…aspire to live quietly, to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands.
1 Thessalonians 4.11

In Brief

Anglican Deacon discerning the Priesthood, full-time pastor, full-time software engineer, family Game Master, and regular contributor at Anglican Compass. WV → KY → WV

Veritas ☩ Bonitas ☩ Pulchritudo

Born and raised in a small town nestled amongst the Appalachian Mountains in West Virginia, I did a brief 15-year stint in Louisville, KY, before moving to Morgantown, WV, with my wife and two kids.

I was ordained into the Sacred Order of Deacons by the Right Rev’d Bishop Steve Breedlove, Anglican Diocese of Christ our Hope, in September 2019, after spending more than a decade as a deacon and elder in a Baptist church. I’m discerning a call to the Priesthood while serving as the Deacon-in-Residence for a new Anglican Mission in Morgantown. I also serve with the Anglican Creation Care Network.

I have a BSR in Recreation, Parks, and Tourism from West Virginia University (2006), and an MDiv in Christian Ministry from Southern Seminary (2011).

I enjoy good art, good coffee, and good conversation. Theologically, my interests lie in theological anthropology, liturgical and sacramental theology, beauty, and creation. I’m an advocate for conservationism, and my BSR focused on natural resources and sustainable tourism. Some of my major influences include Abraham Kuyper, Eugene Peterson, and Wendell Berry.

Ecclesia Anglicana Appalachia

Early in my ordination process, my diocese announced a focused effort towards planting churches in West Viginia. Through the work of Hope Church, Redeemer Parkersburg, and Christ the King Anglican Church, Mission Hope: WV was born.

Mission Hope is a Gospel-centered, Bible-saturated, God-glorifying, Jesus-worshiping, Spirit-led, Anglican church planting initiative of the Diocese of Christ Our Hope in West Virginia.
missionhopewv.org¹

Morgantown, WV, was quickly recognized as a place where God seemed to be at work, and fertile ground for a new Anglican church. For years I had sensed God calling me back to my home state. With the diocesan announcment, my wife and I began to discern and pray as to whether God was calling us to Morgantown. Within months, God so orchestrated events in our life as to give us a strong affirmative answer. In June 2022, my family and I moved there to help start the new mission, culminating my long journey home.

Today, we gather with a number of interested and committed people for weekly Evening Prayer. Out of this gathering a robust and healthy core group has formed, and we are looking forward to what God has in store for Mission Hope: Morgantown. Our group is currently under the leadership of Fr. Ben Sharpe, Canon Missioner of West Virginia, and Fr. Derek Roberts, our priest-in-charge, rector of Hope Church, and dean of AD Hope’s Appalachian Deanery.