What a privilege it is to serve as Pastor at Upper Room Bible Church. Like many of you, God has taken me on an unexpected journey. I was raised in a Christian home, but we moved a lot (I lived in 5 states growing up). I moved to Catlin (IL) in 8th grade, and by the time I graduated high school, I was living my own dream. God was not at the forefront of my life. Yet, God had a plan for my life. I went to Purdue Northwest to study philosophy and play golf. While I was there, the Lord took hold of my life and all the God centered teachings of my youth began to show fruit in my life. I became a campus evangelist sharing my faith with anyone who would listen. I learned very quickly that God has given me a great passion to reach the lost. I decided to follow this path to Princeton Seminary where I completed my Master of Divinity. During my last semester of seminary, I married my wife, Elizabeth, and we have one daughter Ada (2). We are a small family for now, but our hope is that God will bless us with more children in the future. Now, after several stops along the way, I am privileged to be the pastor of Upper Room Bible Church.
The most important thing you could know about me is that I am passionate about seeing people live out the calling God has placed on their lives. Not every Christian is called to be a pastor or missionary, but EVERY Christian is called to be a disciple. Sometimes, we just need a little help to live out our discipleship. Most everything we encounter is not actually helping us to be a better disciple of Christ. In fact, much of it is actually hindering our ability to answer God’s life. That is why it is my goal as a pastor to provide you and your family the resources needed to live out your faith.
If you decide to visit us at Upper Room Bible Church, you will notice right away that we like to get to know our visitors. In fact, this is what attracted my wife (Elizabeth) and I to Upper Room Bible Church. You will find many different churches in each place you visit, but you will not always find a congregation that is so ready to connect with new people. Even though it might be scary, it is a good thing! After all, we need each other. We cannot do it alone. I have tried alone, and it just flat out doesn’t work. So if you find yourself in the Paxton, IL area on a Sunday, come worship with us at 10:30 am.
