Pastor. Crisis Chaplain. Author.
Forty years in the doorways of other people's hardest days
Crisis chaplaincy means you're the one who walks up to the door on the worst day of someone's life. The drowning. The fire. The knock no family ever wants. I've stood in hundreds of those doorways over four decades — and they taught me something seminary didn't: in a crisis, nobody needs your answers. They need your presence.
Peace is transferable — and so is panic. What you carry in the door is what you give. That raised a question I couldn't put down: why does a calm presence change a room? Why can a person know every promise in Scripture and still not be able to stop shaking?
I went looking in two places at once — the Bible I'd preached for decades, and the neuroscience of how God actually built us. What I found is the foundation of everything I teach: we are whole people. God designed the nervous system, and He is not embarrassed to work through it. Healing travels at the speed of safety.
I didn't learn this as an observer
I spent about thirty years of ministry pushing feelings down and calling it maturity. On the outside: steady pastor, dependable chaplain. On the inside: a pressure cooker — overreactions I couldn't explain, nights staring at the ceiling, and a growing distance between what I preached and what I could actually receive.
Getting unstuck took both my faith and an honest look at how my brain worked. Neither alone was enough. Both together changed everything — my marriage, my ministry, and the way I sit with people in pain.
That's the both/and I teach now.
The both/and that changes everything
Solid biblical theology. Well-replicated brain science. Never one at the expense of the other.
Faith + Science
Not "just pray more." Not "just therapy." God designed your brain — neuroscience just discovered what Scripture has taught for 2,000 years.
Practical Tools
You won't just know more. You'll do something different when anxiety hits, when you're triggered, when you feel distant from God.
Tending, Not Diagnosing
Coaching, teaching, and pastoral care — walking with you toward the healing God designed you for, and pointing to clinical help when that's what you need.
The receipts, for those who want them
Four decades in ministry, crisis rooms, and classrooms — so you're never talking to someone who just read about it.
Full credentials
- BA in Biblical Studies & MA in Pastoral Counseling — Covington Theological Seminary
- Lead Pastor, Vineyard Life Church (Indianapolis & Plainfield, IN)
- Chaplain, Wayne Township Fire Department (Indianapolis)
- Crisis chaplaincy with FEMA, American Red Cross, DHS, and the Indiana Crisis Response Team
- Federation of Fire Chaplains — Trainer
- NOVA Certified · AACC Mental Health Coach
- Author of eight books, including the bestselling No Longer Stuck 2.0 and the Heart & Mind Bible Study Series
- Founder, Helping Others Heal (501c3 coaching ministry)
Books, courses, and resources forged in real ministry
Everything I create lives at the intersection of biblical theology and brain science — so you get tools you can actually use.
A whole library of practical healing tools
No Longer Stuck 2.0 — the Amazon bestseller that started it all. Available in English and Spanish.
The No Longer Stuck Course — book, workbook, self-assessment, and eight training videos for $79.
Heart & Mind Bible Study Series — daily devotional, commentary, and mental health insights in one volume.
Pastor's Resource & Church Kit — free resource for pastors, plus a complete kit to launch a mental health ministry in your church.
The people this site is for
If you're a pastor carrying everyone else's crises and quietly running on empty — I see you. I've been there.
If you're a first responder stacking up calls you can't unsee — I've stood beside you at the scene.
If you're a believer who can't point to a "big trauma" but still feels broken inside — the absence of love is harder to heal than abuse, because you don't know what you're missing. This is for you.
My wife Lori and I make our home in the Indianapolis area. She's been my anchor and my truth-teller through all of it.
Ready to get unstuck?
Book a free Discovery Call and let's talk about what's keeping you stuck — and what a next step could look like. No pressure. No pitch. Just a real conversation with someone who's walked this road.
Prefer to start on your own? Take the free 3-minute Spiritual Life Assessment →
