Looking back to the very beginning of our story, we see the way God worked in unlikely ways to ultimately use every moment and aspect for our good and His glory.

Shannon and I met back in college at a small school in northern Wisconsin. Considering that I’m from Vancouver, British Columbia and Shannon is from Atlanta, Georgia, this in and of itself is evidence of God’s intentional pursuit in our lives and gives a glimpse of how He has always worked in unlikely ways to orchestrate everything in beautiful ways.

There have been many pivotal moments that have shaped our family in unexpected ways: We were married in 2010, Shannon accepted Christ as her Savior, we welcomed four children, Stephen became an American citizen, and the Lord saw fit to call and place Stephen in full-time ministry as a pastor. I have had the privilege of serving for over nine years in pastoral ministry and find it a great joy to live out the great commission in our community and in our local church.

Our walks with the Lord have continued to be shaped by the ordinary means of grace that God has used to lead our hearts to treasure Jesus above everything else. We are thankful for how the Lord has used every moment to grow and sustain our desire to serve Him in whatever ways He deems best. Through the Word, we have come to understand and submit to the truth that our worth is found in Christ alone, and we are humbled by the truth that we bring no skill, value, or purpose apart from who we are in Him alone. We desire to live out the command to make disciples, and we are eager to continue to build relationships with those around us and intentionally invest the Word in their lives as we seek to know Christ together.

While we still have a lot of unknowns ahead of us, and we feel our weaknesses profoundly, we rest in our insufficiencies, and we anticipate God to work in great ways as we boast in knowing Him.