youngadults.today

Today our guest is Manny Flores. Manny is the young adult pastor at Willmar Assembly of God church in Minnesota! Young adults at Willmar AG are college students and young professionals!

David Kinnaman has authored several books, including unchristian, You Lost Me, and Good Faith. He is president of Barna Group, a leading research company based in Ventura, California and Atlanta, Georgia. David’s work as a researcher and “professional listener” has led his team ot interview nearly 1.5 milloin individuals since he began working for Barna as an intern in 1995. David – I attended You Lost Me Live event in Minneapolis, Minnesota in about 2012. I had just had a vision about reaching young adults and I was interning at the church I grew up in. Meeting you that day showed me a lot about ministering to the next generation. I left that day committed to integrating what I had learned into practice!                                                                                            When we launched this podcast in 2019, he was one of the people we prayed would jump on board as a guest because he is one of the brightest minds in Christianity. 

Terry is the NextGen Pastor at River Valley Church in Minneapolis, MN. From youth, leadership institute to young adults, to emerging leaders, Terry has a desire to work with other leaders in developing a movement that is defined by a generation of influencers who are passionate about Jesus Christ and what He calls this generation to accomplish for the Kingdom. With over 16 years of experience in working with the Next Generation, nothing drives Terry more than helping this generation discover their purpose, developing them as leaders, and empowering them to step out into the plan of God for their lives.  

Chandler serves as the Executive Director of Youth America! Youth America has been helping build next generation leaders and churches since 1987. Youth America is known for incredible summer camps and high caliber leadership conference each year! Chandler and the youth America team have also been on a mission to serve the church at large with free digital content and resources – in fact they are now serving over 2,000 churches  through a new platform called: free church media!

Jerrid Sebesta spent 12 years as a TV Meteorologist at KARE11, a long-time powerhouse station in Minneapolis, MN. In 2014, after much contemplation and prayer, Jerrid left his thriving, high-profile career. It was a move that came as a surprise to many people, including some of his family. But, it was apparent to Jerrid that God was leading him in an entirely different direction; out of TV and the big-city, into a much simpler, quieter lifestyle. With a tentative plan to head back to where it all started in Sioux Falls, Jerrid instead found himself jobless and on the brink of an identity crisis. Through a chance phone call from his soon-to-be future boss, Ben Taatjes, Jerrid began the process of finding his true identity and purpose, which has lead to his amazing testimony which he now uses to inspire thousands of people to begin “Livin’ the Dream.” He is the host of Repurposed Podcast on Faith Radio!   Jerrid has been a friend, mentor, and valuable voice in my life over the past few years.

We’re joined by special guest Ken Coleman! As an AUTHOR, RADIO HOST, SPEAKER, Ken is the bestselling author of The Proximity Principle and national radio host of The Ken Coleman Show. Pulling from his own personal struggles, missed opportunities and career successes, Coleman helps people discover what they were born to do and provides practical steps to make their dream job a reality. The Ken Coleman Show is a caller-driven career show that helps listeners who are stuck in a job they hate or searching for something more out of their career. On a personal note, Ken is one of my absolute favorite authors and speakers. Micah and I actually met Ken in 2017 – not sure if he remembers but Ken is one of the Ramsey Personalities for Ramsey Solutions and he spoke at an event where we all met and that night we actually won $250 of Dave Ramsey’s money.  

Today, we’re joined by special guest, Griffin Harrell. Griffin serves as the young adult supervisor at Sandals Church in Riverside, California! Where he helps create spaces for young adults to be real. His role entails planning events as well as investing into the leaders who lead groups for college students and young adults!

Alan Pastian has had the privilege of being a next generation leader working with youth and young adults exclusively for over 20 years and has absolutely loved it. He discovered a faith in Jesus Christ while in the university setting while attending St Cloud State University and obtaining my degree in Communications/Public Relations.  He pursued his second degree from North Central University where I graduated and began my journey pastoring youth and young adults in the local church.   He has an incredible journey in ministry from serving with Pastor Rob Ketterling and the incredible team at River Valley Church overseeing our multi-site youth ministry for many years developing and strategizing next gen leadership. He also spent time working with Mark Batterson at National Community Church as part of the campus pastor team and continue to value their mentorship and inspiration in my life. Currently I am leading one of our campus locations at River Valley Church, developing more leadership content and inspiring those in our church community to make a difference and live life to the full.    

Dave Adamson or “Aussie Dave” is a social media pastor at North Point Community Church, also a youtuber, speaker, photographer, and author! I looked back online and realized our paths crossed when I began following you back in 2016. You’re the first person I’ve ever seen who was an “online pastor” or “social media pastor” although there are now several others. And in light of what’s happening in our world literally this month with COVID-19 (coronavirus), churches are rapidly making shifts to double down on online strategies. https://www.daveadamson.tv | @aussiedave 

Matt Brown is an evangelist, author of Truth Plus Love, and founder of Think Eternity — a ministry dedicated to amplifying the gospel every day through podcasts, devotionals, videos, live events and more. Matt and his wife Michelle and their three children live near Minneapolis, Minnesota. You can follow Matt at @evangelistmatt and thinke.org.