Give men something more. Something better.

We live in a time when no common definition or vision for manhood exists. BetterMan is that common vision. We believe generations of men want to be good men; they want to be God's man, but they do not know how. No one has shown them—no one has given them an example. BetterMan is filling that void.

Our Story

BetterMan x Barna - Five Essentials To Engage Today’s Men

BetterMan is backed by biblical truth and the latest Barna research and data. When creating the 11-week BetterMan group study, we enlisted the Barna Group to uncover how today’s men are navigating 21st-century waters.

Five Essentials to Engage Today’s Men is a comprehensive resource for pastors, men’s ministry leaders, and mentors looking to effectively reach today’s men. Filled with eye-opening statistics and thought-provoking insights, this research will empower you to support men on their journey towards better.

The BetterMan Team

Our Board

Barry Davis
Founding Partner and Board Chairman

Barry Davis
Founding Partner and Board Chairman

Barry Davis is an energy industry leader and Chairman & CEO of EnLink Midstream, one of the largest midstream companies in the U.S. In addition to serving on the EnLink Board of Directors, Davis is a Trustee of Texas Christian University (TCU) and a board member of the Kirby Corp. and several other civic and nonprofit organizations. Barry and his wife, Antoinette were part of a small team that launched the Fort Worth campus of Watermark Community Church in 2012 and continued to invest in the lives of young men on the topic of manhood.

Barry met Robert Lewis in 2001 after joining the board of a national ministry, the “Leadership Network,” and was immediately moved by Robert’s Christ-like demeanor and passion for Men’s Fraternity, Robert’s men’s ministry curriculum. Barry went on to lead dozens of men’s groups through the Men’s Fraternity curriculum, providing a life-changing experience for men both in their personal and work networks. During this time, he met fellow TCU alum, Austin Adams and introduced him to Men’s Fraternity. Austin was equally as moved by the curriculum. In 2018, Barry and Austin joined forces with Robert and Russell Rainey, a lifelong entrepreneur and follower of Christ, to create a solution to the problem of manhood in America, which led to the founding of BetterMan.

Barry remains a pivotal force as Chairman of BetterMan and continues to bring innovative ideas and connection to the team. As a devoted husband, father, businessman, and mentor, Barry leads by example in all aspects of his life, as he hopes those impacted by BetterMan will continue to do.

Robert Lewis
Founding Partner

Robert Lewis
Founding Partner

Few have had as significant an impact on discipling men in the past forty years than Robert Lewis. As a pastor, speaker, and author, Robert’s passion for leading men to grow in biblical manhood led him to produce the Men’s Fraternity film series in 1995. This three-year men’s curriculum quickly spread into churches, businesses, colleges, and even correctional facilities across the United States and later to over 20 countries. Today, Men’s Fraternity and its follow up series, 33, have impacted millions of men worldwide.

Author of numerous books including best-selling The Church of Irresistible Influence, Raising a Modern-Day Knight, and Rocking the Roles: Building a Win-Win Marriage, Robert is known for helping men build their lives on practical biblical truth that gets real-life results.

Now, in authoring the “BetterMan” curriculum, Robert offers a new way for men, especially younger men, to get their hands around God’s timeless design for authentic manhood.

Austin Adams
Founding Partner

Austin Adams
Founding Partner

Austin’s life has been centered around two passions: Growing Men and Growing Organizations. His desire is for every man to catch a compelling vision for what it means to thrive as a man, and he is living proof of the impact from men who instilled such a vision. Austin is a creative innovator who pinpoints value in opportunities and then leverages his talents and marketplace experience to create enduring value.

Austin has started and grown several successful marketplace and ministry endeavors and has a strong track record of high impact, accretive deal making. In oil and gas, Austin has acquired, grown and exited several assets, most recently as President of Ventana Partners, LP that exited in Summer 2019 after realizing a 2.9 times ROI in 4 years. He also Co-Founded APEX Fun Run in 2010.

