In 2016, my wife and I had our second child - a beautiful, baby girl. The months to follow incorporated many days and nights of struggle and disagreement between me and my wife. Nothing seemed to help our relationship. I felt so discouraged during that season of our life. It wasn't until she began speaking with her primary care physician that we realized that she was struggling with postpartum depression, which was compounded by challenges with anxiety pertaining to the fear of illness. The times of these challenges in our marriage helped me become a more patient and understanding person. This woman that I loved so much was struggling with changes and challenges that neither of us understood. We are people of faith and there are so many stigmas that are associated with mental health challenges in relation to being a Christian. We began to be totally aware of our own predispositions and biases toward those that struggled with mental health issues because it had now come to our home. In the present, we are able to see the world around us through the lens of love, grace, and patience because we are certain that we cannot possibly know what any individual may be dealing with internally or externally. We hope to continue making our personal sphere of influence aware of the patience that we all need with each other as we continue to develop, grow, and become who we are all aiming to be in our own ways. In the future, my hopes are tied to a career and dream where I can help those that are struggling with these sorts of issues. Being able to complete a Master's Degree and pursue a licensure to provide professional counseling services will allow me to be hands on with a dream to be a help to those in need. In addition, completion of this degree program will provide a means for the vision of my life in the future, both professionally and personally, to become a reality as we care for those who are in need of a soul that is familiar with their struggle, an ear that is willing to listen, and a voice that is determined to encourage.

The greatest journey that I've ever ventured to go on began on July 5th, 2014. My wife gave birth to our first born, a son - Elijah. At that time, I had just graduated from Lee University with a Bachelor's Degree in Christian Ministries with an emphasis in Counseling. Shortly after the birth of my son, I enrolled in a Master's Degree program through the Seminary that is affiliated with the denomination we are members of. A quick two years after the birth of our son, our daughter was born. Still in pursuit of my Master's Degree, I found myself working at a hospital on night shift (along with my wife, in the same position as a Registered Nurse), Pastoring a small church (with little to no compensation) and attempting to complete a heavy course load in my education. As with so many, I came to a crossroads in my life, ministry, and education where I needed to prioritize what was important. I chose to lay down the pursuit of my education at that time to be able to fully focus on providing for my family, caring for them, and fulfilling my life's calling in ministry. Now, as the Student Pastor of a large church, still an ambitious husband and father of two, I hope to continue my pursuit of a higher degree with the end goal of helping those who struggle with their mental health as a Licensed Professional Counselor. The completion of a degree program and being the owner of my own mental health practice is a vision that will allow me to take another step toward modeling a life of ambition, pursuing growth and passion, while teaching my kids the most meaningful lesson: never give up on your dreams.

In 2016, my wife and I had our second child - a beautiful, baby girl. The months to follow incorporated many days and nights of struggle and disagreement between me and my wife. Nothing seemed to help our relationship. I felt so discouraged during that season of our life. It wasn't until she began speaking with her primary care physician that we realized that she was struggling with postpartum depression, which was compounded by challenges with anxiety pertaining to the fear of illness. The times of these challenges in our marriage helped me become a more patient and understanding person. This woman that I loved so much was struggling with changes and challenges that neither of us understood. We are people of faith and there are so many stigmas that are associated with mental health challenges in relation to being a Christian. We began to be totally aware of our own predispositions and biases toward those that struggled with mental health issues because it had now come to our home. In the present, we are able to see the world around us through the lens of love, grace, and patience because we are certain that we cannot possibly know what any individual may be dealing with internally or externally. We hope to continue making our personal sphere of influence aware of the patience that we all need with each other as we continue to develop, grow, and become who we are all aiming to be in our own ways. In the future, my hopes are tied to a career and dream where I can help those that are struggling with these sorts of issues.

