we’re going back.
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In 2020, my wife Naomi and I set out to plant a church in New Orleans, Louisiana. God made this mission undeniably clear to us, and despite our efforts to resist, we knew it was His calling. On August 30, 2019, we left our home and friends in Charlotte, NC, with only a Penske truck, our French bulldog, and a God-given assignment. We were fortunate to have five incredible friends join us. The seven of us—known as The Founders—spent the early months of 2020 praying, strategizing, and seeking the Lord.
In that short time, God provided jobs, apartments, meeting spaces, and ministry connections. Miracle after miracle was falling into place and we learned firsthand that when God gives a vision, He provides the resources.
The journey, however, was much harder than I expected. I struggled to stay emotionally composed, battling self-doubt and I found it hard to get out of bed. The pressure to lead was crushing, and I was on the brink of collapse after just two months.
Then, two major events occurred:
1. Naomi and I found out we were pregnant. We were thrilled to be expecting but also overwhelmed by our reality. We were in a new city with no health insurance, and an unstable income, and I was battling depression.
2. COVID-19. A friend with connections to the President warned me about the coming national emergency, and my dad, who worked closely with the military, confirmed that the world was about to come to a standstill.
With all these things happening at once, Naomi and I made the tough decision to pause the church plant and move to Stillwater, Oklahoma.
Why Stillwater? Stillwater is where Naomi grew up, and her family lives there. We visited in the past, and for us, it had always been a place of rest. Naomi is a registered Native American, which meant we wouldn’t have to worry about healthcare costs during her pregnancy as long as we were living in Oklahoma. From our vantage point, this made the move all the more enticing and necessary.
Leaving New Orleans meant calling the remaining founders to tell them we were stepping away indefinitely. It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. These friends had quit their jobs and left their cities to build a church with us, and now I had to tell them I was leaving. I felt like I was letting everyone down, but I knew I needed to heal before I could lead again.
For months, I wrestled with the shame of leaving. I felt like I had ruined people’s lives, and in some ways, I had. But over time, I’ve come to see that it was God’s provision, not punishment. Continuing in that season would have caused more harm than good. I understand that now.
Then what happened? On March 15, 2020, we moved to Stillwater. The pandemic turned out to be far more intense than we had imagined. I started working at my sister-in-law’s restaurant and took on part-time digital marketing jobs to make ends meet. Naomi and I moved into one of her father’s rental properties, and on October 21, 2020, we welcomed our first child. We got pregnant again and had our second child on August 10, 2022. I continued working in marketing from home, and we learned how to be parents and raise a family. I took a full-time job at Oklahoma State University in marketing communications in September 2023 and a year later we welcomed our third child.
For the last five years, we’ve been figuring out parenthood, raising a family, and settling into life in Stillwater. There’s so much more I could share about what God has done in this time, and I will—but for now, let me get to the heart of this message.
We’re going back to New Orleans. Stillwater has been a place of healing, rest, growth, development, and restoration. Did it take longer than we expected? Absolutely, but God’s timing is always perfect and our assignment hasn’t changed. We feel God leading us back to the city with more faith and hope than ever. We’re aligning our prayers, relationships, finances, and goals to return to “The Big Easy”. We don’t know all of the details, but we're trusting God's guidance and stepping out in faith.
Why am I sharing this with you? From now on, this email will provide weekly updates on our journey back to New Orleans. We’ll share what we’re learning, books we’re reading, conversations we’re having, prayer requests, and ways you can support us. We know we can’t do this alone and want to invite you to join us on this 5+ year journey that’s just getting started.
My prayer is that you’ll be inspired by what God is doing in our lives so that you, too, can walk out your assignment with faith and boldness.
This is the adventure of a lifetime, and we can’t wait to live it out—no matter the outcome. It’s always been in God’s hands.
Get ready—it’s going to be an incredible journey!
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