My name is Preston and I am a minister to the poor. I get to interact with homeless men and women, children from broken homes, addicts, ex-cons, the poor elderly, and the mentally ill on a daily basis.

I love it.

My strong, intelligent, talented, absolutely gorgeous wife, Rachel, has walked beside me in this ministry for nearly a decade. She is a truth teller, doggedly faithful to me and to her calling to bring physical and spiritual healing to others.

I love her dearly.

We live and work in New Albany, Indiana (just across the river from Louisville, KY). Our neighborhood, called Midtown, is economically and ethnically diverse. Abandoned houses abound and families move in and out of slumlord properties as the seasons change. There is crime and there is peace; sadness and joy.

I love my neighborhood.

Since I can remember, I have been drawn to the poor. There are many stories to validate this, but those will come later. The point is, I believe I have been called to do what I do. And through some reading, prayer, and introspection, God gave me these words to describe my calling:

“To bring the church to the poor, and the poor to the church.”

This has described my life for as long as I can remember. And, Lord willing, it will describe my life until I die.

As far as my calling goes, I see three core values God wants to develop within me:

1. All people are worthy of my time and attention

2. I am to bear with the failings of the weak

3. I am called to live a simple life.

I want to unpack these values over the next month to illustrate how they inform my life with the poor. One thing you will learn is that I am a hypocrite, but God is faithful to complete the work he started in me. I am constantly reminded of his work. It is a beautiful thing. Often, it is a painful thing. But he is showing me so much as I strive to live out this calling.

The people I meet, the interactions I have, the tragedies taking place right in front of me… they are all reminders of his faithfulness.

His love.

So stay tuned for stories…

Inspiring… Frustrating… Infuriating…

Stories.

God is doing wonderful things in the lives of the poor. Lets talk about it…