We asked our upcoming Fall Retreat speaker a few questions.

Give us a short summary of your testimony.
I began following Christ as a freshman at Ball State. I had grown up in a religious home, but had never seen people my own age living for him. When I encountered that with some of the folks on my dorm floor, it made me begin to question if there was more to faith than what I had grown up hearing. I began reading the Bible and talking with others about what it meant to follow Christ, and I gave my life to following Jesus the first semester of my freshman year. I’ve been terrorizing the Devil ever since.

Why are you passionate about being on campus?
The college years are often like a fork in the road where people make decisions that will affect the rest of their lives. This is especially true in the way people respond to Jesus. Those who begin or continue to follow him, seem to do so wholeheartedly, whereas those who just want to ride the fence with one foot in Jesus and one foot in the world, find that difficult in an environment like college. I love being on campus because I feel like young people are more open to considering ideas and beliefs that are different from their own. Most young people I meet have not grown up as Christians, and I enjoy sharing with them about who Christ really is and what the Bible is all about.

What’s your favorite part of being a pastor?
The money and the fame.

Tell us about your wife, your kids.
I have a beautiful wife, Kelly whom I met as a freshman. We dated all throughout college and got married when I graduated. She’s really hot. We have five children who all look just like me (God blessed them with amazingly good looks). Our oldest is a girl and the rest are boys. We named them after the members of the Jackson 5.

Who are your biggest influences?
John Drage of course, with Oprah Winfrey a close second. But since Drage has never written any books, I read “O” Magazine, books by NT Wright, Dan Kimball, biographies of old dead people, and and I listen to alot of Mark Driscoll messages. My influences are always changing as I like to expose myself to perspectives that are different than my own, so I can rethink what I really believe. I don’t ever plan on reading the “Left Behind” Series, I was bored with “The Shack”, I use the “Prayer of Jabez” as a coaster for my drinks, and I never go into Christian Bookstores.

What’s your biggest fear?
My biggest fear is worldwide calamity brought on by the cessation of all technology. I’m embarrassed to admit it, but I had developed several strategies for how to deal with what I believed would be the end of all things when Y2K hit. Next to that I would say I’m very claustrophobic.

What do you like to do for fun?
I like to tell stories and try to find people who will listen to me. I also like mountain bike riding, reading books, ultimate fighting, and hip-hop. I once interrupted and was kicked out of the crusade of a certain televangelist. That was one of the funnest things I’ve ever done.

Can you give us an idea of what you’ll be talking about?
I like to keep my topics secret from the press until it’s time to reveal them. I’ll give you a clue though – it will have something to do with God, faith and the Bible.

Link:
Fall Retreat page