I was raised in Southeast Oklahoma. Born to a young mother, my early childhood memories are filled with scenes of my grandmother, my mother and her brothers, and myself attending church as often as the doors were open. I can still remember the smell of the hymnals and the sound of the elder church members singing. I spent those early summers going to Vacation Bible School and later, when I was of sufficient age, Summer Church Camps.As the years progressed I noticed a tugging in my spirit. I was not sure what this feeling meant and no one I asked could offer any guidance. This tugging began when I was nine years old. I knew what it meant to be saved, at least as much as I could. It was not until years later that I learned this tugging was a call to the ministry. At the young age of seventeen I finally accepted salvation. I had gone through many trials in my young life, including a bout of depression which had me contemplating the end of my life. When I was saved it was a transformation that could only be described as a complete and total change of my spirit. Truthfully, I could only tell a difference in my spirit because my soul was still perplexed. I still struggled with depression and anxiety.A few months after my conversion, I was baptized. It was an experience I will never forget. It was mid-March and we had a youth group camp at the lake. I should tell you that this lake is never warmer than seventy degrees even in the midst of one hundred plus degree weather and even less warm coming off a cold winter. I was one of five people being baptized that day. It was truly memorable and so was the campfire we all ran to afterward.It was a couple more months and my pastor asked me if I would be willing to help with the youth group on Wednesday nights. After some prayer, I told him I would be delighted to help in any way I could. Our youth pastor had a job that kept him out every other week and it was up to me to fill in when he could not be there. This was my first real experience at teaching from the Bible. From that first Wednesday night I was hooked. I knew I had found my right place.Due to some personal issues, I found myself a few years later in a completely foreign land. I had just moved from my home in the depths of Oklahoma to a seemingly hostile area known as Southern Illinois. It was not hostile at all as I was greeted warmly and welcomed into a congregation there with excitement. My time in Illinois was spent evangelizing, singing, and as an associate pastor. I was ordained to ministry in 2007. Our church had a Bible college which met on Monday nights and I was invited to help with some of the classes there. It was as though I had found the most perfect position to ever exist. I was preaching regularly. I was teaching weekly, sometimes two classes. I was on the worship team. I was part of the pastoral team. I had found my place in the world and I could not have been happier.It is a great joy and honor to me to be able to minister the Word of God to people. Whether it is a one-on-one basis, a class full of students, or a congregation filled with hungry listeners, it is my greatest pleasure to be able to break open the Bible and fill the ears and minds of the listeners with the truths of God’s Word. I am now in Oklahoma, again, with my wife and son who are absolutely wonderful. I love them both with all of my heart. They are supportive of my ministry and I could never thank them enough for that. Their support and love are part of what drives me every day. I am grateful to God that He put them in my life.Read more about this authorRead less about this author