Matt Whiteford
College
Our new Pastor of College and Young Adults, Matt Whiteford, arrived in Modesto yesterday from Detroit, Michigan. Matt’s wife, Sherri, and children, Allison (11), Hannah (8) and Josh (5) move here permanently as soon as the current school semester is completed.
“I love working with college students and young adults,” says Matt. “They are in this intense decision part of life, a time when their decisions have great consequences. They’ve come through high school where there were plenty of choices to be made, but those weren’t nearly as consequential as the decisions facing people in their late teens and twenties.”
Matt and Sherri’s life experience has prepared them well to work with young adults in Modesto. “We met at a Christian camp in northern Michigan,” Matt says. “We were doing youth ministry, and our love for Jesus and our calling to youth ministry drew us to each other.”
From there Matt worked as a youth pastor in suburban Detroit, and later the Whitefords moved to South Dakota where they worked at a Christian boarding high school. Sherri taught math and physics and Matt taught Bible and served as chaplain. Ten years there provided a strong foundation for them as a couple and as youth workers. Following that time, they moved to the far west of the state where Matt served as associate pastor of a church where he was responsible for men’s ministry, small groups and worship. “That’s where I learned what I could do and what I could not do!” he says.
The family’s next move was back to Michigan where both Matt and Sherri taught at a Christian school, and where their children attend. Most recently Matt was the young adult pastor at the church attached to that school.
Matt is one of those people whose family has a rich Christian heritage. “Going way back through my great-great-grandparents, there were followers of Jesus on both sides. I grew up in church and went to a Christian school. A kindergarten teacher asked our class, ‘Who wants to go to Heaven and not go to Hell?’ That’s when I first raised my hand in response to an invitation!” Matt says that through his young life, he often responded to invitations but it wasn’t until high school that he really understood what Christ had done for him, and truly began a personal relationship with Him. “I told God, I would do whatever it was He wanted me to do. My salvation has truly been a process.”
Matt attended Taylor University in Indiana, graduating with a degree in Biblical Literature and Christian Education. He began his studies for his Master of Divinity degree at Denver Seminary and finished it at Michigan Theological Seminary. He is an avid reader, enjoying books about ministry, business, leadership and spiritual issues. “I’m a voracious life-long learner,” he says, “and I listen to podcasts throughout the week. My family loves camping and all kinds of outdoor activity. I also like road biking and mountain biking and I’m into exercise.”
Matt’s interests and qualities make him a great fit for our community. “So far,” he says, “Modesto reminds my family of every place we’ve lived, all put together. Driving in from Oakland, Modesto reminded us of South Dakota with the rolling hills and ranches. On the other hand, Modesto has an urban sprawl that reminded us of the metro Detroit area.”
“God has done a lot with guiding this whole process in directing us here,” Matt continues. “We were concerned about our kids making the move, but we’ve discovered they believe God is moving us here and they’re happy about it!”
What’s in store for the college and young adult ministry? “A couple of things mark this generation,” Matt says. “They are more attracted to doing than they are to knowing. They have been talked to and lectured to throughout their education, and now they are attracted to action. It’s super popular to join a cause, and there are a million causes out there. Even our big entertainers are attached to causes, and those causes are aimed right at this generation. We need to make sure we do more than impart knowledge. We need to give people ways to apply what they know in God’s Kingdom – physical ways to live out their faith.” The college and young adult ministries can look forward to some great opportunities to put their faith into action.
Matt shares further observations about today’s young adults: “This generation, more so than previous ones, have a sense of entitlement. They have been taught they deserve to have everything, yet some sociologists say they will probably have smaller homes than their parents, and many will declare bankruptcy before they are 50. What an opportunity we have to teach what Jesus says about this, and what His ministry was about.”
Teaching about Christ in creative ways and providing innovative opportunities for service are the keys to this generation, and as Matt says, “If someone is bored by the Gospel, it’s not the Gospel’s fault – it’s our fault!” Watch for exciting Kingdom-building things to come from the college and young adult ministry.
