By, Erik Cave, Director of NextGen Ministries, PacNWC
Enjoy this interview with Peter Gothold, the Director of Worship and Arts at Kent Covenant Church in Kent, WA.
What is your personal and ministry background?
I grew up in church, the product of several generations of pastors and musicians on both sides. I swore I would never be a church musician. God wasn’t impressed. Through years of playing guitar or drums for youth group, InterVaristy large groups, and always playing at church, God began to develop in me a love of leading his people in song, and a deep love for the bride of Christ, the local Church. I did a few youth internships after college, but quickly learned I was meant for something else. In 2010 I got my first call to full time vocational ministry at a small Covenant church plant in the San Francisco Bay Area. I was there for 9 years, and learned and grew so much as a disciple and a leader. In the fall of 2019 I got the call to come to the PNW to start at Kent Covenant Church, and have LOVED being here so far; great people, great heart for the community, and a great city to call home! I’ve been married to Paola for 13 years, and have 2 boys: Peter Junior (PJ, age 7), and Tobias (Toby, age 4). Kent’s a great town for young boys, and we feel so lucky that God has led us this far. We also have 2 diametrically opposed cats: Ella (age 11 and the embodiment of evil), and Tim (age 8 and outrageously nice and affectionate).
What are you passionate about in ministry right now?
At the moment where I feel most passionate in ministry is helping the church become a legitimate source of hope online as we have seen the power of online church in this season of Stay Home, Stay Healthy. We are all learning so much so fast, and what I have seen is that online services are not going away, which gives us a new exciting way to bring the Gospel to where people are! How we do that, how we construct and present our services to an online community is an exciting new challenge, and sparks my imagination and heart as I think how we can be the Church in a new way!
How can we pray for you?
I know I’m not alone in asking for prayer for energy and endurance. This has been a really hard season for pastors, and I’m not immune. Producing online services, doing countless hours of video editing while caring for people and trying to plan for an unknown future that changes daily and hourly based on local, state, and national leaders has been exhausting. I long for stability (ha!) and to know what things will look like in 6 months (double ha!), but since that is an unrealistic hope, I pray for peace and strength to move forward in faith.
Five things you didn’t know about Peter:
My 3 most overused words:
Dude. Awesome. Coffee.
Three traits that define me:
Loyal. Musical. Nerd.
The one thing I cannot resist:
Guitars (current number: lucky 13)
Best place I’ve traveled:
Prague. It is SO beautiful and rich with history and amazing food!
What would I most like to tell 13 year old Peter:
You. Don’t. Know. Everything. Enjoy learning, practice more, read more, listen more.
[Click Here] to see Peter’s profile on Facebook
[Click Here] to visit Kent Covenant Church’s web page