When I was 20 years old, my plans for my life, career, family, and future fell apart. I was an active sophomore in college, then suddenly I was quadriplegic in the Intensive Care Unit, having suffered a massive brainstem stroke. I could not speak, swallow, or blink. Because I could hear, I listened as doctors warned my family that I had as little as 48 hours to live. There was nothing for us to do but pray. My faith sustained me in ways I can hardly explain, and a year later I walked back onto my college campus on my own two feet.

I hold a BS in mass communications from Texas Wesleyan University, an MA in English education from Columbia University, and am in the process of earning an MDIV from The King's University.

I taught English in public schools for ten years, and in 2007, the Texas Education Agency awarded me the distinguished honor of Texas Secondary Teacher of the Year. Currently, I write and speak full time, sharing messages of hope and endurance with education, business, and church groups across the country. Almost everyone walks away with a renewed sense of purpose.

All of my communication -- books, posts, keynotes, and trainings -- centers on practicing hope and endurance. I have learned that even when a situation seems impossible, it is never too late. But in order for someone to keep going, they need a steady supply of encouragement. That is why this blog offers just that.

No matter what you are going through, you need encouragement.

You will find plenty of it here.