Family & Biography
Immediate Family
Other than being adopted into my Creator's family, Johanna, Micah, and Ivy are God's greatest gifts to me. Jo and I became one flesh on January 6th, 2006. Micah was born the following year, and Ivy was born two and a half years later. There are no people we'd rather spend time with than our kids!
My greatest earthly mission is to glorify God by introducing my family to their Heavenly Father and equipping them for the work of the ministry.
Each family member plays an integral role in Truth.Love.Parent.
My greatest earthly mission is to glorify God by introducing my family to their Heavenly Father and equipping them for the work of the ministry.
Each family member plays an integral role in Truth.Love.Parent.
Extended Family
My immediate family lives with my parents in Brevard, NC. My parents, Ray and Carolyn actively minister in our church and operate a sewing workroom, Sew Fine by Design.
My sister, Jessica, is married to Jonathan Mair. Together they parent their 5 wonderful children. Jon, Jess, Anja, Ethan, Isaac, Olivia, and Logan all live at The Wilds Christian Camp and Conference Center in Brevard, NC where Jon is the Foodservice Manager and Jessica runs the Cool Beans Coffee Shop. Jessica is also on TeamTLP!
Johanna's parents, Mark and Carol Porter, live in Indianapolis, IN and direct the Lifegate Tract Ministry that produces -- in various languages -- the God's Simple Plan of Salvation tract and the Peace tract series. They are also highly involved in their local church.
My sister, Jessica, is married to Jonathan Mair. Together they parent their 5 wonderful children. Jon, Jess, Anja, Ethan, Isaac, Olivia, and Logan all live at The Wilds Christian Camp and Conference Center in Brevard, NC where Jon is the Foodservice Manager and Jessica runs the Cool Beans Coffee Shop. Jessica is also on TeamTLP!
Johanna's parents, Mark and Carol Porter, live in Indianapolis, IN and direct the Lifegate Tract Ministry that produces -- in various languages -- the God's Simple Plan of Salvation tract and the Peace tract series. They are also highly involved in their local church.
Ancestors
Both Johanna and I can trace our family tree back to William Brewster, the elder of the Mayflower Pilgrims. We named our son, Micah William Brewster, in honor of that heritage. Needless to say, Thanksgiving is a big deal in our family.
Auto-Bio
I was born to Ray and Carolyn (Szalkowski) Brewster on June 6th, 1980 in Greenville, South Carolina.
I was homeschooled my whole life as my family moved from one house to another. Due to my father's job, before I was twelve, I had never lived in a state for more than four years or a house for more than two. To this date, I've moved 22 times.
I made a profession of faith at the age of five and was subsequently baptized. However, at the age of nine, my mother confronted me about the apparent lack of true repentance in my life. You can hear more about this pivotal moment in my life here. By the grace of God, I was truly born again in 1989. I later dedicated my life to full-time Christian service when I was twelve.
Up until junior high, I was on a promising trajectory. However, in 8th and 9th grade I started hanging out with the wrong crowd. My focus became split; I slowly turned into a "double-minded man unstable in all [my] ways" (James 1:8). I loved the Lord some of the time, but continued worshipping myself far too much. This self-centered, myopic delusion was the root that motivated the sinful choices that eventually caused me and countless other people so much pain during my high school and college years.
Today, as I watch government officials and celebrities' current lives ruined by the egregious actions of their past lives, I can't help but acknowledge that I deserve the same. Though I never murdered or raped anyone, I have sinned against many people, and my actions have definitely caused scars that only God can cure. And though I can thank the Lord that I have had the chance to personally ask for forgiveness from many people whom I have wronged (and have received their forgiveness), I also easily admit that there are many, many people in the world whom I have never had the chance to ask to forgive me. This admission in no way stands as a blanket acquittal of my actions. But I do praise God that He has forgiven me for my transgressions and cleansed me from my iniquities. By His grace alone I have repented from that former manner of life.
God was constantly convicting me all throughout high school and college, but though I would often crumble under the shame, I too often returned like a dog to my own vomit. But it was during my grad school years that God brought a number of "sanctified two-by-fours" into my life . . . repeatedly. In His infinite grace, He used a many circumstances to bring me to a place where I could no longer ignore Him.
