NextGen Pastor Interview
CHMN 301
Foundation of NextGen Ministry
LIBERTY UNIVERSITY
JOHN W. RAWLINGS SCHOOL OF DIVINITY
Submitted to Dr. Steve Vandergriff
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the completion of
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Biography
Pastor Scott Talley has been a youth pastor for 18 years. He is originally from Delaware
and began working in ministry at the age of 18. He is currently the youth pastor for Church at
the Cross, formerly First Baptist of Central Florida, in Orlando, Florida. Scott is passionate
about working with students and equipping the next generation. He is married to Leigh and
has two children and one on the way. John is three years old, and Katherine is a year old. His
family is heavily involved in our ministries at church, and it's been great serving and working
with him. His strongest suit is that he genuinely gets to know the kids to see what they like
and figures out unique ways to appeal to them so they can grow in their relationship with
God. He has developed the CATC Student ministry immensely since he began pastoring there
three years ago.
Interview Summary
Scott is responsible for teaching and equipping the 6th-12th graders at the church. His
teaching opportunities include leading the youth midweek service every Wednesday night
and occasionally preaching on Sunday mornings in church. In addition, he is a chaplain for
Ocoee High School, Olympia High School, and Central Florida Christian Academy. He leads
the upper school chapel at Central Florida Christian Academy and frequently speaks at
Fellowship of Christian Athletes for Ocoee, Olympia, and various high schools through Orange
County,
Florida. He also leads for Lifeway with a breakout session to train youth pastors who serve in
churches larger than 1,000 members.
The groups are broken up into one large group and multiple small groups at the
Wednesday night youth service. Breakouts include middle school girls, middle school boys,
high school girls, and high school boys. They have those designated groups for students to
learn with their peers and build rapport with one another. It allows them to grow. Then, the
groups become
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even smaller by grade and gender; this allows the groups to go even deeper. Sunday mornings
include a master teacher, followed by breaking off into small groups. Scott uses Grow curriculum
for Sunday morning small groups. He writes his own sermons and own curriculum for
Wednesday nights. The students love teaching that is engaging and allows them to respond.
The worship setting on Wednesday nights is like a Sunday morning set up with chairs, a
stage, and screens. There is also a big game room separate from where they hear the message
featuring a pool table, ping pong, foosball, snacks, sodas, and plenty of hang-out spaces. This
environment was built to allow the students to be relational and have honest conversations.
Currently, the students have outgrown their worship space and will be moving to the church's
chapel on October 6th. When I asked Scott what his best method for teaching is, he responded
with, "The best method for teaching is being relational and not preaching at teenagers. They want
someone who is relational. Generation Z is tired of fake people and basic talks. They want
someone who will really invest in them." Scott is a fantastic youth pastor and a blessing to many
students in ministry and surrounding high schools.
Personal Response
I am learning from Scott in a myriad of different ways for training the next generation.
We are excited to know that after we teach and train our elementary schoolers, they are moving
up into a thriving ministry where they can be themselves, learn about the Gospel, and be
shepherded by Scott. I plan to take his approach and not preach to our kids but make sure they
are engaged and having fun as they learn about Jesus. We pray that the students he works with
open their hearts to receive God's grace and realize that the Bible is truly something to enjoy, and
being bold about Christianity is not lame.
