17th Street Christian Church welcoming Mike Hopkins as new Head Minister

After several months of looking, 17^th Street Christian Church of Corbin has found their newest Head Minister in 24-year-old London native Mike Hopkins.

24-year-old Mike Hopkins, pictured above with wife Jenna, has been named as the newest head minister at 17th Street Christian Church in Corbin. Hopkins’ first time leading a service will be this Sunday, October 11.

“I was born and raised in London,” Hopkins said when asked about his background. “I graduated from South Laurel High School in 2015, and then attended Johnson University in Knoxville.”

During his time at Johnson, Hopkins said he was offered the Youth Minister position at his home church, Community Christian Church of London.

“I moved back home, and finished up my degree from there,” Hopkins said, adding that leading a youth ministry was something that he had always strived for. The fact that the opportunity came along for him to do so at the only church he has ever been a member of made it all the more special.

Hopkins graduated college last year. In addition to finishing up school and leading a youth group, he has also had a few chances to fill in from behind the pulpit whenever Community Christian’s lead pastor has had to be away.

“I have always felt right at home whenever I have done it,” Hopkins said of preaching to a congregation. “I have gotten positive feedback, and being in that kind of a leadership role does appeal to me.”

These feelings ultimately led Hopkins to apply for the vacant Head Minister position at 17^th Street earlier this year. After being invited to come and speak to some church members, and then being asked to come back for a formal interview, he was officially named as the church’s new minister just a few weeks ago.

“Every conversation that I have had has been positive,” Hopkins said of his interactions at 17^th Street so far. “The people are very excited, and they have been very welcoming. It’s like we are entering into a brand new family.”

When asked about his vision for the future at 17^th Street Christian Church, Hopkins explained, “I think that the sky is the limit. We are going to start with a clean slate, and really begin to build from the ground up. I would like to see a lot of growth in general as we move forward, and I am hoping to kick off some small groups early next year.”

“Mostly, we just want to get people in the door, and show them the love of Jesus. We want to be a beacon in this community.”

As for becoming a new minister during a time when a global pandemic is severely limiting the amount of personal contact people can have with one another, Hopkins said, “People say this is the worst time to be looking for a new job, or to be starting something new, but I think it could actually be the best time. We can’t do many of our normal activities, but what we can do is start building up some new systems, and begin putting the people in place to make those systems work. We are also looking at how we can increase our online presence. We just want to make sure that people can join us, even if it isn’t in person.”

Hopkins said that he and his wife, Jenna, are “humbled and excited” to be beginning this new journey at 17^th Street Christian Church of Corbin. His first time preaching to the congregation as Head Minister will be this Sunday, October 11.