I have the advantage of a background that is religiously eclectic. I jokingly say I am a Methepiscobapiterianostal. That is to say; most of my life I haven’t had tremendous loyalty to any one denomination or theological system. I have, however, always held a strong commitment to Scripture and living in accord with it. I have a strong belief that all believers in Christ are my brothers and sisters in Christ and should all be treated as such whether they are part of my denomination or not. There is only one body of Christ.
I am also a product of my spiritual heritage. My family since at least 1685, or so, were Quakers until my family moved to California in 1954 and there was no Quaker Meeting House within a reasonable distance of our home. During my senior year in high school, the Lord began to stir up a hunger for him in my heart. That, in God’s providence, led me to an Assembly of God church through an old high school friend. Here I was introduced to the present power of the Holy Spirit. My life was changed forever, and I fell deeply in love with Jesus and have been so ever since.
I eventually graduated from LIFE Pacific College (formerly LIFE Bible College) and went on to Pastor a local church for several years. Eventually, I questioned my leadership in my family and concluded that I had not done well. My passion for ministry had overridden my prior commitment to my family. After a great deal of prayer and soul searching, I resigned and left the pastoral ministry to work on my duties as a husband and father – prerequisites for eldership. It is with great joy that after about three decades I am embarking on this ministry of writing devotional works and find myself in a new ministry to the body of Christ.
I am married to Karen (55 years now) and have two children and two granddaughters. Karen and I live in Escondido, California, which is located in North San Diego County. I work as a financial planner/investment advisor with WorthPointe, LLC. I am a partner in the firm.
From my earliest years, I was taught that the Bible is God’s word and the rule for all of life, not just “religious” life. I believe that more now than ever.
Most importantly, the Bible is the personal communication of our Creator and Redeemer to us personally. It is the primary vehicle through which we get to know him. Reading, studying, and meditating on Scripture is essential to an accurate, intimate, knowledge of God.
It is important to note, however, that we are finite, and he is infinite. We will therefore never have comprehensive knowledge of God, but we can have true knowledge of God. This is why it is always wise to hold our doctrinal positions with some degree of tentativeness, especially those that have not been held for centuries. There are some basic positions that I believe we should hold firmly while other positions cannot be held with the same degree of certainty. This means we must deal with one another with much grace. Here is a statement of what I believe.
I am now in my seventh decade of life and am still learning and growing. We will never “arrive” at a final and complete knowledge of God. We are always being changed from glory to glory by the Spirit of the Lord as we behold the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ through the Scriptures.