Our Pastors
Pastor Kevin Schmidt
“I had the privilege of being raised in a godly Christian home. Some of my earliest memories are of Sunday School and other activities at my Bible-believing church in Vallejo, CA. At a young age I realized my need for Christ and sincerely accepted Him to be my Lord and Savior. A few years later, when I was only 12 years old, God very strongly and very clearly impressed my heart with the call to be a pastor. I am convinced that even during those formative years, God knew I would one day spend most of my adult life serving at Grace Baptist Church, and He orchestrated the events in my life to prepare me for this place. And believe me, I am still on God’s easel, and He continues to work in my life day after day!”
Pastor Kevin Schmidt received an undergraduate degree in Bible with a minor in Speech in 1980. He also received a Master’s degree in Pastoral Studies in 1981. Both degrees are from Bob Jones University. Since graduation, he has also accumulated class hours toward a Doctor of Pastoral Theology. It was in college that Pastor Kevin met and fell in love with Doreen. They were married in 1979. The Schmidts have three grown children, who were each home schooled from Kindergarten through the 12th grade.
Pastor Kevin served as a youth pastor in Indiana for a few years before moving back to California. About that same time, our church was without and pastor, and hearing he was available, we asked him to come fill the pulpit for a week or two. But God had a different plan! That one Sunday in February 1985 has stretched into several decades.
Our pastor loves the Lord, the Word, his wife and family, and God’s people. And we, in turn, love him. He has the gift of pastor-teacher and is a skilled communicator. And as the Lord’s under-shepherd, he feeds us by preaching and teaching God’s Word with clarity and conviction.
Pastor John Schmidt
John Schmidt, who is the nephew of our senior pastor, is a “pastor in training” in our pastoral internship program–a program designed to help young pastors make the transition from college to local church ministry. Though he primarily works with our teens, he is involved in all aspects of church life and service. Before coming to Grace Baptist Church in the summer of 2009, John earned a degree from Bob Jones University and served on the staff of Castlepoint Ministries in Lucerne, CA, where he met his wife Brooke (Northland Baptist Bible College).
