Staff & Elders
Senior Pastor | Steve Lawson
Steve and Karen have been with Grace Community from the beginning and were instrumental in starting the church in 1998. Although his original role for the church was that of worship leader, Steve felt God directing him into a pastoral role and was unanimously called as the Senior Pastor in 1999. Steve completed his undergraduate degree in Business Administration at UNT, his Master of Divinity from The Kings College and Seminary, and earned an MBA from Amberton University. Steve and his wife Karen have been married since 1989 and have three girls, Haley, Meg and Mattie.
Worship Pastor | DJ Mantooth
DJ is a passionate leader, songwriter, worshipper, producer and media director and has worked at various churches in the field of worship and media as well as other aspects of ministry for more than 10 years. The most recent, was at one of America’s largest and fastest growing churches, Gateway Church in Southlake, Texas. DJ is a graduate of Christ for the Nations School of Worship and Technical Arts.
He and his wife Alycia, met at CFNI School of Worship and they continue to work together as a team to usher people into the presence of God. What all this means is that DJ connects with a lot of people, plays a lot of music, and loves seeing people embrace worship as a lifestyle. And all of that makes for a wonderful life. DJ and Alycia have three daughters Kailyn, Neeci and Addy with one on the way are enjoying living out their passions and calling in Texas.
Youth Pastor | Adam Brind
Adam joined us in January 2009. He was born and raised close to London, England where he has lived for most of his life. He graduated from Moorlands Bible College with a BA (hons) degree in Applied Theology. He has served on staff at three other churches on both sides of the Atlantic and is currently studying for an MDiv in Theology at Oral Roberts University. Adam is married to Julie who is also a passionate youth worker; they have a son Luke and another son on the way. Adam and Julie’s heart is to model an obsessive hunger for God’s presence.
Children’s Director | Cindy McKinney
Cindy and her family have been a part of Grace since 2000. She is committed to creating a vibrant, caring, and safe program where your children can grow in their faith, develop friendships, and learn to serve others. Her heart’s desire is for the children at Grace to experience God’s personal presence, embrace his power, and share God’s love by connecting with others. She’s been teaching and helping run various aspects of children’s programming for thirty-five years. She’s married to Tim who is an engineer at L-3. They have three beautiful daughters, Hannah, Zoe and Eve.
Communications Director | Cliff Gibson
Cliff and his family have been a part of Grace since 2009. Earlier this year, Cliff joined the staff as the communications & media director and is also serving on the worship team as the service director. He and his wife, Normanda, have also been involved in Grace’s youth ministry since 2010 as adult leaders. Cliff has 10 years of experience as a professional journalist, as well as in public relations and communications. Cliff and Normanda were classmates and high school sweethearts at Lone Oak High School, graduating in 1999. They have two sons, Nathan and Carter.
Elder | JJ Skinner
JJ and Ashley joined Grace in 2003. He and his wife of 14 years, Ashley, have four boys: Jordan, Ethan, Zane and Aiden. JJ works as a mechanical engineer at CCRD Partners.
Elder | Jae Stutzman
Jae and Anna joined Grace in early 2000. Both Jae and Anna grew up as overseas missionaries. There were married in 1997 and have 3 children – Nathaniel, Caleb, and Evan. Jae graduated with a Bachelors of Science in Computer Science and Engineering from LeTourneau University and currently works at L-3 Communications as a Software Engineer.
