My Journey to Graduation: Third Time’s the Charm
I, like most students entering college, dreamt of the day I would leave Northwest University: the day I would walk across that stage and receive my diploma for the degree I worked so hard for. Unfortunately, I left NU two separate times before that happened. The first time was the most embarrassing. I had some wild and crazy notion that I could succeed at school without attending my classes on a regular basis.
I did indeed succeed. I succeeded in “earning” six Fs in my classes and getting put on academic probation. So I left Northwest defeated and disappointed in myself. But I wasn’t going to give up. I went into a one-year internship program at my church and took correspondence courses that I would then transfer back to Northwest following the completion of my internship. It was during the internship program that God spoke to me, telling me there was more inside me that He wanted to draw out, if I’d let Him.
So, I returned to Northwest ready to complete my degree a second time. However, a year and a half later, I felt the call of God to leave NU even though my degree was not yet completed. I went to Las Vegas to become a youth pastor. I tried to complete my degree through a different school that had an extension in Southern Nevada, but it didn’t work out. I decided to take the next several years and just focus on my ministry career.
Then, in 2004, my beautiful bride suggested I look at trying to finish my degree at Northwest. With the help of many at NU, especially transcript analyst Matt Riveria and Professor Waldemar Kowalski, I was able to complete my final nine classes in 18 months while still being a full-time husband, father, and pastor.
This third time coming to Northwest was the charm for me. I completed the dream I had of walking across the stage and receiving my diploma from Northwest University—it just took me 11 years to do it.
Shortly after graduating, God started to redirect my heart from leading students in a church to becoming the lead pastor of a church.
Like with my degree, I took a different path than most. My wife and I decided to look beyond what we had known and imagined where God might want us to go. This led us to New Life Community Church in Marion, Indiana, in 2006. The Midwest has become our home, and we love being able to serve in the exact place God wants us to.
There are many things we’ve been able to accomplish at New Life over the past 11 years. We host the largest Easter egg hunt in northeastern Indiana. We house several non-profit organizations to benefit kids and their families. And we are active in our community, partnering with others to love the people of Grant County.
Because of my new book, Son of David: Drawing the King out in Every Man, I have the opportunity to share its message with men all across Indiana and around the country. I am truly honored and humbled by it all. Your path does not have to look like everyone else’s, but it does need to be the one God has for you.