My Story

It is true that life is a journey, but it is also more than that. Life is about the transitions that we all experience on this journey . This blog is dedicated to all those who find themselves wrestling through the next stage of life. Whether you are experiencing life on the mountaintop, or life in the valley, my hope is that my writing and our interactions help each other along the way.

This blog was born out my desire to thoughtfully reflect on my life, and to wrestle with the questions and ideas that I was experiencing. It was one thing to struggle through these things on the pages of my journal and moleskine, and quite another to bring them onto a blog and into community. In the summer of 2004 I started a blog on the site of our college ministry, and later in the spring of 2005 I launched rhettsmith.com. It has been quite the journey since.

I spent the last ten years working on university campuses with college students and their families, helping them navigate the college years and face many challenges and difficulties along the way. Much of that time, I was a college pastor in Los Angeles, working at Bel Air Presbyterian Church and primarily serving the students on the campuses of UCLA, USC and LMU. During that period, I also spent time with a large number of young adults working in the entertainment industry. I truly enjoy working with college students and young adults as they wrestle with issues surrounding identity, the meaning of life and vocation.

In addition to young adults, I’ve worked with people of all ages, including couples, families and groups during the three years I spent working in community mental health clinics in Los Angeles and Dallas.

Regardless of the stage of life or age group, my hope is that the collaborative work I engage in with my clients would be life transforming.

I’m currently a Marriage and Family Therapy Associate at HopeWorks Counseling in Plano, TX, and I pastor part-time to youth and families at Highland Park Presbyterian Church in Dallas. You can read more about my therapy work here.

I live in Frisco, TX with my wife and daughter.

Professional Affiliation
I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapy Associate, #201264, issued by the Texas State Board of Examiners of Marriage and Family Therapists. I’m a member of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapists, the Texas Association for Marriage and Family Therapists, and the Dallas Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.

Education
Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Grand Canyon University-1997 (Phoenix, AZ)
Master of Divinity from Fuller Theological Seminary-2003 (Pasadena, CA)
Master of Science in Marital and Family Therapy-2007 (Pasadena, CA)

Continued Training
I’m a Family Wellness Instructor, Certified Prepare and Enrich Counselor, and I’m receiving extensive training (Gestalt/Existential therapy) from therapist/life coach Rick Carson and marriage and family therapist Scott Gornto.

Writing
I’ve contributed several articles in the area of social media/new technologies, especially as it relates to the field of ministry and relationships.

More recently I contributed an article to Collide Magazine called Why Twitter? Shaping Our Narrative One Tweet at a Time.

And in 2008 I contributed a chapter to the book The New Media Frontier: Blogging, Vlogging and Podcasting for Christ where I wrote a chapter on New Media Ministry to the MySpace-Facebook Generation: Employing New Media Technologies Effectively in Youth Ministries.