I have had to overcome much to get where I am today. To start I was afraid of my father most of the time and didn’t really know him well. He was ex-military and was an abusive alcoholic with a violent temper. He was sentenced to prison when I was only 8 years old. My mother, overwhelmed by the daunting responsibility of raising three children on her own, abandoned me and my two sisters leaving us to live with her estranged mother. They never got along with each other, so we really didn’t know our grandmother that well. My mother went to the store the night we got there and she didn’t come back. We later found out she and her boyfriend left for California. My world was literally crumbling around me.
The only contact I had with my father during this time was through prison visitations. I didn’t see him very often; when I did, he would barely talk to me, I didn’t see very much of my mom either. Later realizing her mistake, my mother returned from California, but social services would not allow me and my sisters to live with her. My father was eventually released from prison, but he died having never come to visit me again. My grandmother passed away the following year; it was then that my’ mother came back into my life. We have a healed relationship today; a testimony of the restoration brought about in my’ life.
Despite the years of heartbreak and the traumatic events of a shattered childhood, I was determined to rise above it. For years I had heard, “he won’t amount to much†or “he’ll be just like his daddy†– Those destructive words cast a dark shadow over my life, but God had other plans. Even in the midst of my troubled youth, God was clearing a path and orchestrating events in my life, preparing me for a very different future.
I started playing guitar when I was 15 with a bluegrass band my uncle Martin started. Although I could play guitar, most people wanted me to sing. Eventually switching from bluegrass to country, I continued traveling and performing throughout the southeast. I was fulfilling a dream, but I knew something was missing.
In 1989, I was invited to church and it was there that I found what was missing in my life. I gave my heart to Jesus and my life has never been the same. Looking back on my childhood, I can now see that God hid me from the dangers of both my mother and father’s lifestyles so that He could do something through me to break the cycle. The very wounds that could have destroyed me now fuel my passion for reaching those who need to know the redemptive power of God’s grace.
When I came to the Lord, my life was forever changed and my future began to unfold in ways I could never have imagined. I began singing gospel music, My only prayer then and now is that people say after leaving a service, “I had an experience with God tonight.†Music has always played an important role in my life. When I was young and alone it was my hiding place. I used to listen to music to release the pain inside of not being wanted by the ones who were supposed to love me the most. I have surrendered the pain of my past to God and through my music and the power of my testimony; I am seeing people released from the bondage of their own pain. I am just overwhelmed at times to look out over a congregation and see what God is doing. You never know what God will use to bring about a defining moment in someone’s life.
I take seriously the calling God has placed on my life. Because of my passion for reaching people who are lost and hurting; I am very deliberate in seeking out those that have no one to tell them how important they are to God. There are so many out there who are bound by the chains of their sin and imprisoned by the wounds of their past. I know this all too well; I was one of them. Growing up, I was never told about Jesus or how He could change your life. I don’t know if it was because we looked so poor or didn’t have nice enough clothes. I really don’t know why nobody reached out to us. I just know that I have to reach everyone that I can no matter who they are.
I believe that God has called me to reach the lost outside the Church and bring them in that His house might be full,. I want people to understand that no matter how bad they have messed up, wherever they come from, whatever they look like, or whatever they’re involved in, He can deliver them, and that they are loved. This is why I feel God has called me to minister to people who have fallen or have been told they are not good enough. I have been involved with youth ministries through the years and have met many kids who are never told that God can forgive them. I like to challenge them and tell them, Get up, God is not done with you.
I have been sharing the testimony of God’s grace in my own life throughout my native North Carolina and through missions trips to as far off places as Nicaragua. In 2007, God opened even more doors increasing my platform to a global audience. As winner of the Inspiration Network’s 2007 Christian Artist Talent Search, I garnered the attention of ministry-focused independent label Whiplash Records, who will release my recording debut, The Edge on December 26, 2007 nationwide and throughout the world in 2008.
I am a member of the worship team at my local church where I work extensively with the youth and drama departments. I also am active in our international missions team to Nicaragua. I make my home in Madison, North Carolina with my wife Barbara and our two boys CJ and Corey.
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