About Me

Born in 1977 to James and Naomi Varnum, I was raised in a pastor's home. Where I had the privilege of a front-row seat watching my parents help build the kingdom of God. My sisters and I naturally joined in the process.

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When I was five years old I met a man that changed my life in more than one way. He preached the word of God with great power and conviction that it changed anyone who heard it. But secondly, he taught me a magic trick. His name is Jeff Arnold and he is still the greatest minister and magician that I know. From that day to the present, he is still teaching me both.

From my childhood throughout my teen years, I continue to practice and grow in the craft of sleight-of-hand. Then after graduating high school, I became a semi-working professional sleight-of-hand artist who performed locally and across the country. 

Then my attention turned fully towards ministry, and I began to preach at youth camps from Florida to Alaska as well as overseas. After being married to my lovely wife Hollina, we worked together as the youth pastor of our local church and eventually were blessed to have four wonderful children!

During that time we became the lead Pastor of Souls Harbor in Belleview, Florida in 2007, where we are still pastoring today. We are now the lead pastor of three locations that have their own paid-for campuses and are growing rapidly. We are also currently starting the process of building a new sanctuary on our first campus. It is all God that we are where we are today, and God is still doing great things. You can learn more at SoulsHarbor.org

Something happened in 2019 that affected the world. They called it a global pandemic and it caused our world to shut down. As a pastor, I had a lot more time on my hands. I could not visit people in the hospital. No one wanted us to visit their home. So with extra time on my hands, I picked up a deck of cards and seriously started shuffling for the first time in almost 20 years.

To my surprise it was like riding a bike, it started coming back quickly.  However, not really knowing what my skill level was, I decided to challenge myself and join the oldest, most prestigious magic club in the world; it is located in London England. It is called the magic circle, in order to be a part of this exclusive club you do not just pay money, you must take an exam to prove you have the ability to be a part of it. After my exam, I was nervous to hear the results and when I received it I was shocked. Here’s a portion of the letter I received after my exam…

CONGRATULATIONS!

Not only have you become a Member of The Magic Circle, but the examiners judged that you showed sufficient skill and technique in your routine which they thought was well thought out, themed, and delivered to such a high standard that they judged you to become an Associate of The Inner Magic Circle with Silver Star. AIMC is the highest possible degree that can be attained through examination at The Magic Circle.

I am delighted to officially confirm that you are now an Associate of the Inner Magic Circle with Silver Star. Congratulations!

To say I was shocked is an understatement, it truly took me by surprise. My wife looked at me and smiled, she said I told you!

Then something else happened. My mind began to link these two worlds together, my ministry in leadership and my magic (aka sleight-of-hand). This seemed to happen seamlessly. No longer was it a trick with a silly punch line but a tool to help get principles across to leaders.

Pastors began to ask me to present it to their teams. So it began. Just how far will it go and how many churches will be affected by this ministry? Only time will tell. What I can tell you, is that the magic has already started to work and I’m excited about the journey.