this as an amazing ministry field. In 2013, my wife and I felt the Lord leading us to tentmaking ministry and we opened our own studio. This was an incredible time of ministry and personal fulfillment, though plenty challenging as well. In 2018, the Lord directed us back toward vocational ministry and we sold the studio. At present, I’m prayerfully seeking a vocational ministry position in addition to starting Simple Servant Ministries.
Over the years, the Lord has given me both the desire and the abilities to serve and minister to His people, being one who shares their pains, trials, joys, and celebrations. I am committed to help others come to know Christ, to know Him more fully, to enable them to learn and exercise their spiritual gifts, and to equip them for effective ministry at home and around the world. Above all, He must increase, I must decrease!
Though I have had many opportunities in ministry, as time has gone on, I have felt the Lord leading me to start a ministry that is separate from any particular church or denomination, and most importantly, engages the realm of social media. If we want our message to be heard, we have to go where people are. In the current American culture people are on social media, so that’s where we need to be. While I’m thankful to see other ministries on social media, most of what I’ve seen is not engagement. The majority seems to be presenting a local ministry on social media, rather than engaging social media (you come to us, rather than we come to you). I feel this is a hole in ministry in general right now and I want to help meet this need.
In Matthew 28:19 (the great commission passage), we are told, among other things, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations.”
Our mission is to support this great commission by providing resources for those who are new to the faith, or have never been discipled, and desire to learn about God, the Bible, and ultimately Christ. Discipleship is MUCH more than simply learning a bunch of verses or ideas, true discipleship involved walking with fellow believers in a real, genuine accountability and teaching relationship. Being internet-based, we cannot currently* “walk” with you, but it is our hope to provide as much assistance as possible! If you are a teacher, Sunday school teacher, small group leader, or anyone else involved in teaching the Bible, you may also find these resources helpful… and we hope you do!
It is our belief and founding motivation that many people desire to understand the Bible, but have simply never been taught HOW to read it and how it relates to modern life! For many people there is a cycle of guilt and shame surrounding their Bible reading, where they know they need to, want to, try to, fail, and then feel guilty and foolish. It is our mission to break this cycle with in-depth teaching that takes God’s Word, and make it simple (thus our motto “God’s Word, made simple!”).
*In the future, we hope to create a community where we can “walk” with each other in real ways as referenced above… we look forward to that. However, even once we are able to do this, there is no substitute for being part of a faithful, local church (Hebrews 10:25 – “not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near
If you would like to support this ministry, your help would truly be appreciated! We are starting from scratch, with no investments, equipment, or staff. If you are able and feel inclined, a one-time gift, or even ongoing support would go a long, long way toward helping us get started! This ministry is not about money, but each and every gift adds up and makes this ministry that much better, and will allow us to get more content out more consistently, and with better quality! Please pray about supporting us!