Platt Park Church staff is made up of a fun, vibrant group of bi-vocational leaders who are passionate about ministry and life beyond the church walls. Located in the heart of Denver’s Platt Park neighborhood, our team brings energy, creativity, and real-world experience to our faith community.

If you’re looking to join a ministry-focused team that values both professional excellence and spiritual growth, Platt Park Church might be the perfect place for you. Please check out the positions we currently have available.

Lead Pastor Search

Dear church family,

We are so excited to share an important update about our search for a new lead pastor!

Over the past eighteen months, we’ve been on a prayerful journey to discern who God is calling to lead Platt Park Church into its next chapter. This process has been marked by listening, trust, and a deep commitment to our church’s values of team leadership, spiritual growth, and loving community.

Background: How We Got Here

In January 2024, the Elder Board convened a search committee to begin the process of hiring. That committee met monthly and did a huge amount of preliminary work to prepare for this search, including conducting a congregational survey, creating the church profile and background information about our congregation, compiling a list of strategic sites to post the job listing, and reviewing several drafts of the job description.

In June 2024, the Elder Board and Search Committee discerned the need to pause the search while the elders prayed for clarity regarding the role and what the church most needed in this season.

In November 2024, following feedback from the Leadership Team, prayer, and discernment, the Elder Board determined that Platt Park Church would benefit from adding a Lead Pastor to help complete the leadership team. The Search Committee was re-convened in January 2025, with a couple of new members, and they resumed their work.

The Journey So Far

The Search Committee started this search by posting the job listing on more than 20 strategic sites that they felt would best reach leaders who fit our church’s ethos. They received over 50 applications from candidates across the country—and even a few from other countries. The Search Committee prayerfully reviewed every application, narrowing the pool from 51 to 9 very qualified people. Those 9 candidates were then invited to submit video responses to a set of questions. After reviewing those videos, the committee narrowed the pool to 5 finalists, about whom they felt very good.

The Search Committee scheduled 90-minute interviews with each of those 5 candidates and watched multiple sermons from each one. After debriefing those interviews, the committee agreed on 3 final candidates to recommend to the Elder Board. At every stage of the process, the Search Committee felt a strong sense of unity and alignment about which candidates might be the best fit for Platt Park Church. Although the 3 finalists were each unique in their own way, they all stood out as wonderful people, confirmed by the glowing references they received.

The elders, with input from our staff and teaching team, carefully reviewed sermons, conducted interviews, and had extended conversations. Ultimately, one candidate emerged who seemed to resonate with our team, our vision, and our church family: James Johnson.

Why James?

James deeply impressed us with his faith, his gifts, his humble yet strong leadership, and his curiosity about our community. In his own words:

“I want to help our faith in Jesus be tangible, practical, and fruitful in our everyday life. I approach leadership as an environmentalist, striving to build a healthy and flourishing ecosystem for growth.”

In our interviews, James was a strong communicator, an attentive listener, and a warm, thoughtful presence. He’s been serving as Pastor of Spiritual Growth at Crossroads Church in Thornton for the past five years, with previous pastoral experience in Tennessee and Seattle. He and his wife, Gretchen, have been married for twenty-nine years and have two young adult children. He loves mountain biking, fly-fishing, hiking, and playing music—and most of all, he’s passionate about helping people encounter God in their daily lives.

A Reminder of Our Process

Platt Park Church is an elder-led congregation, which means that while we welcome your feedback, the final call will be issued by the Elder Board—not by a congregational vote. This is a key part of our governance model, ensuring that leadership decisions are made with discernment and prayerful oversight.

What Happens Next

On Sunday, June 15, we’ll introduce James and his family to the congregation. During the service, Charlie will host a Q&A-style conversation with James so you can hear his heart, his story, and his vision. After the service, James will be available to meet and talk informally at the Father’s Day BBQ After-Party in the sideyard.

Feedback and Next Steps

We invite you to reach out with any questions or concerns by Saturday, June 20. You can email the elders at elders@plattparkchurch.org. Unless significant new information emerges, we plan to move forward with extending a formal job offer to James on June 23.

A Word of Encouragement

Our church is already blessed with an incredible staff and teaching team—this is not a “rescue mission” but a step of building on the good work God has already started here. Our staff team has expressed the desire for a lead pastor who can hold the big picture of our church, connect all the pieces, and help shepherd us forward. We believe James is that person for this season.

We want to extend our deepest thanks to every member of the Search Committee—both those who served in 2024 and those who returned or joined in 2025. Your dedication, prayerfulness, and hard work have been a blessing to our church family, and we are so grateful for the countless hours you’ve invested in helping us discern God’s leading for Platt Park.

Please continue to pray with us for wisdom and discernment as we take these next steps. We are not seeking a “perfect” person—no such person exists!—but rather the right person to lead us with humility, wisdom, and joy in this next chapter.

With love and gratitude,

The Elder Board of Platt Park Church