What constitutes a meaningful experience with God? In this episode of We Are Vineyard, Jay and Ted Kim talk about first encounters with the Holy Spirit and the slow, formational work that happens between mountaintop experiences, as well as the pastoring that needs to happen during these gaps. They also discuss leadership transitions and the idea of “rhyming” with the past, embodying the stories and history while stepping forward into what God is doing in the present time.

Ted Kim is the senior pastor of the Evanston Vineyard, having taken over the leadership from Steve Nicholson in early 2020, six days after the church shut down its in-person services due to Covid. He is passionate about the beauty of Jesus, spiritual formation, and building a church for Generation Z. It is also his life mission to bend the heart of the city of Chicago to God through the multiplication and releasing of young leaders.

Prior to arriving in Chicago, Ted was a worship pastor and songwriter. He spent the last decade at the Vineyard in Syracuse, NY. For some reason, God’s intention is for Ted to be cold. Ted is the son of Korean immigrants. His mother is the daughter of a South Korean dignitary. His father escaped from North Korea during the war and would later go on to be an industrial engineer. They found each other on the other side of the world in bucolic Kentucky. Ted first attended and interned at the Evanston Vineyard in the 90s, while he was a student at the University of Chicago. Despite the  occasional polar vortex, he is delighted (and humbled) to return to Chicago and serve the church that formed him more than any other community in his life. Ted is married to Brittany, an Old Testament scholar. Together they have three children.