In ministry, Austin has helped launch and grow several ministry platforms, including The Porch Fort Worth, the largest weekly gathering of young adults in the nation, Watermark Fort Worth Church, the first satellite campus of Watermark Community Church, and Men’s Retreat, an annual weekend experience for men to be encouraged and grow in Biblical Manhood.

His highest call is as husband to his wife Neesh and as father to his three children, Noah, Hunter and Palmer.

Matt Levy
Board Member

Matt Levy
Board Member

Matt Levy is an experienced board director, investor and entrepreneur with a history of rapid, profitable growth. In 1999, Matt co-founded Credera, a management consulting, user experience, and technology solutions firm based in Texas. Prior to selling his equity to Omnicom (NYSE: OMC) in 2018, Matt led the organization in various roles for more than twenty years. During his tenure, Credera was recognized as an Inc 5000 growth company for 7 consecutive years and as a “Best Place to Work” company by various 3rd parties for the last 10 straight years.

Matt is also the co-author of The Business of Faith: How to Lead Yourself, Unify Your Team, and Create a Remarkable Organization. Learning to practice The Business of Faith has turned out to be one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of Matt’s career.

Matt and his wife, Amy, live in Dallas, TX and are active members of Watermark Community Church. They have two young adult children and enjoy adventures together in Colorado.

JP Pokluda
Board Member

JP Pokluda
Board Member

JP is the Lead Pastor of Harris Creek Baptist Church in Waco, TX. Previously, he was the leader of The Porch and teaching pastor of Watermark Community Church, both in Dallas, TX. Under his leadership, The Porch grew to be the largest young adult ministry of its kind in the world.

JP came to understand the grace of the gospel in his early twenties after being involved in different denominational churches his entire life. This ignited a desire in him to inspire young adults to radically follow Jesus Christ and unleash them to change the world. Most recently, he has seen this passion expressed through writing. His best-selling book, Welcome to Adulting, offers Millennials a roadmap to navigate faith, finances, friendships, and the future. His most recent book release, Welcome to Adulting Survival Guide, is a 42-day guide dedicated to those in their 20s and 30s. JP is passionate about equipping ministries around the world to reach the future of the Church.

JP’s partner in ministry is Monica, his wife of fifteen years, and together they disciple their children Presley, Finley, and Weston.

Bill Smith
Board Member

Bill Smith
Board Member

A family man and ardent supporter of BetterMan, Bill Smith lives in Dallas with his wife, where they are active members of Watermark Community Church, serving in the premarital ministry, Merge. When not lending wisdom and direction to his Church and BetterMan, Mr. Smith is devoted to loving and serving his family—his three sons, their wives and his wonderful grandchildren.  

Mr. Smith is a gifted and talented servant-leader. During his career at IBM, he held numerous executive positions, managing large organizations in banking, insurance, capital markets, and technology.

Recently, Mr. Smith was the CEO of IBM Global Financing, the world’s largest information technology financier, with a total asset base of $41B and $3.2B in revenue, doing business with customers in 60 countries with the help of 4000 colleagues. 

Before joining IBM, Mr. Smith was President and Chief Operating Officer of a public software and business process outsourcing company. 

A graduate of Texas Tech University, his heart is to see men of all ages walk in the full inheritance and joy that God has for them. 

Our Team

Chris Harper
Chief Executive Officer

Chris Harper
Chief Executive Officer
Chris Harper [aka Harp] is a speaker, writer, and disciple-maker serving as the CEO of BetterMan. Equipping more than 2500+ churches and 300,000+ men, BetterMan is calling the Church back to men.
 
Chris is passionate about biblical manhood, and often speaks on topics such as a man’s identity in Christ and the importance of being a gospel-centered husband and father. Chris desires to see generations of men grasp who they are in Christ and come alive! Chris received his Masters degree from Dallas Theological Seminary and his Doctorate from the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

 

Chris and his wife, Ally, live with their four children - Scarlett, Malachi, Calvin, and Oliver - in Arlington, Texas. In addition to his family, Chris loves a pick-up basketball game, a good cheeseburger, and firmly believes Jordan is better than Lebron.

