As a pastor my role is to stay connected to Jesus, so that it is truly Him leading the church and transforming lives.  I often call this “orchestrating life-change one person at a time.”  From preaching to developing discipleship pathways, it’s all orchestrating ministry so that people have clear next steps to meet Jesus and follow him into a spiritually mature life.  Clearly, it’s Jesus changing people’s lives, but to be a small instrument in that change has grabbed my heart since the age of eighteen.  My first ministry assignment was at Hume Lake Christian Camp with a group of middle school boys where I discovered that God could use me to help people find and follow him.  There is nothing more energizing to me than hearing stories of life-change.  The story could be a conversion to Christ, a marriage saved, a son restored to his parents, or even a person who discovers that God still speaks through the scriptures. All of it is life-change.  My strength in preaching is the ability to take the depth of God’s word and place it on the bottom shelf within reach of the unchurched and the dechurched, while still challenging the Christian who thinks they have heard it all before.  Preaching though is not enough. People need clear discipleship pathways in the context of a loving community so they can become fully mature in Christ.  Orchestrating these pathways and raising up leaders was the basis of my training in Christian formation and discipleship.  Pastors cannot pastor everyone, but they can orchestrate life-change as they preach God’s word and create discipleship pathways.

I just celebrated my twentieth work anniversary as the lead pastor at Church on the Hill, which is in the middle of the culture that Barna labeled the most dechurched and unchurched place in the United States. Church on the Hill is the second oldest Baptist Church in California, founded in 1850 just four months before California became a state.  God’s been gracious enough to allow us to help the church move from a traditional model to a modern church with young families.  This required a new constitution, a restructured governing board, small groups, new staff, and of course new music. We are now a multi-generational, multi-ethnic family that has embraced the mission of “displaying the irresistibility of Jesus so that lives are transformed.”  The church is primed to continue to grow in the future.

My greatest joy has been twenty-six years of marriage with Kelli and the privilege of raising two great kids who are now walking with God in their early twenties.  Both Kelli and I were raised in Christian homes; our parents are both still married and modeled for us healthy families.  Kelli has thrived as a successful Real Estate agent for more than twenty years in Southern California and the Bay Area. Our daughter, Courtney, recently got married to her high school sweetheart, DJ, and just graduated with her Master’s degree in Education from Azusa Pacific University. Austin just graduated with his undergrad degree from Grand Canyon University, which means Kelli and I are empty nesters.