Faith in Flux is a collection of Christian leadership essays that frame leadership as a moral practice shaped by change, faith, critical thinking, and service. Why was this an important book for you to write?

Writing this book was important to me because it was an outlet for my reflections on my doctoral journey. I authored these essays while attending Liberty University’s School of Education, studying for a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Educational Leadership. Postgraduate students can get overwhelmed by the volume of scholarly reports, peer-reviewed studies, and primary sources they must scrutinize before drafting their own academic prose. While reviewing and preparing for my dissertation, I decided to revisit my journey and share some of the leadership knowledge I had amassed, curated, and synthesized during my four years of study. I think education’s purpose is more than a simple knowledge transfer; it is knowledge shared to encourage deep thought and spark honest debate – a true collaborative effort.

Why do you believe listening is such a foundational leadership skill?

Listening is a foundational leadership skill because it builds trust, encourages diverse perspectives, informs decision-making, and mitigates potential conflict. As a child, adults told me that God gave us two ears and one mouth because we should listen twice as much as we speak. Although it’s commonly attributed to the ancient Greek Stoic philosopher Epictetus, the quote “We have two ears and only one tongue so that we may hear more and speak less,” was written by Diogenes of Sinope, the founder of Cynic philosophy. The Cynics were a precursor philosophy to the Stoics; therefore, it makes sense that they share core beliefs. Likewise, Hellenistic culture influenced the Christian Bible. In the Old Testament, there are two references in Proverbs 10:19 and 17:28 advising to “hold their tongues.” Also, the New Testament has a similar quote in James 1:19: “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to anger.”

Mentorship feels central to the book’s worldview. What makes a mentor truly transformative?

Mentorship is a critical component of education. The mentee determines whether a mentor is truly transformative. As my favorite mentor once said, “I’m not training you to do your job, I’m training you to do mine.” Anyone can be a mentor: family members, friends, coworkers, classmates, neighbors, or authority figures. Mentorship is a relationship. Both parties are responsible for nurturing any healthy relationship. However, a good mentor inherently has the mentee’s best interest at heart. Mentorship is not a self-serving endeavor, and sincerity is difficult to fake in the long term. All relationships take effort and time. However, not all advice is prudent or actionable. Mentors provide guidance while allowing the mentee to make mistakes without achieving total failure. As General David Goldfein wrote, leaders share success but own failure. I think effective leaders are mentors, and good mentors are leaders.

What audience did you most hope would connect with this book?

I view education as a collaborative effort with educators as mentors. My intent is not to proselytize but to share academic literature from my studies and personal anecdotes from my military experiences. Although I wrote this book from a Christian lens, ethics and morality are human ideals. Ethics is a branch of knowledge focusing on virtues, obligations, and consequences. It originated from the Greek ēthos (character or custom). Morals are one’s particular values concerning right and wrong that inform one’s conduct. It is derived from the Latin word mōs (custom or habit). Culture, traditions, customs, and religion influence both societal beliefs. Anyone who wants to behave ethically and morally (in the classroom or the boardroom) is my target audience.

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