Darren DePaul

Darren DePaul is a graduate of Geneva College (B.A., History) and of Trinity School for Ministry (M. Div.). He has been in full-time ministry for nearly 20 years, and is the author of the chapter on discipleship for the book, “Gospel Centered Youth Ministry: A Practical Guide.” Darren has been married to his wife Jenny for 14 years, and they have two beautiful daughters. You can read more of his writings at darrenjdepaul.com

Why a Good Leader Will Disappoint

Several years ago, I was challenged by this powerful sentence from Dan Allender’s book Leading with a Limp: ”A good leader will, in time, disappoint everyone.” That simple, yet poignant sentence changed me. For years as a youth pastor,…

Some Thoughts on the Best Leaders

The Best Leaders I have been reading quite a bit on leadership recently…though leaders come in a variety of different forms and fashions here are some qualities that seem to rise above the rest: The best leaders laugh….

Nothing to Prove

I have spent quite a bit of time in my ministry career attempting to prove myself, whether it was through my worth as a communicator, teacher, or visionary, or simply as a pastor. This common struggle plagues most…

Pride and Holiness

Promote Jesus Not Ourselves I just finished reading Scott Slayton’s excellent article, “When The Popular Youth Pastor Gets Arrested Again,” which was posted last week (August 28) on the Gospel Coalition’s website.  The article made me incredibly sad,…

Jesus and That Kid: The Woman at the Well

The story of Jesus with the woman at the well in John 4 reveals a beautiful account of a broken, unredeemed, religious-but-unconverted sinner who God desires to engage with. Despite all that is working against her, the woman…