My story, His Glory

If you don’t know your story, you will settle for another version of your story or the story that others have for you. In this light, I write my story to give Jesus the glory. I never want to forget what He’s done and where I come from. I came from a rough place and by His grace I made it out. 

My mom would pray and advocate for me and my brothers. She was a key part of opening doors for me. One of the gifts I was given was her faith, along with my brothers, Jesse, who is five years older and my identical twin, John. My brothers have been such a gift to my journey in life. I am thankful for the mom and brothers that the Lord gave me. 

All throughout middle school and high school God put people in my path to a point, in word and deed, to Jesus. It's my goal to name a few of them in order to share this story, but many more make up the story God wrote. I am thankful for the many who make me who I am.  One of those people is Todd Rainwater, who I met when I was a 6th grade he was a youth Pastor at Mt. Paran church of God. He walked with me through a lot of things throughout my teen years. Such as having surgery in middle school, having been put on probation my freshman year and sophomore years of high school, and when I was taken in handcuffs by the police and spent a night in a juvenile detention center. Those moments marked me, but the people who prayed for me, poured into me, and provided opportunities marked me more.

Another person was Jeff Hodges; who was the Youth Pastor at Smyrna First Baptist. His church was down the street from my high school so he had a local presence and served as the advisor for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes chapter. He was encouraging me toward Jesus and I often would get a ride from school to participate in different activities he was leading. His steady and faithful presence showed me what it looks like to show up for others and serve  like Jesus did. 

Lastly, was my learning support teacher Annette Tucker who was Catholic, and let her faith inform how she interacted with people who had learning differences. I was in a lot of trouble in High school. I often skipped school which resulted in me being in and out of school suspensions. In my junior year I began to take my education more seriously and brought my GPA from a 1.3 to a 2.5.  She would help me through high school even though I got suspended A LOT! She kept encouraging me to step into how I learn and not to settle for the easy way out. She let me know about opportunities to expand and grow. Like state funding for those with disabilities to have in-state school paid for. I affectionately would call her my Catholic Cathedral. 

When I was graduating from Campbell high school in Smyrna, GA I was advised by Bryan Kelso to go to Word Of Life. who was my youth leader at Mount Paran Church and friend to go to Word Of Life Bible Institute in Schroon Lake, NY. He was a key part of my journey from high school into adulthood. He helped me learn how to drive and gave me a Study Bible. I was the best man at his wedding and he became like an older brother to me. After teaching me how to drive, he gave me his own car, even being a newlywed himself.

I applied and got into Word of Life Bible Instute and my FASFA came back less than I thought it would be in grants and aid. I would have to figure out how to pay for it. Another friend said, “Where’s your faith?” and then encouraged me to pray about it. I prayed and as I was about to go to the bank the phone rang. It was Elise Carey, who would later go on to marry my friend Bryan. She said, “My dad, Max, wants to sit down with you tonight over dinner and to hear your vision.” Max was a businessman and I sat down to nervously make my pitch as a 17-year-old. 

Max said, “I see you are articulate and I want to invest in you, as I know it hasn’t been an easy path and I like to invest in winners. I am going to take care of tuition, books, flights and your clothes, so you can stay focused. This school will help grow your discipline.”  Max and Susan Carey would go on and help pay for me and my brother's schooling, including an apartment, so that we could stay focused on what we were called to do. 

I was floored. Elise and I went shopping and they booked my flights. Before I left for Word of Life I fully surrendered my life to Jesus and the main part of that was giving dating to Jesus, as that had been a stronghold in my life. I realized though relationships provide temporary comfort often they cause more hurt and codependency for me. So I said to Jesus, “ I give you my dating relationships and the next woman I date, I have to see a future that is centered around you Jesus.” 

Three months after I prayed that prayer I met a young woman named Amy Peters. This one was different. Loved Jesus. Loved People. I had a sense she was going to be my wife…wild, scary and caused me to daily to go the Word of Life Chapel and pray, “Not my will be done, but you will be done in this relationship.” I didn’t tell Amy that as I didn’t want to scare her off! Four years later she would become my wife. She was from Allentown, Pennsylvania and introduced me to Lehigh Valley.

Following my time at WOLBI I came home and Amy and I continued to date while being long distance. Bryan took me to a church plant in Kennesaw, GA called Northstar in the fall of 2000. We met at North Cobb High School where Bryan had set up a meeting with the Student Pastor Russ Butcher. He asked Russ if we would be willing to let me intern with him. He said, “YES!!!”  Russ was a huge part of me growing in my ability to Pastor students and provided an opportunity to learn from him and allowed me to stretch my ministry muscles. Northstar as a church showed me the value of truly loving, serving and being part of your local community as the body of Christ. 

At Northstar, I met many church planters, ministry leaders, and friends: Ike Reighard, Mike and Anne Linch, Aaron and Cameron Coe, Todd and Cythina Cullen, Adam and Morgan Bishop, and Mary and Roscoe Lilly… The Lilly’s would go on to plant in her hometown: Clifton Park, NY…which she prayed over for a move God to take place.

Roscoe would say to me that Northeast has a lot of opportunities to see Churches to be started in and for the local communities. Little did I know that Amy had been praying for the Valley throughout high school! I did two years at Georgia Perimeter College and transferred to where Amy was at school, knowing that we would be getting engaged. The school was Clarks Summit University.  I ended up graduating with a 3.8. At this school I made several friends, one of the most instrumental was Mark Fitch who was a Pastor at Parker Hill Community Church. I would work closely with him and we serve as a mentor and guide for my time there. Both Russ and Mark would officiate our wedding. 

My plan was to move back to Atlanta and take my new bride-to-be with me, but God had other plans. He closed doors to allow me to work there and opened doors in the Lehigh Valley. This time would be pivotal in the starting and establishing of Riverbend Community Church.

I am currently working on Chapter 2. So, be on the lookout for that.