Teena and I married in 1984; I was 21, Teena only 18. We were both in the middle of serious rebellion and lovers of the world. After less than a year of marriage, we were separated and remained that way for a year and a half. Drugs, alcohol, and adulterous relationships had taken their toll. The baggage we carried was heavy…very heavy. As a last ditch effort to reconcile in 1987, our parents gave us the gift of a FamilyLife Weekend To Remember Getaway. Their only condition was that we had to agree to stay the entire weekend.
Renewing our vows on 25th Anniversary
We reluctantly accepted, believing we would be able to get our parents off our back and be able to move forward with our pending divorce.
Over the course of the weekend, God moved on two very cold hearts. We not only gave our lives back to Jesus Christ that weekend, but left the conference with Hope. The Hope that only Christ can give.
We had a LOT of baggage to work though. The next five years were not easy, but step-by-step we made choices to put our selfishness aside and to forgive each other. We even found forgiveness for ourselves along the way.
In 2002, we answered God’s call on our lives to serve him as full-time missionary staff with FamilyLife. Giving the same hope to others that we received that weekend so very long ago!
We now reside in Little Rock, Arkansas, where FamilyLife’s headquarters are based. Our three grown sons, Michael, 26; Josh, 24; and Ben, 20 are our greatest blessing. We believe there is ALWAYS hope! We remain new creations in Christ, in His fight for the family!
Bringing the HOPE of CHRIST to families everywhere