While a high school sophomore I discovered without really trying that God wanted to have a personal relationship with me, one where he gets to be in charge and I learn to trust him, follow him and actually love him very much. Until that point I thought I was a Christian because I was an American and we were a Christian nation. This moment in time (March 6, 1970) and space (the church has been torn down but the Men's Wearhouse in Peoria that was erected on the site is quite pleasant) changed absolutely everything for me. I have since been involved, in one form or another, in youth evangelism. It's all payback. I figure there must be lots of teens like I was who simply don't know what is possible because they haven't met Jesus. So I began my work with Youth for Christ as a Campus Life director while still in college (Huntington University) back in 1972. A full time job doing more of he same was the next natural step after graduating. My new bride, Susie, joined me in the adventure and is still by my side, looking as good as she did when we married in 1976. Along the way I popped out for a 15 month race through an MA program in Educational Ministries from Wheaton College (1981), but quickly returned to direct work with kids in the Fort Wayne, IN, area. The organizational move in 1985 to start teaching at the college level didn't seem too radical because I was still coaching young people to do youth ministry. Soon enough a PhD from Purdue (1991) set me up for a nice 22 year run where I ultimately became a tenured, full professor at Huntington University. They gave me a long leash at HU, allowing me to do research and network and speak and teach and write widely. I slowly started to migrate back toward Youth for Christ, first in special consulting gigs and ultimately in 2007 as the VP and Chief Ministry Officer for YFC/USA. I still live in Huntington, still direct an MA in Youth Ministry Leadership (www.youthministryleadership.com), still hang out with local youth workers and wriggle into occasional opportunities for direct ministry with kids. But my own two children are now graduated and married, so Sus and I are wondering how long we'll live in H-town. But I sure have enjoyed the adventure with Jesus for nearly 40 years and expect it will only get better.