Carson Radke
Business Manager

Carson Radke
Business Manager

Carson’s background is a hybrid of ministry and business. Most recently, Carson was the Operations Director for The Porch, one of largest Young Adult ministries in the world. Before that, Carson worked in the business world, including John Deere dealers and Deloitte Consulting in their management consulting practice.

Carson has a heart for leading men the past 5 years in different capacities at Watermark Church, both in lay leader and staff capacities. Carson lives in Dallas and enjoys hiking, skiing, traveling and running.

Adam Tarnow
Podcast Director

Adam Tarnow
Podcast Director
The first two decades of Adam’s career couldn’t have been more different. After graduating from Clemson University with an accounting degree, he spent ten years as a CPA working with PriceWaterhouseCoopers, The Neiman Marcus Group and finally BKD CPAs & Advisors. The next ten years of his career were spent working at Watermark Community Church. While on staff, he had stints leading in the marriage ministry, college ministry, and ended his time at Watermark as the Directors of Arts. Over his career, Adam has spoken over 500 times in churches and businesses. Throughout this time, he has become an expert in communication and engagement. Adam has a unique gift for making the complex simple and disarming audiences with his wit, humility, and self-deprecating humor. Adam has been married since December 2003 and has two boys. Free time in the Tarnow house typically involves playing, watching, or talking about some type of sport (especially baseball, basketball, or golf).

David Chase
Director of Operations

David Chase
Director of Operations

David is passionate about men’s responsibility in the building of culture and the Kingdom, specifically around the intersection of faith & work. His desire is that men would have their identity squarely rooted in Christ, transition well through each season of life, and make those transitions without relational regrets. 

Beginning work in public school education, David has served organizations in educational technology, the Texas electricity market, a beef cattle ranch, the local church, as well as the university classroom. 

Husband to an amazing wife of 20+ years, father of two wonderful teens. David earned a Bachelor's degree (Go DBU Patriots!) and MBA.

DeLario Bolton
National Launch Director

DeLario Bolton
National Launch Director
DeLario serves as the National Launch Director, overseeing group growth strategies and initiatives across the country. DeLario has a professional sales background and was discipled by Dr. Tony Evans who helped him cultivate a heart for equipping Churches and leaders of men.

Kyle Reno
Pastor

Kyle Reno
Pastor

Kyle has a deep desire to be a part of a movement marked by men embracing their role in the story of God. His passion for ministry was shaped when he came to Christ at 19 through the investment of his baseball coach and a local church in Gardendale, AL.

In addition to working with the BetterMan Team, Kyle serves as the Senior Pastor at Crossgates Church in Brandon, MS, a multiplying church family with prayer-filled dreams of playing a part in the coming move of God across America.

Kyle and his incredible wife, Katie, have been blessed with four sons and one daughter.

Emily Corley
Customer Experience Representative

Emily Corley
Customer Experience Representative

Emily was born and raised in Dallas, TX and came to know Jesus in junior high at summer camp. She is passionate about sharing the gospel with the next generation and leads a small group at her local church.

Before joining the Betterman team, Emily worked at Watermark Community Church serving in The Porch ministry for 8 years.

Emily has a Human Resource degree from Texas A&M University.  She is married to Chad and has two sweet boys, Walker and Brooks. In their spare time, they love being outdoors, playing with their two pups, and sitting on patios in East Dallas.

Emma King
Executive Assistant

Emma King
Executive Assistant

Emma King is passionate about fighting for the voiceless, training up the next generation in the Word of God, and teaching others to put on the Armor of God in all things. She has worked in Churches in various different roles including worship leading, children's ministry and administrative assistance. No matter the role, Emma's desire to pour biblical truths into the lives of others runs deep. 

Emma graduated from the University of Mary-Hardin Baylor in Elementary Education. She taught in Temple, Texas in a Title 1 school for 2 years. Her husband, Bryant, is a Varsity football coach at Temple High School as well. Their passion for serving students who are consistently overlooked and have unmet needs drives their every effort. Emma and Bryant pray that they are a safe place and supportive team that champions for students who need it. 

