Pastor Brian (or "PB" as we like to call him around here) is a South Dakota guy through and through.  He grew up all over the state (with short stints in a few others), mainly living on the Indian Reservations in western South Dakota.                            

He went to college at South Dakota State University (Go Jacks!) in Brookings, SD, graduating in May 1986 with a B.A. in Sociology.

It was during his freshman year at SDSU that he placed his trust in Jesus, and become involved with The Navigators student ministry.

He made one of the best decisions of his life when he decided to ask Debra to marry him, and they got hitched on February 20, 1988.

Shortly after getting married, they moved to Colorado Springs to attend the Leadership Development Institute of the Navigators.

After a short detour to Florida, they moved back to Brookings, where PB worked at a local office supply/machine/furniture store in sales and computerized office design.

PB was called to ministry in 1997 and soon afterward began preparing academically.  During this preparation, he accepted a call to become the interim pastor of Westside Wesleyan Church in Bristol, SD, serving from November 1999 to June 2000.  In September 2000 he accepted the call to pastor Aberdeen Wesleyan Church.

PB's heart is to bring the good news of Jesus to as many as possible, letting them know that God is still in the business of transforming lives.

He is also committed to helping people become healthy, authentic followers of Christ.  Having little patience with "plastic" Christianity, he is determined to help the congregation become people who are really followers of Jesus, not merely people who call themselves Christians.

To this end, he strives to make his messages not only Biblical, but practical in the everyday world we find ourselves in.  Having been in the "real world" before becoming a pastor, he is sensitive to issues of work, play, family, and all that stuff that some feel pastors are insulated from many times.

PB genuinely loves people out of a genuine love for Jesus, and is always ready to help people get past the barriers they may face in looking for a meaningful relationship with Christ.

Humor is a big part of PB's life, and he enjoys a good laugh as much as anybody.  He figures that a grumpy Christian is an oxymoron (or maybe just a moron - he hasn't thought through it entirely yet!), and he's generally in a good mood, especially when the Minnesota Twins are winning or when he gets a new John Wayne DVD.

He's scared of heights, but if you REALLY want to see something funny, throw him in a room with a spider... (okay, don't do that - at least don't do it and say you got the idea from this website!)

PB and Debra have been married for 20 years, and have 5 kiddos: Dani, Noble II, Lance, Olivia, and Ellene.

If you have questions for PB, you can e-mail him HERE.  You can also catch some of his random thoughts at his blog, Livin' it in the everyday...