Randy Carter, General Superintendent of Pentecostal Freewill Baptist

1) What was your first job in the ministry?  My first ministry position was in foreign missions. My wife, Gwen, and I were assigned by my denomination to lead our  churches in the country of Mexico. We were based in the city of Guadalajara, Jalisco Mexico. We spent our first year in language school there in Guadalajara where we learned to speak Spanish. 

Over a six year period we oversaw the planting of eight churches and the establishment of a Bible School. After six years on the mission field we returned to North Carolina where I served as a church planter, planting two churches for my denomination then as a lead pastor of an established church. In more recent years I've served as Christian Education Director for six years. I currently serve as General Superintendent of my denomination. 

2) What's your advice to someone starting out in the ministry? My advice to someone just entering the ministry would be to habitually practice the spiritual disciplines early on, before you become very busy with the demands of ministry. If you are not careful, with the passing of years and the increased demands of ministry, it will become easy to push things like prayer, scripture reading, meditation to the back burner and just rely on your own strengths. Big mistake! 

Another piece of advice, find good mentors, people you respect and look up to. I recommend finding different mentors for different areas of life. Get yourself a spiritual mentor, a financial mentor, a family life mentor, a professional mentor. 

3) What's your favorite Bible verse? My favorite verse is Galatians 4:19. 'I am in the pains of childbirth until Christ be fully formed in you'. While reading this verse one morning many years ago I had one of those moments where the scripture leaped from the pages into my heart. That moment led me to become a different kind of person and a different kind of pastor. It made me a more passionate leader and a more compassionate pastor. It caused me to become more focused and intentional about discipleship, seeing to it that those under my care were becoming fully devoted followers of Christ. 

4) What are you reading right now? Currently, I am reading "Killing Kryptonite" by John Bevere and "Gaining by Losing" by JD Greear. Both were recommended by colleagues in ministry and I'm really enjoying both. I recently led my staff through the book "Leading From the Second Chair" by Mike Bonem and Roger Patterson. It's a great read to help leaders who have been senior leaders but who now find themselves in the number two position. It shows the senior leader how to interact with the leaders on their team.

5) Tell us a fun fact about you. Fun fact about me...this is probably the hardest of all your questions! Not so much a fun fact, but I am third generation Pentecostal minister. I have a son who is also an ordained minister with our denomination so we are four generations of Pentecostal ministers in the Pentecostal Free Will Baptist Church. 

My father founded our denomination in 1959 and was the first General Superintendent, serving for 25 years. I am now the General Superintendent so of the four ministers to hold this highest position in our denomination, my father and I are two of them.  

Another fact, not necessarily a fun fact, but I have been married to Gwen for 37 years and we have three grown children, two daughters and a son. All three love the Lord and serve in church somewhere. My eldest, my son, married six years ago and he and his wife Rachel have given us two grandchildren, a boy and a girls. My two daughters are both getting married this year! 

My oldest daughter got married this past June and my youngest daughter is getting married the end of September this year. That's two two weddings within just three months! I tell people that we planned to have our children four years apart for a reason. Who would've thought that they'd end up getting married three months apart! By the way, both girls got engaged the same weekend (New Years 2018) while we were all vacationing in the mountains and both are marrying Military guys, one Army and the other Navy.