In 1986, I was 10 years old when my parents decided to join Bible Baptist Church in St. Charles, Missouri, under the leadership of Pastor Ken Dubose. This is where I grew up, met my wife, Michelle, and eventually left in 1994 to attend Crown Bible College in Knoxville, Tennessee.
After serving in various ministries, God brought me back to Bible Baptist to serve under Pastor Steve Parks, who eventually asked me to become his full-time associate pastor. From 2015 to 2024, I had the privilege of serving alongside Pastor Parks until he retired in August 2024.
The next week, I assumed the role of interim pastor while the church continued its search for a new pastor. I had come up just short of the necessary votes to become pastor earlier that month, so I continued filling the pulpit and serving the church during the transition. In March 2025, the church voted again, and this time I received the necessary votes to become pastor.
Suddenly, I was pastoring the church that had helped raise me.
Moving Forward While Honoring the Past
Once I officially became pastor, one of my primary goals was to begin putting things in place that would allow our church to move forward. We were able to initiate some structural and cosmetic changes to our building and rethink how we use some of our space. Unfortunately, much of our attention has also had to go toward deferred maintenance on our buildings and vehicles.
Without the ability to hire an associate pastor, I am still fulfilling many of the responsibilities I had as an associate while also carrying the responsibilities of the pastor. I never realized how much of a pastor’s time and attention could be consumed by administrative responsibilities and decisions involving an older building and ministry.
Our church averages about 65 people, including 20 to 25 K-12 students who either attend with their families or ride the vans we continue to operate in our neighborhoods. Although a handful of people have left during this transition, God has blessed us with faithful volunteers who continue serving in our student ministries and throughout the church.
One lesson I learned very early was the importance of prioritizing the real needs of our people. With an older congregation, being available for in-home and hospital visits is a weekly occurrence. When you are a pastoral staff of one, you quickly learn that you cannot do everything at once. You have to determine what is truly urgent and what can wait.
Discernment is an absolute necessity.
You cannot be reactionary. You have to learn to be both patient and prompt in following God’s leading.
At the same time, I have learned that I must guard against simply maintaining the church from Sunday to Sunday. There must be intentional time spent in prayer and planning, looking toward outreach and growth and considering the long-term health of the church.
Becoming Their Pastor
I knew going into this role that some who knew me as a child, and others who knew me as the associate pastor, might struggle to see me as their pastor. With God’s help, I have tried not to take that personally. My responsibility is simply to strive to be the pastor God has called me to be.
Proverbs 11:14 reminds us that “in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.” I desire to seek wise counsel from our church leaders and other pastors and then ultimately make the decisions I believe are best for our church family. I do not want those decisions to be driven by personal ambition or by comparing our ministry to what another church is doing.
That can be challenging because I am following two pastors who served this church for a combined 47 years. Consistency and familiarity are important parts of our church’s identity.
Perhaps the hardest part for me has been recognizing that some things need to change for the future sustainability of the ministry while also leading people through those changes without losing the foundational identity of our church.
I have already made mistakes. I constantly wrestle with how to honor those who appreciate the church for what it has always been while also leading it toward what God desires our church to become.
That tension is real.
The majority of my ministry is still what most people would expect: teaching, preaching, counseling, discipling and visiting. But there are also budgets, vehicles, buildings, repairs, schedules and countless administrative decisions that have to be made.
And eventually, someone has to make the decision.
I am learning that sitting in the pastor’s chair means accepting that responsibility. You seek counsel. You pray. You listen. Then you make the best decision you can to honor God and help the church without allowing yourself to be controlled by the opinions of others.
Learning to Let Others Lead
One of my greatest personal struggles has been delegating and trusting the Lord while helping others become equipped to lead.
When there is so much to do, it can seem easier to simply do it yourself. But that is neither healthy nor sustainable. Part of leading a church forward is helping others discover where God can use them and then trusting them with responsibility.
That is something I am still learning.
The beauty of Bible Baptist Church is that it truly is a church family. Our people love the Lord, love one another and welcome those who come to worship with us. There is still a need and a place for a church like ours in this community.
As we have moved beyond the first year of this new chapter, I can honestly say I have been blessed to be the pastor of this church. So many people, both inside and outside our church, have encouraged me and expressed their desire to see God continue using Bible Baptist in St. Charles.
And God is still working.
We are still seeing people saved and baptized. We rejoice when people come and become part of our church family, while also enduring the disappointment when others choose to leave. Ministry includes both.
I am especially thankful for my wife, Michelle, who has taken on additional responsibilities and expectations through this transition. She has been a willing servant who serves wherever she is needed.
I am thankful for those who have known me most of my life and have given me room to learn and grow as their pastor. Some of the people I now pastor once taught me in Sunday school.
I am also thankful for my mom and dad, who are still here in the church and continue serving in multiple ministries. My dad serves as a deacon, and both of my parents have graciously welcomed their son as their pastor.
That is something I do not take for granted.
The Church That Became Home
Early in my ministry, God gave me a heart to reach my hometown. It is still surreal to think that when I was saved at 17 and later called to preach, God already knew His plan would eventually bring me back to pastor the church where I grew up.
More than 40 years ago, Bible Baptist Church became a church home for my family. It was here that I grew spiritually. It was here that I met my wife. It was here that God helped shape my life and prepare me for ministry.
Now He has brought me full circle.
My prayer is that Bible Baptist Church will continue blessing families for generations to come. I pray that children growing up here today will one day look back and recognize how God used this church to shape their lives, just as He used it to shape mine.
We love our church family. We love serving alongside them, even through the valleys. And after all the places God has allowed us to serve and all the years that have passed since my family first walked through these doors, I can say with gratitude that we would not want to be anywhere else.
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