And that's when it happened. When I finally realized that the same choice I made to believe God for my justification in the past was the same choice I needed to make every day in the present to grow in my sanctification, I gave God free reign in my life to do what He pleased. Growth away from self to the Savior was slow but methodical. My life has suffered the many consequences of sin. Everything from my marriage to my family to my health has been affected by my past choices.
But God is good!!!!
He has forgiven me and made it possible for me to mature in knowledge, understanding, and true wisdom. I am by no means perfect, but I'm being perfected. I'm not wholly holy, but I'm growing in that direction.
My current ministry is a compilation of the past and present Truths God has taught me. I've included various links to podcast episodes just so you can get a little glimpse into how God has used my past to help others not make the same decisions. And by His grace I continue to repent and change and plan to do so until the day I die.
Moving on . . .
My amazing son, Micah, was born in 2007, and the three of us moved from Greenville, SC to Schaumburg, IL. I had taken my first position in full time Christian service at Bethel Baptist church. My fantastic daughter, Ivy, was born just two years later. I had so many amazing opportunities during those seven wonderful years, and God taught me so much. You can read about a lot of those experiences in a multi-part article I wrote for Taking Back the Bible called "The New Me." It's so cool how every little event in our lives is preparing us for the next. I hope you can look back on your life and see the hand of God clearly guiding you where it seemed it was nothing but chance and happenstance.
In 2014, God directed my little family of four to Victory Academy for Boys. You can read about that move in part 7 of "The New Me."
How can I put this?
My family's time at Victory was revolutionary. When you put yourself into a place where all you can do is hold tight to the Lord, you will experience amazing life change. Not only did God give me the idea of starting Truth.Love.Parent., but He brought trials and testings and tribulations into our lives designed to conform us into His glorious image. And boy did it ever!
And that brings us to the present. In January of 2020, I became the full-time Executive Director of Truth.Love.Parent. You can hear all about that transition on this episode.
So, why did I write this brief, slightly enigmatic bit of T.M.I.? Is any of this vital to your life and godliness?
I wrote this for two reasons:
I wrote something called "The First Step to Being a Good Parent." It's really "The First Step to Being a Good Everything." If you do not know 100% that you are a born again believer in the God of the Bible, and if you cannot prove from the Scriptures that you truly are a follower of Christ, I would encourage you to read that letter. If this shuffling trip down memory lane does nothing more than motivate you to get to know God a little better . . . it will have all been worth it!
I chose for this little bio to focus on just three things: a few of my happy experiences (family and ministry), a chunk of my sinful choices (arg), but a heap of God's grace. And I did this because we all have similar stories. We're born in sin, and we need a Savior. The only difference is whether or not we choose to follow Him when He calls.
Will you follow Him with me? I'd be honored to show you the way.
I was homeschooled my whole life as my family moved from one house to another. Due to my father's job, before I was twelve, I had never lived in a state for more than four years or a house for more than two. To this date, I've moved 22 times.
I made a profession of faith at the age of five and was subsequently baptized. However, at the age of nine, my mother confronted me about the apparent lack of true repentance in my life. You can hear more about this pivotal moment in my life here. By the grace of God, I was truly born again in 1989. I later dedicated my life to full-time Christian service when I was twelve.
Up until junior high, I was on a promising trajectory. However, in 8th and 9th grade I started hanging out with the wrong crowd. My focus became split; I slowly turned into a "double-minded man unstable in all [my] ways" (James 1:8). I loved the Lord some of the time, but continued worshipping myself far too much. This self-centered, myopic delusion was the root that motivated the sinful choices that eventually caused me and countless other people so much pain during my high school and college years.
Today, as I watch government officials and celebrities' current lives ruined by the egregious actions of their past lives, I can't help but acknowledge that I deserve the same. Though I never murdered or raped anyone, I have sinned against many people, and my actions have definitely caused scars that only God can cure. And though I can thank the Lord that I have had the chance to personally ask for forgiveness from many people whom I have wronged (and have received their forgiveness), I also easily admit that there are many, many people in the world whom I have never had the chance to ask to forgive me. This admission in no way stands as a blanket acquittal of my actions. But I do praise God that He has forgiven me for my transgressions and cleansed me from my iniquities. By His grace alone I have repented from that former manner of life.
