Open Door Pastoral Staff
The Open Door Pastoral Staff work as a cohesive unit in leading, guiding, and serving the community of Open Door and the local ministries and churches we partner with in and around Lexington. The staff members each share in the load of teaching and preaching as well as facilitating discipleship opportunities, service opportunities, and community opportunities as appropriate to their giftings and callings.
Adam Jones
Lead Pastor
The Lead Pastor oversees the life and growth of Open Door through strategic planning and development, pastoral care and counseling, and by equipping the Church to be the hands of feet of Jesus in their world.
Adam Jones has been leading the community at Open Door church for nearly 20 years. A graduate of Asbury Theological Seminary, Adam has a heart for meeting God’s people wherever they are and inviting them into intentional, vibrant community. His work has led him to parter with BUILD in several justice projects and leading the congregation in loving others well through refugee resettlement, neighborhood outreach, and multiple peace & justice initiatives. He and his wife Kimberly live in Lexington with their five children and one furry friend!
Matthew Peterson
Pastor of Home Churches
The Pastor of Home Churches supports and equips our Home Church Shepherds for the work of the ministry and serves on the teaching, preaching, and prayer ministry of Open Door.
Matthew Peterson and his wife Stephanie and three children joined a Plowshares Home Church in 2018 and now host one in their home in Wilmore, Kentucky. He also serves as theologian-in-residence with the Great Lakes Conference of Brethren in Christ U.S. and adjunct instructor in Greek at Asbury Theological Seminary. He is completing is PhD in Bibical Studies and resonates deeply with the peace focus of Open Door Church and the Brethren in Christ.
Christina Embree
NextGen Pastor
Our Next Gen Pastor works directly with our middle and high-school aged youth, specifically connecting them to relatioships with the larger congregation, and is a vital member of the preaching, teaching, and discipleship team at Open Door Church.
Christina Embree has been serving in ministry all her life but is especially passionate about connecting generations in meaningful relationships for the purpose of making lifelong disciples. As Next Gen pastor, Christina leads the Youth & Young Adult Home Church and serves as the Minister of Generational Discipleship for the Great Lakes Conference of the Brethren in Christ. She runs a not-for-profit ministry (ReFocus Ministry) that allows her to coach and consult with churches across the globe around generational discipleship. She loves to travel, cook, hike, host dinners, create charcuterie boards, write, and read.
Marissa Cowan
Seven Minute Sermons
Marissa Cowan served with the Plowshares staff as youth pastor and as a Home Church Shepherd before moving to the role of Home Church Pastor. Marissa holds a master’s in counseling from Asbury Theological Seminary and is a licensed pastor with Brethren in Christ US. In addition to serving with the church, she works as a full-time counselor with at-risk young people who have exited the foster system She lives with her husband Rusty and their three furry canine friends.
Sungbin Kim
Worship Pastor
Our Worship Pastor serves the church through the leading of the Spirit into worship, including our Sunday service gatherings and as a vital member of the pastoral staff in various preaching, teaching, and discipleship roles.
Sungbin joins Open Door as an Ordained Pastor in Lancaster Mennonite Conference and a licensed Pastor in Brethren In Christ Church. Sungbin has served in ministry since 2001 with Presbyterian, Mennonite, and BIC US churches.
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