As I was growing up in Southwest Missouri, my parents regularly took me to Sunday School and Church. For this manner of upbringing I am very thankful. At the age of eleven I experienced the work of the Holy Spirit in my heart as I became aware that I was personally accountable before God for my life, my conduct and most of all for my sinful condition. I tried to deny this within myself and hide from my true condition. Due to the continued mercy of God and the sincere concern of his people I could not escape from this reality and I began to seek and pray for the salvation of my soul. I was not instructed to "repeat a prayer" or "believe in my mind", but I was instructed that I must surrender and follow the Holy Spirit as he drew my heart and that it was essential that I repent of my sins and trust the Lord with out reservation. The burden and hurt of my conviction of sin would be taken away and I would know for myself that I am saved. As I struggled in my heart to call upon God to save my wretched soul, I found myself eventually to be at an empty end. At that very moment I felt the Holy Spirit move within my heart drawing me toward the Lord's will. As I simply and totally surrendered in faith I experienced the darkening sorrowful feelings go away and the sensations of joy, happiness and inner peace make an entrance within me. I have found it difficult to express with satisfaction what I underwent at that particular moment, but I know this unique occurrence had never happened before and I have not experienced a weighted heart of dread, sorrow and anxiety since. By this personal experience I am confident of my soul's salvation and have an assurance for an eternity with the Lord.

Later on, as a teenager, I recieved a very clear and plain "call" to preach. This was experienced as I was praying. As I felt myself to young and insufficient to the task I attempted to let this matter slide by. I found that I could not escape from the Holy Spirit pressing this matter deep within me. I ultimately yielded to the fact that it was God's will that I engage in preaching His word and acknowledged this fact. After preaching for a few years, I was ordained to the full work of the ministry in 1973. I pastored Churches in Southwest Missouri from 1976 until 1993 when we moved to Colorado. At present I am involved with Pilgrims' Way Missionary Baptist Mission, which is an extended arm of Liberty Missionary Baptist Church, in an effort to establish a Missionary Baptist Church in Colorado.

On May 19, 1968, I and my wife Cherie were united in marriage. Cherie is a source of encouragement in my experience as a minister. We have two sons, Jeremy, Nixa MO, and Adam, Aurora CO. I am thankful that the Lord has blessed our family in that our family circle is complete, as each one has testified to an experience of the saving grace of God.