About

The Short:

I’m a Christian, which means I am a follower and worshiper of Jesus Christ and affirm that He alone is my Lord and Savior. This is the most important thing about me and defines the framework of everything else about me. I believe in One Triune God (Father/Son/Spirit). I believe humans are created in His image as the pinnacle of all created things, both seen and unseen. I love and am devoted to my family, the church (global and local), and my community which includes people of all walks of life. I affirm the five “Solas” of the Protestant Reformation (Scripture alone, Christ alone, faith alone, grace alone, and glory to God alone). I hold to an orthodox Christian doctrine (see: the Apostle’s Creed, the Nicene Creed, and the Athanasian Creed), and I affirm my local church’s statement of beliefs.

I tend to type as an Enneagram 6w5, a Myers-Briggs INFJ, and a strong Banker-Innovator on the Core Values Index. I think there is a lot to agree on in this life and at this particular moment in history and culture even though many people and issues are so polarized. Through my work with a psychologist dealing with depression and anxiety, I’ve come to see that most thinking errors are a result of unhealthy thinking patterns and faulty beliefs. I’m learning to accept myself and to judge myself and others less. I’m complicated, compassionate, quirky, slightly subversive, fairly sarcastic, a deep feeler, and loyal. People who have known me for years say they’re still trying to figure me out. I hear that. I’m trying to figure myself out, too. I process my thoughts and feelings by writing (blogs, social posts, poetry, songs, and letters). I enjoy coffee, music, art, and the natural world.

The Long:

I grew up in Portland, Oregon. I always believed in God and had heard stories about Jesus dying for my sins. I surrendered my life to the call of Christ at a family summer camp during middle school and was baptized at the age of 14. I also learned to play the guitar, write poetry and songs, and began helping my older cousin lead the singing in our youth group around that time.

Throughout high school and college (and in between), I was part of a few bands. I recorded two albums with the band Ebb Tide (for which I was the lead vocalist and one of the songwriters), a solo worship music album, and a solo EP of other songs I had written about life in general with a sub context of anxiety laced throughout.

I met my wife at a coffee shop. We got married a couple years later, and we have two kids.

In my early 30s, I went back to college to finish my Bachelor’s degree. Throughout my late teens and all of my twenties, I was in and out of college. In addition to the degree I finished in Psychology, I also studied English Literature, Music Ministry, Biblical Studies, and Theology.

I’ve been leading worship in one form or another, and singing and writing songs in other forms for the majority of my life.

In addition to being passionate about music and worship, I care deeply about authentic community, biblical justice, identity in Christ, and marriage and family issues. I enjoy the Pacific Northwest (and the West Coast), sunshine, reading, writing, roasting coffee, making music, and spending time with my family and friends.

In 2023, I began Western Seminary’s Advanced Certificate in Transformational Coaching (ACTC) program. Check out my coaching page to learn more.

I tend to be an idealistic pessimist which leads to a lot of disenchantment with systems and traditions – especially when I observe that those systems and traditions no longer serve the objective they once did. I believe character matters just as much as ideology, meaning that you better live what you say you believe. I’m a critical thinker and highly attentive to detail. I tend to see the world as connected, so I’m learning to view issues through more of a “collectivist” mindset than an “individualist” one, which also leads to a lot of disenchantment in Western civilization, given how autonomous and selfish many of us tend to be, myself included. I often think of the downside and potential pitfalls before identifying benefits and what could go right. Many times, I’ve felt that people are impatient with me as I work through all of the possible outcomes (starting with the negatives and moving to the positives). I tend to be silent until I know what I really think about something and have settled on the best way to communicate it. This can lead to me feeling unheard, unseen, and perhaps misunderstood (either as not caring or being in agreement when perhaps I am not). In group conversations, the topic often changes before I’ve even decided what I really want to say about the previous one. I tend to feel that everyone is in too much of a hurry. I think that is why I prefer to write rather than speak. I prefer a slower, quieter life. To a fault, I also tend to overstate or over-generalize everything (see what I did there?).

You might wonder “Why all this disclosure?” Well, since the primary purpose of this site is to share my writing and music with anyone interested, I figure it might be nice for you, dear reader, to have some context. So, if you’ve read all of this, I’m grateful (and surprised). I’m glad you’re here. Welcome to my space.

Some Fun Facts:

• I make killer gluten-free scones!
• Foods I enjoy: Tacos, Burgers, Lasagna, Indian cuisine
• Favorite authors: C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, Andrew Peterson, N.D. Wilson, Tim Keller, and A.W. Tozer
• Drink(s) of choice: Black coffee, masala chai, and sparkling water. Also an occasional gin & tonic, or a nice bourbon or scotch.
• I roast my own coffee.