From Baseball to Jesus: My Journey of Faith

Growing Up in Small-Town Virginia

I grew up in a small town in Southwest Virginia, about 15 minutes from Virginia Tech. We were a middle-class family—my dad worked at a local chemical plant, and my mom worked at Virginia Tech. We lived out in the country in a house my dad built in 1979. I have a brother who is 6 years older than me, whose claim to fame is throwing a rotten cucumber across the garden and hitting me in the face. He claims this was an amazing throw.

It was a good upbringing. Sure, I complained like most kids do, but when I look back now, I see just how blessed I was.

A Church Without Change

We went to church on and off as I grew up. It was a very small church, only five minutes from our house. What I remember most are the little things—Sunday school classrooms, Vacation Bible School, Christmas plays, Easter egg hunts.

There was a youth group, but I never really participated. One Sunday, though, all the kids in the youth group—about five of them—went down front to proclaim their faith in Jesus. Since it was such a small church, I didn’t want to be the only one left out, so I followed them.

I can still picture my mom crying from the choir chairs as I walked forward. At the time, I had no idea why she was crying. Later, we were all baptized.

But honestly? Nothing changed in me. No affections for Jesus, no convictions of sin, no new desires. I just kept living life like any other kid—sports, hunting, fishing, and country living.

Baseball: God’s Unexpected Gift

Sports were a huge part of life in our town, and baseball was my best sport. My senior year went especially well, and it caught the eyes of the Virginia Tech coaches. They offered me a scholarship to play for the Hokies—a dream come true.

Looking back, I can see how God used baseball as a gift that would set so many other things in motion, though at the time I just thought it was about the game.

Meeting Julie

At Virginia Tech, most of the athletes lived in the same dorm, so naturally, we became friends across different teams. Our baseball team got especially close with the softball team. On that team was a young lady from West Virginia named Julie.

She only played her freshman year, but I met her a couple of times. During our sophomore year, her friends tried to connect us, but the timing wasn’t right. Then one Thursday night in the fall of 1999, I finally won her over with my dance moves. We started dating shortly after.

At that point, we lived the normal college dating life. I knew Julie had grown up in church, but she didn’t live much differently than me.

Julie’s Transformation

Two years later, Julie graduated and went back home to West Virginia for graduate school. That’s when things changed. She got back into church and rededicated her life to Jesus.

Suddenly, she was different. She read her Bible, devoured Christian books, and listened to music I thought only belonged inside a church building. I didn’t understand, and honestly, I didn’t like it.

In 2002, I graduated from Virginia Tech and moved to Northern Virginia. Julie came for an internship that summer, and we found a church to attend together—McLean Bible Church. At first, I only went to be with her. But God had other plans.

Meeting Jesus for Real

Week after week, as I sat in church, something was happening. God was softening my heart. Later that year, He opened my eyes to the Gospel in a way I had never experienced before.

One Sunday morning, I confessed that Jesus is Lord—that He died to save me from my sins and rose again three days later, conquering sin and death forever.

This time, everything changed.

I had new desires. I wanted to read my Bible. I wanted to go to church. I even started enjoying that “weird” Christian music. I began feeling the conviction of sin in my life.

Looking Back with Gratitude

It’s now been 23 years since I gave my life to Jesus. The journey has been full of ups and downs, with seasons of joy and seasons of struggle. But through it all, God has been faithful.

I’m grateful that He gave me the ability to swing a baseball bat. That gift took me to Virginia Tech, introduced me to Julie, led me to Jesus, and blessed me with four amazing kids.

I thought baseball was my greatest blessing. But now I see—it was only the path that led me to the greatest gift of all: Jesus.