Staff | Adults

I love being a part of Palmcroft!

Roma and I met as students at Southwestern College. We were raised in Christian families and received Jesus very early in our lives. In 1969 we were married and soon were involved together in youth and music ministry at the congregation known today as North Mountain in Sunnyslope.

Just a few years later, we sensed God’s direction to continue my education. We moved to Portland (with two babies) so that I could attend Multnomah Seminary. After graduating we returned to Arizona and were privileged to pastor wonderful people at Valley Baptist in Yuma. We had been in Yuma 18 years when God called us to Palmcroft.

My greatest joy in ministry is when I see someone’s spiritual light flicker and come on. It’s walking along side someone as their faith (trust) in God deepens even during the difficult times of life. It’s when someone who has known Him from a distance begins to understand and comes to really know our Lord God in a more personal way (Jeremiah 9:24).

We have two beautiful daughters, April and Stacey, two great son-in-laws, Eric and Sam, four wonderful granddaughters, Hannah, Mila, Katie, and Kiyo, and four grand-dogs. My favorite pastime is working in my yard though I’m trying to learn to play golf.

Although my favorite book of the Bible is Colossians, my favorite verse right now comes from Romans, a simple, yet profound benediction found in chapter 15 verse 13: “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

My family said, “Just wait. He’ll get over it.” That was 38 years ago at the age of 19 when I got radically saved, and I never have. In fact, life’s only gotten better and better as I have grown in the grace and knowledge of Christ my Savior. I’m a “late bloomer” though, in the sense of vocational ministry, having entered Oregon Theological Seminary in Salem, Oregon at age 49 to pursue a Masters of Divinity in preparation for the pastorate following a long career in retail management and business marketing and advertising.

I cut my ministerial teeth as the Community Life Pastor at Salem First Baptist in our native state of Oregon where my wife, Jill, and I still have many lifelong friends. Never in our wildest imagination did we think ministry would carry us out of the Northwest to a place that issues heat warnings, and advisories about how to treat scorpion and snake bites. But here we sit, and we love it! That is, all but leaving our two daughters, their husbands, and our one and only granddaughter behind. I’m thankful for Google Chat. Jill and I have loved discovering new places and things to do, not the least of which is uncovering the treasure troves found in desert antique stores—just hoping our portrait doesn’t end up on a wall there someday.

There is no greater joy for me than to be a part of people’s lives willing to take ‘next steps’. To see a person move from darkness into light provides me the ultimate adrenaline rush knowing their eternity is secured by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. It’s incredibly fulfilling for me to help others discover their purpose in the church, and seize it. And I love discipling men who will teach more men how to assume roles of godly leadership in their homes, the marketplace, and the church.

We are living in unparalleled days of opportunity here at Palmcroft. With so many hurting people facing unprecedented economic and social challenges, I see hearts that are very open to hearing a message of hope and reconciliation. Our challenge is whether or not we will seize the opportunity. I say, “Let’s roll.”

I am blessed to have a very loving and supportive family. Because my loving husband, Brent, is also involved in ministry through CEO Forum based in Colorado Springs, our life can be very interesting at times. Our four children are all in the Phoenix area: AJ, Bethanne Bently (wife of Jonathan and mother of Micah James), Joanna Shoemaker (wife of Aneurin), and Christa.

It was my dream from when I was ten to be a librarian, so I have a Masters in Library Science from Texas Women’s University in Denton, Texas. But this degree is rather unused in ministry, so I have to say my ministry education has come from on the job training, the shared wisdom of helpful co-laborers, and several books.

As Missions Coordinator and Women’s Ministry Director, I have the wonderful ability to witness the power of God demonstrated over and over again. I love witnessing women as they connect with God, with one another, with their community, and with the world. I love the light bulb moments when God’s truth lights up a woman’s life and change happens. I love the glory stories from obedient believers who have chosen to follow God wherever He leads in fulfillment of Matthew 28:19, 20. I love encouraging our workers throughout the world, letting them know that there is a great body of believers who pray and support their ministries. I really love what I do.

When not at church, what am I up to?…trouble, depending on who you ask. Actually, I am with my family, trying to get all the time I can with my grandson. And you will probably find me with a cup of coffee in one hand and a piece of dark chocolate in the other. And with my Kindle; I am never without a book to read.

I am convinced that every woman, every believer needs to be a theologian. “…[K]nowing God mobilizes us. Those who know God find deeper meaning in the ordinary and extraordinary moments of their lives….Strange as it sounds theology belongs in the kitchen every bit as much as it belongs in the pulpit or the seminary classroom, perhaps even more. Wherever God’s people live, knowing him deeply is a boon to what they are doing and the truth about him energizes everything they do,” (Carolyn Custis James, When Life and Belief Collide).

The biggest challenge in my ministry is connecting…hurting women with healthy women, this body with our missionaries, and our servants with the needs of this community and the world.