As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. Psalm 27:17

I embraced the importance of continual learning and improvement early in my ministry as a United Methodist pastor and denominational leader.

That growth often came through men and women who shared their lives with me as coaches, teachers, mentors, and consultants. They helped sharpen my skills and drew out my potential. They believed in me and were sources of encouragement. I am profoundly grateful for them—my experience of being coached and mentored fuels my passion for doing the same for you.

I love leading local congregations but have always known that God would take my ministry in a new direction. So, in June of 2022, I retired after 41 years of church ministry. Most recently, I was Lead Pastor of a 1450-member suburban congregation in Omaha, Nebraska, with ten full-time and eight part-time staff and an annual budget of $1.5 million. I have expertise in building, leading, and developing staff and lay leaders.

As a United Methodist pastor, I led urban, county seat, and rural congregations.  I have five years of experience as an adjunct professor of preaching at St. Paul School of Theology. And just as others poured their lives into me, I have sought every opportunity to be an encourager, mentor, coach, and consultant.

I mentor new pastors, and serve on the Great Plains Board of Ordained Ministry. I am a trained and experienced Great Plains Peer Coach, and Readiness 360 Coach, and International Coaching Federation member. I am a certified United Methodist Transitional Intentional Interim Ministry Specialist.

As a trusted leader in the Great Plains Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church, I served as Kansas City District Superintendent, the first chairperson of the Great Plains Board of Ordained Ministry, and Vice-Chair of the Conference Council on Finance and Administration in the 1990s.  

My love of lifelong growth led me to attain a Doctorate in Leadership and Biblical Preaching at Asbury Theological Seminary in 2000. I earned a Master of Divinity at Emory University in 1985 and a BA in Philosophy from Washburn University in 1982.

I began attending church as a 15 year old at the invitation of a friend. It took him three years to get me there, but once I went I never quit going! I accepted Christ as my savior at a district youth rally, was baptized, and then joined the church my junior year in high school.. The call to ministry came in my sophomore year in college. I became the youth minister at my home church in my junior year, and was appointed to my first charge during my last year of college in 1981. Christ is my savior and I love Christ’s body, the Church.

My wife Melissa and I have been married for over 40 years. We live ministry as a partnership, and she has been the most powerful influence in my life. We raised our four daughters to be strong, courageous, compassionate, and loving.

I enjoy restoring our 1926 Craftsman Era home in the historic College Hill Neighborhood of Topeka, Ks, fishing, especially fly fishing, fly-tying, woodworking, and gardening. I enjoy British mysteries, leadership books, biographies, and history.