God was constantly convicting me all throughout high school and college, but though I would often crumble under the shame, I too often returned like a dog to my own vomit. But it was during my grad school years that God brought a number of "sanctified two-by-fours" into my life . . . repeatedly. In His infinite grace, He used a many circumstances to bring me to a place where I could no longer ignore Him.
And that's when it happened. When I finally realized that the same choice I made to believe God for my justification in the past was the same choice I needed to make every day in the present to grow in my sanctification, I gave God free reign in my life to do what He pleased. Growth away from self to the Savior was slow but methodical. My life has suffered the many consequences of sin. Everything from my marriage to my family to my health has been affected by my past choices.
But God is good!!!!
He has forgiven me and made it possible for me to mature in knowledge, understanding, and true wisdom. I am by no means perfect, but I'm being perfected. I'm not wholly holy, but I'm growing in that direction.
My current ministry is a compilation of the past and present Truths God has taught me. I've included various links to podcast episodes just so you can get a little glimpse into how God has used my past to help others not make the same decisions. And by His grace I continue to repent and change and plan to do so until the day I die.
Moving on . . .
My amazing son, Micah, was born in 2007, and the three of us moved from Greenville, SC to Schaumburg, IL. I had taken my first position in full time Christian service at Bethel Baptist church. My fantastic daughter, Ivy, was born just two years later. I had so many amazing opportunities during those seven wonderful years, and God taught me so much. You can read about a lot of those experiences in a multi-part article I wrote for Taking Back the Bible called "The New Me." It's so cool how every little event in our lives is preparing us for the next. I hope you can look back on your life and see the hand of God clearly guiding you where it seemed it was nothing but chance and happenstance.
In 2014, God directed my little family of four to Victory Academy for Boys. You can read about that move in part 7 of "The New Me."
How can I put this?
My family's time at Victory was revolutionary. When you put yourself into a place where all you can do is hold tight to the Lord, you will experience amazing life change. Not only did God give me the idea of starting Truth.Love.Parent., but He brought trials and testings and tribulations into our lives designed to conform us into His glorious image. And boy did it ever!
And that brings us to the present. In January of 2020, I became the full-time Executive Director of Truth.Love.Parent. You can hear all about that transition on this episode.
So, why did I write this brief, slightly enigmatic bit of T.M.I.? Is any of this vital to your life and godliness?
I wrote this for two reasons:
- I'd love for you to know me better. They say you can't truly know someone until you fight with them, but I hope this was a valuable substitute. :-) But, of course, this is only one tiny slice of my life. There's so much more to be learned. I pray the Lord would use my writing and podcasts to know me better and perhaps even allow our paths to cross some day. I'd love to learn about you and celebrate what the Lord is doing in your life too!
- I also want you to know the Creator better. The One Who made us, and sustains us, and guides us, and rescues us, and forgives us, and cleanses us . . . He loves you. Your life may have been similar to mine, or it may have been diametrically different. But God is the same, and He loves His creation equally. God loves you, and it doesn't matter how wicked you've been, He wants to redeem you. He wants to save you. He wants to purify you. Will you let Him?
I wrote something called "The First Step to Being a Good Parent." It's really "The First Step to Being a Good Everything." If you do not know 100% that you are a born again believer in the God of the Bible, and if you cannot prove from the Scriptures that you truly are a follower of Christ, I would encourage you to read that letter. If this shuffling trip down memory lane does nothing more than motivate you to get to know God a little better . . . it will have all been worth it!
I chose for this little bio to focus on just three things: a few of my happy experiences (family and ministry), a chunk of my sinful choices (arg), but a heap of God's grace. And I did this because we all have similar stories. We're born in sin, and we need a Savior. The only difference is whether or not we choose to follow Him when He calls.
Will you follow Him with me? I'd be honored to show you the way.