In 2016, my wife and I had our second child - a beautiful, baby girl. The months to follow incorporated many days and nights of struggle and disagreement between me and my wife. Nothing seemed to help our relationship. I felt so discouraged during that season of our life. It wasn't until she began speaking with her primary care physician that we realized that she was struggling with postpartum depression, which was compounded by challenges with anxiety pertaining to the fear of illness. The times of these challenges in our marriage helped me become a more patient and understanding person. This woman that I loved so much was struggling with changes and challenges that neither of us understood. We are people of faith and there are so many stigmas that are associated with mental health challenges in relation to being a Christian. We began to be totally aware of our own predispositions and biases toward those that struggled with mental health issues because it had now come to our home. In the present, we are able to see the world around us through the lens of love, grace, and patience because we are certain that we cannot possibly know what any individual may be dealing with internally or externally. We hope to continue making our personal sphere of influence aware of the patience that we all need with each other as we continue to develop, grow, and become who we are all aiming to be in our own ways. In the future, my hopes are tied to a career and dream where I can help those that are struggling with these sorts of issues. Being able to complete a Master's Degree and pursue a licensure to provide professional counseling services will allow me to be hands on with a dream to be a help to those in need. In addition, completion of this degree program will provide a means for the vision of my life in the future, both professionally and personally, to become a reality as we care for those who are in need of a soul that is familiar with their struggle, an ear that is willing to listen, and a voice that is determined to encourage.

In 2016, my wife and I had our second child - a beautiful, baby girl. The months to follow incorporated many days and nights of struggle and disagreement between me and my wife. Nothing seemed to help our relationship. I felt so discouraged during that season of our life. It wasn't until she began speaking with her primary care physician that we realized that she was struggling with postpartum depression, which was compounded by challenges with anxiety pertaining to the fear of illness. The times of these challenges in our marriage helped me become a more patient and understanding person. This woman that I loved so much was struggling with changes and challenges that neither of us understood. We are people of faith and there are so many stigmas that are associated with mental health challenges in relation to being a Christian. We began to be totally aware of our own predispositions and biases toward those that struggled with mental health issues because it had now come to our home. In the present, we are able to see the world around us through the lens of love, grace, and patience because we are certain that we cannot possibly know what any individual may be dealing with internally or externally. We hope to continue making our personal sphere of influence aware of the patience that we all need with each other as we continue to develop, grow, and become who we are all aiming to be in our own ways. In the future, my hopes are tied to a career and dream where I can help those that are struggling with these sorts of issues. Being able to complete a Master's Degree and pursue a licensure to provide professional counseling services will allow me to be hands on with a dream to be a help to those in need. In addition, completion of this degree program will provide a means for the vision of my life in the future, both professionally and personally, to become a reality as we care for those who are in need of a soul that is familiar with their struggle, an ear that is willing to listen, and a voice that is determined to encourage.

In 2016, my wife and I had our second child - a beautiful, baby girl. The months to follow incorporated many days and nights of struggle and disagreement between me and my wife. Nothing seemed to help our relationship. I felt so discouraged during that season of our life. It wasn't until she began speaking with her primary care physician that we realized that she was struggling with postpartum depression, which was compounded by challenges with anxiety pertaining to the fear of illness. The times of these challenges in our marriage helped me become a more patient and understanding person. This woman that I loved so much was struggling with changes and challenges that neither of us understood. We are people of faith and there are so many stigmas that are associated with mental health challenges in relation to being a Christian. We began to be totally aware of our own predispositions and biases toward those that struggled with mental health issues because it had now come to our home. In the present, we are able to see the world around us through the lens of love, grace, and patience because we are certain that we cannot possibly know what any individual may be dealing with internally or externally. We hope to continue making our personal sphere of influence aware of the patience that we all need with each other as we continue to develop, grow, and become who we are all aiming to be in our own ways. In the future, my hopes are tied to a career and dream where I can help those that are struggling with these sorts of issues. Being able to complete a Master's Degree and pursue a licensure to provide professional counseling services will allow me to be hands on with a dream to be a help to those in need. In addition, completion of this degree program will provide a means for the vision of my life in the future, both professionally and personally, to become a reality as we care for those who are in need of a soul that is familiar with their struggle, an ear that is willing to listen, and a voice that is determined to encourage.