I serve as Co-Pastor at The Table Church in Washington, DC, an affirming, multiracial, non-denominational community committed to following Jesus without the baggage of white Christian nationalism. I share the profound joy of life with my wife Emily and our children, Audrey and Wesley.
Since age 10, I've called Goshen, Indiana home. Before joining The Table Church in 2020, my family and I served congregations in northwest Iowa for a decade, learning that ministry is most meaningful when it happens around actual tables with real people sharing honest questions.
When I'm not wrestling with theology or chasing after my kids, you'll find me debating whether The Empire Strikes Back or Fellowship of the Ring represents peak storytelling, testing the latest Apple gadgets, or conducting serious research into the subtle differences between Pellegrino and LaCroix.
What You're Getting Yourself Into
I believe in intellectual honesty and theological clarity, so here's where I stand:
- I'm a Christian pastor. I affirm the Nicene Creed. I believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ; the Trinity; that Christ will come again.
- Faith Foundations: I'm a Christian pastor who affirms the Nicene Creed, believes in Christ's resurrection and the Trinity, and trusts that Christ will come again. The Bible is inspired and authoritative—though not inerrant. All the mistakes are there on purpose.
- Human Dignity: LGBTQI+ people are made in God's image, and their lives and relationships reveal the holy divine. I joyfully perform marriages between same-gendered couples. I affirm that racism is America's original sin, that Black Lives Matter, and that dismantling systems of oppression is Christian work. I'm a feminist who believes women deserve full autonomy over their bodies and leadership in all spheres.
- Theological Distinctives: I embrace Christian Universalism—God revealed in Jesus is wooing and reconciling all creation and will ultimately succeed. No one is abandoned to eternal torment. I hold to Open and Relational Theology, believing God responds to creation in real-time relationship.
- Justice Commitments: My politics lean decidedly left-of-center. I believe police and prison abolition offers a concrete way to pray "Thy Kingdom come" with our feet.
- Truth reveals itself best through stories—especially if those stories happen to involve lightsabers or hobbits.
Professional Background
Education
- Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy, Bible, and Ministry, Bethel University (2009)
- Master of Divinity with emphasis in Theology, Asbury Theological Seminary (2015)
Specialized Training
- Advanced Trauma-Competent Care (Trauma Free World)
- PREPARE-ENRICH Marriage Counseling (10+ years certified)
- 3DM Mission and Discipleship Learning Community
- VantagePoint3 Trained Facilitator, Vista Discipleship Cohort
Core Competencies
- Teaching and Preaching with theological depth and cultural relevance
- Spiritual and Community Formation that honors both tradition and innovation
- Pastoral Care and Counseling, specializing in faith deconstruction/reconstruction, religious trauma recovery, and marriage counseling
- Worship Leadership that blends contemporary expression with liturgical rootedness
Theological Distinctives
My Christian faith hinges on three things.
- The physical, historical resurrection of Jesus—I believe it actually happened, that historians can make a compelling case for it, and that it changes everything about how we understand life, death, and hope.
- Jesus as ultimate revelation—Christ shows us what God is truly like, which fundamentally shapes how we read Hebrew scripture and approach theological questions.
- God as love—If 1 John 4 is true that "God is love," then God embodies the patient, kind, non-envious, non-boastful, non-arrogant love described in 1 Corinthians 13.