Now Introducing...

I'd like you to meet my beautiful fiance, Miss Aubrie Jade Bernard. For those of you who do not know yet, we will be getting married on April 18, 2009 in Ashland, Ohio. Praise Jesus!


...And, it really is Jesus that deserves the praise here. He has done many great things in order to bring us together, not all of which make sense, but all of which are a tribute of His majesty.

Aubrie is the finest Christian young lady I've ever met. She comes from a not-so-ideal childhood, but God has kept her and protected her in a very special way. Since she never really knew her
biological father, God has really been a true father to her over the years. She was saved as a child and was faithful in church all through her youth.

In August of 2007 she went with her home church, Calvary Baptist Church (Ashland, OH) on a missions trip to Arequipa, Peru. There, they joined a team of 100 people in order to do a medical clinic in the city. They were able to treat thousands of patients, each of which had a personal session with a counselor from the Peru Bible College before receiving treatment. In all, they saw just under 1,400 people trust Christ! Amen!

I lived in Arequipa and even worked with that same ministry during 2004 as part of my missions training in Bible College. Since I knew a lot of people there, and even some that were on the trip, I heard a lot about what God did during that time. I also heard about Aubrie. We got into contact shortly thereafter, God knit our hearts together, and here we are. Engaged. Crazy, is it not?

For about a year we maintained a long distance friendship/relationship, making lots of trips back and forth to Ohio, Georgia, and other states for conferences and such that we both attended. I became quite familiar with both Interstate 75/71 and the Atlanta International Airport during this time. I also racked up a lot of minutes on the cell phone (thank God for Verizon's free in-network calls haha), and became quite familiar with Skype and the US postal service. It was in June that God confirmed in my heart that she was the one. There was no doubt in my mind.

In October of last year God made it possible for Aubrie to move down to GA. She lived with a widow from LBC at first, and later moved into an apartment with two other singles from the church. I was able to see even more clearly that this girl was truly the sweetest, smartest, most caring, most God-fearing, most precious and not to mention most beautiful girl I've ever met. She has been a help to me in the Spanish Ministry at Lighthouse, an encouragement to me in my leadership, a compliment to who I am and she has become my best friend. She makes me a better person. She has changed my life and I love her with all of mine, only second to Christ himself.


I proposed on Thanksgiving Day. Without a doubt, there is nothing and nobody I am more thankful for, apart from my salvation, than Aubrie Jade Bernard. God has brought many influencial people into my life over the years, and I thank God for them, but my biggest blessing has been Aubrie.

Please be praying that God's will would continually be done in us and through us--that we would follow Christ through each step of life, both here in the US as we serve at Lighthouse Baptist Church and down the road when we are in South America. The wedding is coming up soon, and as no doubt you can guess, I am very excited. Not to reach the "Goal" of being married, but to reach the proverbial "Starting block" of this new phase of my life.

What is "Be Magnified?"

Some may be wondering, "what does he mean by 'Be Magnified' anyways?" Simple. I desire nothing more than that Jesus Christ would be lifted up and magnified in my life. I want to be a magnifying glass for the Lord Jesus. What does a magnifying glass do? It just makes whatever is on the other side appear larger to the viewer. My life, my body, my actions are to be nothing more than a looking-glass so people can see what is on the inside--God. And God, magnified.

Paul writes something along these lines in Philippians 1:20-21:

"According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."

We live in a day where SELF is exalted. My job. My money. My life. My family. My time.... You get the picture. This egotistic lifestyle, though halfway gratifying for a small portion of time, will fade away. It is a life that remains empty of purpose, of no value to society, and worthless to God, the very one that created us. Ephesians 2 tells us that he has made us for something greater:

"For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them."

So, why do so many choose to live for less? Because though amazingly gratifying and rewarding, it is a life that requires sacrifice. That is why Paul so blatantly states, "Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death." God calls for us to die. Not always physically, but always in our Will. The magnifying glass must realize that his purpose is not to be admired for his handiwork or beauty, but for people to SEE clearly what's on the other side. Self-pride is not an option. Hence, the name, "Be Magnified." That is my prayer to the Lord Jesus Christ. I'll end with the words of John the Baptist:

"He must increase, but I must decrease."

First Sign of Life

Just as I thought I had technology beat, a sense of urgency seemed to be calling me. Every day, I get up, get ready, get going, get busy, get serving, get blessings, get home and get sleeping and as the world turns around me, the majority of them have no idea. Is this such a big problem? Perhaps no, but what if? What if somebody wanted to know what I ate for breakfast, or how many we had in Spanish Church, or how my wedding plans are going? How would they find out? Well, the average person could just give me a call or ask me in person, but what if they don't have a phone? Or a car to come see me? This screams a potential need. So what is the answer? A blog. My own personal soapbox--a podium to broadcast what is going on in my head to the outside world. Will anybody ever read it? Who knows. I do, however, plan to enjoy myself here, so if you are up for it, subscribe, visit often and brace yourself. You are about to enter into my life.