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Years ago, I had a personal crisis of faith. Maybe that’s the wrong way to word what I went through, but it was a rough time to be sure. I was nearing the end of my Master of Divinity program at Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary and I didn’t know what to do next. I was paralyzed by fear. I felt on the verge of a mental breakdown, as if I could run away and hide and that would protect me from messing up by making the wrong decision.

But God, in His incredible mercy and grace, pursued me in my fear and filled me with joy, purpose, and hope. In a moment of rare and incredible clarity, I sensed God leading me to devote my life to faithfully pastor and train the next generation of pastors. That sense of calling from the Lord led me to earn a PhD from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and to devote my life to a local church and the highs and lows of pastoral ministry.

One of the highest highs in my ministry today is the Pastoral Residency Program that we began last year at Poquoson Baptist Church. Through this program I am (by God’s grace and for His glory) realizing that sense of calling to train the next generation of pastors. Since January I’ve met almost every week with a group of men for the purpose of growing together in the joy-filled calling of pastoral ministry. Some of these men may be vocational pastors one day. Some may be lay elders in their churches, wherever God ultimately leads them. All of them I trust will find themselves better equipped to faithfully follow Jesus based on their time in this program.

Click here to learn more about this incredible program at PBC. And may God continue to raise up more and more faithful young men to proclaim the excellencies of Him who called them out of darkness into His marvelous light.

Soli Deo Gloria!