Emma and Bryant have been married for two years. They live in Temple, Texas with their two chocolate labs. They are expecting their first child, a boy, on Christmas of 2022. The Kings love to travel, renovate their home, hike, make music together and love their community. Emma is so excited for this new season of working with BetterMan. She truly believes in the mission to equip men with truth and is so thankful to be a part of this ministry.

Our Speakers

Derwin Gray
Pastor

Derwin Gray
Pastor

Dr. Derwin L. Gray is the co-founder and lead pastor of Transformation Church, a multiethnic, multigenerational, mission-shaped church in the Charlotte, NC area. Dr. Gray has been married since 1992 and has two adult children. He was an All-American Safety at Brigham Young University. He then went on to play 5 years with the Indianapolis Colts and 1 year with the Carolina Panthers.

In 2015, Derwin was awarded an honorary doctorate from Southern Evangelical Seminary. In 2018, he received his Doctor of Ministry in the New Testament in Context at Northern Seminary. He is the author of several books, including the national bestseller, The Good Life: What Jesus Teaches About Finding True Happiness.

 

 

JP Pokluda
Board Member

JP Pokluda
Board Member

JP is the Lead Pastor of Harris Creek Baptist Church in Waco, TX. Previously, he was the leader of The Porch and teaching pastor of Watermark Community Church, both in Dallas, TX. Under his leadership, The Porch grew to be the largest young adult ministry of its kind in the world.

JP came to understand the grace of the gospel in his early twenties after being involved in different denominational churches his entire life. This ignited a desire in him to inspire young adults to radically follow Jesus Christ and unleash them to change the world. Most recently, he has seen this passion expressed through writing. His best-selling book, Welcome to Adulting, offers Millennials a roadmap to navigate faith, finances, friendships, and the future. His most recent book release, Welcome to Adulting Survival Guide, is a 42-day guide dedicated to those in their 20s and 30s. JP is passionate about equipping ministries around the world to reach the future of the Church.

JP’s partner in ministry is Monica, his wife of fifteen years, and together they disciple their children Presley, Finley, and Weston.

Jamie Loya
Pastor

Jamie Loya
Pastor

Jaime Loya was born on December 28, 1974 to Juan and Norma Loya of San Benito, Texas. He is the youngest of three children. He graduated from San Benito High School in 1993. That same year, in the summer of 1993, he married the love of his life, Rose Mary Benavides. Soon after marriage, Jaime attended Tell My People Bible Training Center in Harlingen, Texas.

Upon graduation, Jaime & Rose Mary began their ministry as youth pastors at ICCM Tabernacle of Life in Harlingen, Texas. They continued working until God moved them to start Cross Church, formerly known as Valley International Christian Center, alongside their parents in 1995. Although the early days were a struggle, the Church endured and by the grace of God, Pastor Loya began to experience great success in ministry.

In 2004, soon after entering their new 600 seat sanctuary, Pastor Loya was recognized by the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference (NHCLC) and Third Day Believer’s Network (3DBN), as one of the most significant and successful Hispanic pastors in the United States of America. The year 2014 marked another significant moment in the life of the ministry, as Cross Church completed their 1,800 seat sanctuary.

In 2017, Cross Church was recognized by Outreach Magazine as one of America’s 100 Fastest Growing Churches, recognition that was also obtained in 2011 and 2013.

Pastor Loya continues to serve as Senior Pastor of Cross Church. His pastoral duties include leading a church of over 3,000 people in weekend attendance, employing a full time church staff and developing church leaders. Pastor Loya has successfully launched several church plants and campuses and is in the process of launching more in the near future. He serves as a mentor and ministry coach to other Pastors in and around the area and across the U.S.

Pastor Loya is regarded as one of the emerging voices in America and prominent preachers of his generation. His unique style and bilingual speaking ability has taken him all over the nation ministering in some of America’s largest churches. He has also ministered abroad in such places as Germany, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Costa Rica and several parts of Central America.

