Hello!
My name is Phil Dante. I live in South Carolina with my lovely wife, Wren. This June 21st we will be celebrating our 14th year of marriage! We have 3 beautiful and very sweet daughters, and one handsome son who is my little buddy and a southern gentleman.
My parents were divorced when I was very young, so I grew up moving back and forth from Las Vegas (where I was born, and my Dad’s family lived) to Cincinnati Ohio (where mymother’s family lived). My childhood was very unstable – my mother struggled with depression and alcoholism, and my father spent his time partying and womanizing. He was pretty much out of the picture and not involved in raising my older sister and I.
Though God did not cause my dysfunctional childhood, He used it to lead me to Himself. My freshman summer, I went to a Young Life camp and heard for the first time about a loving, Heavenly Father who sent His son Jesus to die for me. Longing to have my deepest hurts healed and heart filled, I prayed to surrender my life to Jesus and to follow Him the rest of my life.
Now my life’s mission is to daily . . . recommit my life to God, experience the love and fullness of heart that comes from knowing Him (John 7:37), and enthusiastically share His message of Love & Hope . . . while encouraging and equipping others to do the same. (See “Joy That Lasts” by Gary Smalley)
This Summer I hope to grow in hearing and following God’s voice, and being a servant leader to my family and those God leads us to serve in Appalachia – Putting into practice Jesus’ teachings found in Matthew 25 -“feed the poor, clothe the naked, visit the sick, welcome the stranger, set the captives free”.
