Archive: Around Town

Matt Burris After a year and a half of searching for just the right person, Grace Baptist Church has a pastor again. Matt Burris and his family moved into the parsonage on June 18th, and he started at the church the next day. "So far it's been a great experience," he said in an interview on Wednesday. "We really like the area. It's been a nice change of pace for us. Hopefully it will be a good long term relationship for everybody involved."

Pastor Matt, who's father is also a minister, is married to Jennifer with whom he has two boys. Samuel is five years old, and Noah is aged three. Samuel will be starting kindergarten in Buckley Elementary School this Fall. They are coming from Jackson Baptist Church in Jackson, New Jersey, where he was an associate pastor in charge of all the Christian education programs, including Sunday school, midweek programs, Vacation Bible School and youth groups. While there he had opportunities to preach and found that is where his gifts and calling are.

So he began looking for a position where he could put his preaching and teaching talent to work. The timing was good, because Grace Baptist had been laboring to find someone who would be a good fit with the congregation. A year and a half ago Pastor Allan St. George left the church after 14 years there. He went to a larger church in Lindberg, Long Island to take on a different, bigger challenge. About a week later a meeting was called to form a committee to search for a new pastor. The committee was made up of a cross section of congregants, with six members of the church, chaired by Art Snyder, the chairman of the Deacon Board.

They looked for a pastor who is doctrinally in the same place as the congregation, and who had the right personality for Grace Baptist. They looked at many applications and interviewed some, as well as going to hear them preach. They took their time until just the right pastor came along.

Pastor Matt was born in Ft. Collins, Colorado and moved to San Bernadino, California where his father got a job preaching. When he was six the family moved again to Elmhurst, Illinois, where he grew up. After High School he entered Wheaton College, near Chicago, where he took a BA in history and Bible in 1997. Then he went to Gordon-Conwell Seminary in Hamilton, Massachusetts where he earned a Master of Divinity in 2002.

He laughs, "It took five years to get my three year Master of Divinity degree. But I was married and during that time we had two children and I was working full time the last two years at Hamilton Wenham Community House as a kindergarten teacher's aid and after school program staff member."

In August of 2002 he began as at Jackson Baptist Church, where he and Jennifer worked primarily with junior high school-aged kids. With Jennifer's family in central Maine and Matt's in Connecticut, they began looking for a position somewhere in the Northeast . They contacted the Conservative Baptist Association of the Northeast, who put him in contact with Grace Baptist Church.

"We talked, and I sent some materials to them, and they looked it over, and we looked them over." He was interviewed in April and "Here we are," he says with a smile. He is starting to know everyone. "I think I have most of the people's names," he says. "We're trying to get involved in the community, and hopefully the community will get to know us and we can find our niche here."

When asked what goals he has for his tenure here, he said, "Well I think we'd like to see the church grow, and meeting the needs of the people in the community. And maybe have a little more of a high profile presence. One thing I've heard is that some people don't even realize we're here. We're set a little bit back from the road."

"And also do an effective job ministering to the people who are in the church, their needs helping them to grow in their faith, and to do what we can to strengthen them."

Matt and Jennifer like to go for walks, and hike when they have free time. They like canoeing, visiting new places and window shopping. "Kind of low key hobbies," he says.

The new pastor is friendly and very personable. Mr. Snyder said that all the committee members felt he is a good fit for the church, and Pastor Matt agrees.

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