Aside from his pastoral duties, he serves as a Board Member of WIN Ministries and the National Hispanic Leadership Conference (NHCLC)-America’s Largest Hispanic Christian Organization that is leading the way in addressing issues such as poverty, healthcare, education reform, religious persecution, juvenile delinquency, etc.

Jaime and Rose Mary currently reside in the city of Harlingen, Texas and are the proud parents of four children – Hannah, Sarah, Isaiah and Josiah.

 

 

Tim Lundy
Pastor

Tim Lundy
Pastor

A graduate of Crichton College and Dallas Theological Seminary (Th.M.), Tim has been in ministry for three decades. He is currently the Senior Pastor at Venture Christian Church in Los Gatos, California where he was previously on staff as Teaching Pastor. Tim also served as Lead Pastor of Christ Community Church – Little Rock; Directional Leader of Fellowship Bible Church – Little Rock; Chaplain for the International Community School and Pastor of the International Community Church in Bangkok, Thailand; and Interim Director of Spiritual Formation at the Center for Christian Leadership at Dallas Theological Seminary.

Mentored by Dr. Robert Lewis, Tim led Men’s Fraternity for 10 years and currently leads the Men’s Ministry at Venture Christian Church. He has been married for over 27 years to his best friend, Lea, and they love being the parents of seven children, along with two sons-in-law, and one grandson: Lindsey and Matt LaFleur with one-year-old Emmerich; Mallory and David Connell; Kate, Drew, Kent, Blake, and Jude.

 

 

Chris Harper
Chief Executive Officer

Chris Harper
Chief Executive Officer
Chris Harper [aka Harp] is a speaker, writer, and disciple-maker serving as the CEO of BetterMan. Equipping more than 2500+ churches and 300,000+ men, BetterMan is calling the Church back to men.
 
Chris is passionate about biblical manhood, and often speaks on topics such as a man’s identity in Christ and the importance of being a gospel-centered husband and father. Chris desires to see generations of men grasp who they are in Christ and come alive! Chris received his Masters degree from Dallas Theological Seminary and his Doctorate from the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

 

Chris and his wife, Ally, live with their four children - Scarlett, Malachi, Calvin, and Oliver - in Arlington, Texas. In addition to his family, Chris loves a pick-up basketball game, a good cheeseburger, and firmly believes Jordan is better than Lebron.

Kyle Reno
Pastor

Kyle Reno
Pastor

Kyle has a deep desire to be a part of a movement marked by men embracing their role in the story of God. His passion for ministry was shaped when he came to Christ at 19 through the investment of his baseball coach and a local church in Gardendale, AL.

In addition to working with the BetterMan Team, Kyle serves as the Senior Pastor at Crossgates Church in Brandon, MS, a multiplying church family with prayer-filled dreams of playing a part in the coming move of God across America.

Kyle and his incredible wife, Katie, have been blessed with four sons and one daughter.

Bryan Hurlbutt
Pastor

Bryan Hurlbutt
Pastor

Since 2004, Bryan has been the lead and founding pastor of Lifeline Community Church in West Jordan, Utah, where his mission has been to cultivate holistic disciples of Christ with lives of passionate engagement and intellectual depth. He has discipled men for over 20 years, teaching from an authentic place where his own story fits into God’s grand story.
In addition to pastoring, Bryan teaches and writes on a wide range of topics, including theology, worldview, and discipleship. His book, “Tasty Jesus: Liberating Christ from the Power of Our Predilections,” equips believers to respond to the distortions of Christ created by the personal tastes of our culture that conflict with the Bible and historic Christian orthodoxy. He also published “Cohort: Forming a Legion of Disciples in the
Local Church” to teach church leaders effective strategies for developing discipleship structures and curriculum.

He holds a Doctor of Ministry degree from Talbot School of Theology and a Master of Theology from Dallas Theological Seminary.

Bryan is joined in life and ministry by his best friend and wife of over 25 years, Jennifer. Together, they have poured their lives into three beautiful and precious daughters: Brynne, Reghan and Tierney.

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