I spent much of my twenties letting pride and self-centeredness guide my choices. Ruining relationships and destroying opportunities Even though I had acknowledged a call from God on my life 15 years earlier, I buried that calling beneath selfishness and the desire to control my own destiny. Pride devoured my peace, disrupted my purpose, and pulled me further from who God created me to be.

Proverbs 16:18 – "Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall."

Proverbs 14:12 – "There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death."

In 2019, I married my wife, Lauren. She was—and is—a faithful, devoted, and sacrificial woman in every way. But even in marriage, I continued to let pride lead me. I knew what Scripture said. I knew the truth. But I chose to ignore it. I failed to love my wife the way Christ calls husbands to love their wives—with sacrifice, humility, and intentional care.

Ephesians 5:25 – "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her."

James 1:22 – "But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves."

I made nearly every mistake a husband can make. I allowed Lauren to feel abandoned and forsaken. I didn’t protect her heart or make her feel cherished. Eventually, she reached the end of her strength. After years of pouring everything she had into our marriage, she decided she was done—and she had every right to feel that way.

1 Peter 3:7 – "Likewise, dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife..."

Psalm 34:18 – "The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart And saves such as have a contrite spirit."

But God… In the middle of my wreckage, God reached down and stopped me. He reminded me, through the Holy Spirit, of the call I had once acknowledged but wasted. He didn’t meet me with condemnation—He met me with grace. And in that moment, I chose to return to Him. I began seeking Him daily—not just to restore my marriage, but to restore my life.

Joel 2:12 – "Now, therefore,” says the Lord, “Turn to Me with all your heart, With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning."

Psalm 51:10 – "Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me."

James 4:8 – "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you."

As I pursued the Lord, He gave me a passion for His love—and specifically, for the way He designed love to work within marriage. He made me feel the urgency and importance of this covenant in a way I had never understood before.

1 Corinthians 16:14 – "Let all that you do be done with love."

Over the next year, I began to live out the kind of love God describes in His Word. I pursued my wife—not with pressure, but with patience. I loved her unconditionally, even when I didn’t receive love in return. And in His perfect timing, God began drawing Lauren back. First to Himself… and then, back to me.

1 Corinthians 13:4, 8 – "Love suffers long and is kind... Love never fails."

1 John 4:19 – "We love Him because He first loved us."

We’ve experienced the deepest valleys in marriage. But we’ve also stood on the highest peaks of grace, mercy, and forgiveness—all because of the goodness of our God. He took a broken situation and birthed purpose from it. He planted in me a calling to stand in the gap for other marriages and to walk alongside couples who feel hopeless.

Romans 8:28 – "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose."

Jeremiah 30:17 – "For I will restore health to you and heal you of your wounds," says the Lord.

I wouldn’t wish our journey on anyone—but I also wouldn’t trade it. Because through it, God gave me purpose, passion, and the joy of walking in His will. He is so good—and far better to me than I ever deserved. And now, I fight for marriages. I walk with those who are hurting, and I point them back to the Healer of all things—Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 1:4 – "[God] comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God."

Psalm 107:1 – "Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever."

God is so, so good. He took what was broken and gave it new life. And today, I am honored to walk in His purpose—ready, equipped, and most importantly called to fight for marriages, lifting up the weary, and reminding couples that God still restores. In doing this sharing the Love and Covenant example that Christ set for all of us on the cross when He made the ultimate sacrifice for all mankind.