Like so many others, the first couple decades of my life are a story about chasing all the wrong things. I remember a time, back when this picture was taken of me at 20 years old, thinking I had it all figured out. Loud ego, little life experience. And in your 20s, you don't even realize how lost you are because the world rewards the wrong version of you.
But time has a funny way of humbling you. Fast forward to now, and I'm not pursuing any of those things. Now I'm chasing peace, strengthening my faith. I want time with my family. I want my businesses to be a legacy. I want to look in the mirror and be proud of the man, the father and husband I strive to be. I want to make a difference in the world by being a lighthouse and living testimony of God's grace. Let me be real with you the world teaches the opposite, encouraging behavior and a lifestyle that stunts growth. The real education happens when we learn from our mistakes. We learn about the importance of forgiveness and mimicking God's grace. In time we begin to realize what true wealth is: faith, love, peace, and purpose.
People always say I'm lucky now. I am indeed very fortunate. I'm fortunate to have survived what some of my peers did not, to have been raised in a family and community of believers. I'm fortunate that God lead me to an amazing woman who has stood by me, that He intersected my life with other strong mentors. I'm blessed to have business partners who are "on mission", not for the sake of simply making money,  but for our aligned personal conviction to create eternal impact. A business that doesn’t score our success on revenue alone, but kingdom building. God never gave up on me or any of us and he continues to reveal his calling for us daily. Luck has nothing to do with my life’s story, Charis does.