The Elder Council and our Senior Pastor, with the search team for Associate Pastor Congregational Life’s unanimous recommendation, are excited to introduce Dr. Nick Barrett to you as the selected Associate Pastor of Congregational Life. Nick believes God has given him a calling “To preach the Gospel by loving, serving, and worshiping God – the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and, by the grace of God, to help shepherd the church towards Christ.”
Nick comes to LAC with over twelve years of experience at Hollywood Presbyterian Church where he served as Director of Student Ministries. In this position, he ministered to students and families with a personal pastoral touch, including assisting and supporting families in conflict and crisis. Over time at Hollywood Presbyterian Church, his responsibilities increased to include creating and implementing programs that benefitted, not only his students but also, the wider church body. He sees the power of intergenerational engagement and involvement. His multiple responsibilities provided opportunities for preaching, teaching, and conducting other ministerial duties such as baptisms and funerals.
More recently, Nick graciously agreed to be LAC’s Interim NextGen Director when there was a significant staff turnover in our family ministries division. While briefly in this role, he met and worked with middle and high schoolers and their families. He oversaw the volunteer and paid staff and aligned the budget for this area of ministry. Due to his strong strategic thinking and skills, Pastor Mathew invited him to be a Strategic Consultant on initiatives that will benefit LAC’s mission to create spaces in culture to open doors for sharing the gospel, which included developing a catechism that will help answer questions of the Christian faith, working on a proposal for Academy of Cultural Engagement (ACE), and a pastoral residency/internship program.
Nick’s educational background includes both a MDiv and PhD from Fuller Theological Seminary. His MDiv focused on Theology, Worship and Arts while his recently completed PhD focused on Theology and Culture. He also has a MA in English Literature from the University of California, Irvine, and a BA in Biblical Studies from Colorado Christian University. Nick has taught English Literature classes with a theological perspective at Providence Christian College. He has also had several articles published in Journal of Reformed Theology, Comment Magazine, and Poetica.
When Nick is relaxing, he loves to read enjoying all types of books, watch and then discuss movies with people, or go to the museum. Nick’s favorite place to just “hang out” is the beach. He loves street tacos and will be happy to join you to find the next great taco truck.
Nick is married to Rita Barrett. Many of you may recognize this name since she is LAC’s HR Director. Rita has been feeling God’s call to a different area of ministry for the past couple years and is currently on a transition plan to a different career path.
We are anticipating a short church meeting, September 24, at 11 am, which will be held to affirm Dr. Nick Barrett as a pastor here at LAC. An Open House is also being planned on Thursday, September, 21 at 7 pm so you can personally meet Nick and his wife Rita prior to the congregational meeting. Our website will also have an FAQ for a few questions you may have.