Coming from a military family, Burnie attended college at the U.S. Naval Academy where he received his degree in Chemistry in 2003, after which he moved to San Diego to report for sea duty in the U.S. Navy. While looking for a church, God led him to Canyon Ridge Baptist, where he became Music Director in November 2004, and then Assistant Pastor in 2008. He married his wife, Leslie, in 2010 and they have been blessed with four children.