Pastor’s Corner: Jason Parks, Refuge Church

I am passionate about helping people come to know Jesus Christ, get connected in God’s house, and become leaders who work together to make a difference in Huntsville, Madison County, and throughout the world. I’ve been married to my best friend, Jessica, for over eleven years and we have three amazing worldchangers-in-training. I’ve earned a BS in Communication Arts from the University of North Alabama, a Master of Business Administration from Liberty University, a Master of Divinity from Rockbridge Seminary, and have completed post-graduate doctoral work in Transformational Leadership from Rockbridge Seminary. I’m also a Board Certified Pastoral Counselor. After a career in healthcare management and marketing, I followed God’s call to full-time ministry. I’ve been blessed to serve in both volunteer and vocational ministry roles for over fourteen years including children’s ministry and student ministry. Currently, I am the Lead Pastor of Refuge Church that meets in Providence Elementary School. I also serve as the Spiritual Care & Community Liaison for Hospice Family Care and as an instructor for Huntsville Bible College. I am blessed to be one of the founders of Rooms of Refuge and Moments of Refuge, two community partnerships that are changing the way people are cared for in Madison County.

I love Jesus and I love people. That’s really what keeps me going everyday. I look around and I see real people with real hurts and real problems who need a real Savior. My heartbeat is to connect people to the power and presence of Jesus Christ so that He can change lives. More than anything, my hope is that our church is a refuge FOR a hurting world.

A key part of my calling is to help people see that The Church still cares about them because Jesus still cares about them. My hope is that churches and people will live out the God-dreams that He has placed in their hearts so that they can make a Kingdom impact. I believe that people are more important than church politics…that life change is more important than tradition…that our churches should focus more on what unites us rather than what divides us.

I grew up in Madison County and I love our community. I am so thankful that God has called us to serve our hometown. My heartbeat is to see more churches embrace ethnic, generational, and socioeconomic diversity so our church families look more like Heaven. I also pray for the day when churches across our city can lay down differences, focus on Jesus, and make an eternal difference in our community together. Huntsville is such an international community. If we impact Huntsville, we can impact the world!

Father, thank You for the many blessings that You’ve poured out over this community and her leaders. We do not take for granted Your Grace and Your Mercy. Today, I pray for the men and women who serve so faithfully to keep our community safe. Please protect them and their families as they serve a cause greater than themselves. Father, we ask that You give us a renewed sense of gratitude, a passion for serving those who are in need, and unity toward the common purpose of doing Your Will in Huntsville as it is in Heaven. Above all else, Father, we honor you today. We humbly intercede on behalf of our community and her leaders. In Jesus’ name, amen.