Dr. Justin Jackson
I’m originally from a small town in southeastern Oklahoma. I met Jesus at a young age and felt called into ministry as a teenager. Shortly after high school, I met Rachel, the beautiful woman who would eventually become my wife. Together, we attended the University of Central Oklahoma (UCO), and I graduated with a degree in sociology.
During that season, I felt drawn to minister among Chinese students on our campus and began learning Mandarin. Rachel and I were married in October 2010. Eight months later, we were on a plane headed for Asia, where we worked as church planting missionaries for two-and-a-half fruitful years. In 2013, I headed home to serve as a Pastoral Resident at Henderson Hills Baptist Church. I finished up an M.Div. at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and accepted a call to be the Lead Pastor at Grace Church in Ovilla, TX. In addition to pastoring, I completed a D.Min. and a Ph.D, served as the VP of Academic Affairs at Southern Bible Institute and College and as an adjunct at other seminaries (including Criswell College and Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary).
We have four amazing kiddos (Timothy, Abigail, Titus, and Jonathan). Together, we love exploring the outdoors, playing baseball, and reading good fiction. I also enjoy writing, hiking, photographing wildlife, mountain biking, and sipping coffee.
My hope for Stonegate is for every person to feel the beckoning call to come “further up and further into” the story of redemption as they know and enjoy Jesus more every day.
