The Christian Direction – Philippians 3:1-11

Pastor of Children and Families

Brandon Emerson is our Pastor of Children and Families. He has a MA degree in Christian Education from Southern Seminary in Kentucky, a BA in Christian Ministries from Union University, and has served in churches in Arkansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky before moving to the great state of Texas. He is married to Amanda, and they have three kids – Eli, Eva, and Sarah Beth. Brandon enjoys going on adventures with his family, watching college football, and eating at good Mexican restaurants. contact me.

Lead Pastor

The Senior Pastor at MBC is Matt Reynolds. He holds a ThM from Dallas Theological Seminary and a BA in Elementary Education from Cedarville College. He has served as a pastor both in Missouri and Texas for the last 20 years, but he joined the staff here at MBC in December of 2014. Matt has been married to Elizabeth since 1998 and they have three children: Madeline, Hannah, and Samuel. contact me.

Student Ministries Pastor

Ezekiel (Zeke) Garcia is the MBC Student Ministries’ Pastor. Prior to coming on staff in May of 2020, he worked at various times as a worship pastor, youth pastor, and camp counselor in Arkansas and Missouri. He is also a Christian Hip Hop artist. Zeke has been married to Karlee since 2012 and they have four children. Zeke’s interests include writing, playing, and recording music. He enjoys playing sports of any kind—but he especially likes basketball. He also enjoys spending time with his family, game nights, and going to the movies.contact me.

CrossKids Director / Preschool Coordinator

Kristen joined our staff in 2021. She is an integral part of our Kid’s Ministry Team using her skills and talents as our MBC CrossKids Director and Preschool Coordinator.
She has a BS in Early Childhood Education from Texas A&M, as well as a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Bush School of Public Service and Administration.
Kristen has two children, Roland and Morgan. She loves the outdoors, music, and hanging out with her children.

Director of Re:Generation @ MBC

Lesli Thompson is our Director of Re:Generation.

Regeneration is a 12-Step intensive discipleship program. Lesli graduated from John Brown University in 1999 with a Bachelor of Science in social work. She worked for years in group home care for abused and neglected children. Jeff and Lesli were married in 2002. They have done many years of ministry together in youth, Colombia, and now Regeneration. Five children, Ella, Elijah, Ezra, Emerson, and Emery supply them with endless hours of cooking, cleaning, and laundry! More fun times involve hiking, camping, and planning as many trips back to Wyoming as possible.

Worship Pastor

Jeremiah Olsen is the Worship Pastor at MBC. He has been leading worship for 15+ years and has a heart to use the gifting God has given him in music to serve the church. He is passionate about building up other worship leaders within the church and helping them grow in their abilities. Jeremiah has been married to Amanda since 2014, and they have three young children. Jeremiah‘s interests include writing and recording music. He also enjoys all things outdoors including fishing, hunting, and camping. contact me.

Pastor of Leadership Development and Discipleship

Jeff grew up in Louisiana and studied pre-med at LSU. His wife Cheryl also attended LSU and majored in music education. They both became Christians in 1971 and were married in 1973. After attending LSU Medical School for a year, Jeff and Cheryl moved to Dallas to attend Dallas Theological Seminary where Jeff received his ThM degree in 1979, and later his doctorate from Denver Seminary in 1982.

Jeff and Cheryl then planted churches in Breckenridge, TX, and Orlando, FL before moving to Iowa City, IA where Jeff served as the Senior Pastor of a church which grew to 2500 with 37 staff for almost 30 years. Parkview Church is located right next to the University of Iowa Campus and had a vibrant ministry to faculty, staff, and university students as well as to the greater Iowa City area. Jeff and Cheryl have six children and twenty-four grandchildren with three of their children and families living in Texas, two in the Dallas area. Jeff and Cheryl are thrilled to be Partners at MBC and Jeff is excited to be involved on staff, focusing on his passion for Leadership Development and Discipleship.

contact me.

Intern

Brant Taylor is the Student Ministry Intern. His father was a pastor at the church they attended in Dallas for 10 years, where Brant was very involved. After moving to Waxahachie in 2012, Brant’s family started attending MBC, where he spent his middle and high school years. During his senior year of high school, Zeke began to disciple Brant, and they developed a close bond. Brant says that he felt a call towards ministry his whole life, but he put other things above that call until the summer of 2022. Now, he can confidently say that ministry is where God is directing his life. Brant enjoys playing, watching, and coaching basketball. He also loves all types of music.

Elder

Paul Schrodt serves as an Elder at MBC. After earning his Ph.D. in Communication Studies at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln in 2003, he taught at the Universities of Texas at Arlington and Kansas before joining the faculty at Texas Christian University, where he has taught since 2006. Paul grew up attending MBC as a youth and joined the Elder board in 2016. He and his wife Danielle have raised their two sons, Isaac and Eli, at MBC. Paul enjoys following his favorite sport teams, watching movies, and reading books on theology and apologetics.

Elder

I received Jesus during my senior year at the university. Jeannie and I have been married 50 years and have five children. We have been involved with MBC since the founding in the 1970’s. I am president of a manufacturing company located in Mansfield.

Elder

Gary & Demetra joined MBC family in 1990 they have 3 grown children Aaron, Zachary and Gabrielle. They have served in several ministries over the years Greeter, Nursery, Elementary Sunday School, JV Sunday School, Senior High Support, Deacon, Elder, Safety Team.

Elder

Kim is a fourth-generation son of Midlothian. He lives on the farm his great-grandparents bought in 1892. Now retired, Kim’s original career was in education. He served forty-four years in Cedar Hill ISD as their Chief Financial/Operations Officer. He began attending MBC in January of 1974–a mere six months after its official founding. MBC only had about 25 people attending at that time! He considers it a blessing and privilege to have served as MBC’s treasurer for many of those years. Although a bachelor with no children, Kim has had the great joy of mentoring many “adopted” sons who help him on his farm. He also serves as a mentor to several awesome Re:Generation participants. After the Savior, the family at MBC is the love of Kim’s life. However, he clings to Revelation 22:20b…”Even so, come Lord Jesus.”

Elder

As a teenager, the church family at MBC played an important role in helping me come to a saving faith in Jesus. Two of our pastors performed the wedding for my wife, Denise, and me. Our son, Gunnar and daughter, Chloe, have been raised in MBC, and have each placed their faith in Christ due, in part, to the strong Biblical teaching we have always had in this church family. I pray you will find a church family that means a much to you as this one means to me.

Believe. Belong. Build Up. Be Strong.