Elementary

I joined the Northwest staff in October of 2020 as the Family Life Minister. After serving as a missionary and on staff at three churches since 2001, I am happy to be a part of what God is doing here in the Northwest family! Growing up in Memphis, I did not grow up in a home where Jesus was present. After finding myself in and out of trouble, God took control of my life and allowed me to meet an intentional youth pastor and students who invested in me. At 15 years old, God radically changed my life as I surrendered my life to Him and began to understand His grace and love! I was blessed enough to be a part of leading my mom to the Lord and helping my dad commit to a church once again! At 17, I knew God was calling me to serve Him for the rest of my life vocationally. My story has been and continues to be a story of grace – I have never deserved what God has done in my life and how He continues to use me, yet time after time, I find myself being blessed to be a part of His plan! A passage that has always resonated with me is John 3:30 – He (Jesus) must increase, but I must decrease. My hope is that people see Jesus in me more today than yesterday! When we have free time my wife Amy, and our two kids, Eli and Emma love camping, being outdoors, and eating tacos. I love coaching my kid’s sports teams, playing guitar, and being disappointed by Tennessee Vols Football.

In September 2022, I joined the staff at Northwest as the Children’s Minister! I was born in Guatemala and adopted as a baby. I was raised in a Christian home, grew up in the church, and became a believer at a young age. I went to Moody Bible Institute where I got my degree in Children’s Ministry. After graduation, I had the privilege of returning to serve on staff at the church that raised me. Children’s Ministry in the local church has always been my passion, and there is such joy in discipling the next generation. It is only by God’s good grace and faithfulness that I am who I am today. In high school and college, I found satisfaction in the world and sought to please people out of fear of rejection. These days, I am reminded of Ephesians 2:10 "I am a masterpiece, created by God to do good works." I also have a heart for children in the foster care system, being both a CASA worker and a respite worker through CPS. On my days off, I spend time in creation, whether that's a State Park, hiking, fishing at a lake, camping, or just going for a drive with the windows down.

I am so excited to be the Elementary Ministry Director at Northwest! I grew up in Houston, TX and moved to Dallas in 2014 to attend the University of Dallas to play college soccer. After my freshman year I felt a calling to pursue vocational children’s ministry, so the next year I transferred to Dallas Baptist University to pursue a degree in Christian Studies. During those college years I began to serve in various children’s ministry programs and learned so much about teaching God’s word to others! Kid’s ministry is my biggest passion because when I was a kid, I didn’t know God in the way I do now. At a young age I knew of God but I had no idea what it meant to have a relationship with Him or that He was a loving, good God. I thought God was just this big figure in the sky that watched the world from afar. It wasn’t until the summer before my senior year of high school, after years of struggling with depression, fear, and loneliness that I learned God’s true character and began a true relationship with Him. I pray that every child that comes through this church body will learn about and experience that same love from our heavenly father! In my free time I still love to play soccer and other active games like spike ball or pickleball. I also love carpentry and will often spend entire weekends in my garage-turned-workshop building a new project.

I am so thankful to be serving at Northwest as the Family Ministry Administrative Assistant! I grew up in a tiny community in Central Texas, and graduated from Stephen F. Austin with a degree in Creative Writing, which has always been my passion. Throughout college, and in the year after, God moved in my life and opened so many doors for me to witness and work within different children’s ministries — as a camp staffer, a volunteer, and even a curriculum writer — and gave me a heart for it as well.  One verse that’s continually given me hope during seasons of anxiety, exhaustion, and uncertainty is Psalm 27:13, where King David says, “I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.” It’s a beautiful reminder that even in our darkest hours, we know God has light in store for us ahead!