Ross Strader, Senior Pastor

Ross Strader is the senior pastor of Bethel Bible Church. Before graduating from Dallas Theological Seminary (Th.M., 2003), he was a Marriage and Family Therapist (M.A., 1996) and on staff with Young Life. The Strader family came to Bethel in 2006, after three years pastoring a church in Wichita, Kansas. An occasional golfer and full-time receiver of his son’s footballs and baseballs in the backyard, Ross can often be found behind his beloved Mac. His wife, Leslie, is a mom and freelance writer, and his children are Maggie, 10, Jay, 7 and little Katherine is 2, and never likes to see her daddy without a baseball hat. Ross' blog: rossstrader.blogspot.com

Jim Smithies, Pastor of Ministry and Mission

Jim has been with Bethel since 1998. His education and experience include Advanced Studies at Moody Bible Institute, a Master of Divinity degree from Grace Theological Seminary, a Masters degree in Biblical Counseling under Dr. Larry Crabb, and nine years as outreach and education pastor in New Orleans. Prior to full-time ministry, Jim earned a Masters in Chemical Engineering from Rice University and served in this capacity for Exxon Chemical Company.

As Pastor of Ministries and Mission, Jim has two primary roles: to lead Bethel into strong, redemptive outreach to both the local and global communities; and, to equip and mobilize believers to use their God-given gifts for ministry inside and outside the church.

Mark Kuykendall, Pastor of Student Ministries

Mark serves as the Pastor of Student Ministries at Bethel Bible Church (began August 2007). His desire is to walk alongside students in hopes that they will engage with Jesus as a person by trusting him, and because of relationship with Christ they will live out the virtues He taught. Mark has been serving in Student Ministry for about 10 years. His education includes Kilgore College, University of North Texas, and Dallas Theological Seminary. Mark graduated from DTS in May of 2003 with a Master of Arts in Christian Education focusing on Family and Student ministry. Before entering into full-time ministry, Mark was a public accountant in Henderson, Texas, and a public school teacher, Henderson Middle School. Mark has been married to his high school sweet heart Marla for 13 years and they have one daughter, Kylee. Mark's Blog: Missio Dei

Todd Wright, Pastor of Worship and Creative Arts

Todd is the newest member of Bethel's Pastoral staff (September, 2008). Todd is married to Kristen and they have two children: Jonah (7) and Finley (2). Both Todd and Kristen are from Lufkin, TX (Go Panthers!). Besides being an accomplished musician and gifted worship leader, Todd is an avid blogger! You can find Todd at: Todd Blog  and  Worship Notes and on iTunes  (Todd's latest "record" - All The Freed)