Jim Wideman is the GOAT of ministry leadership. He’s a legend and we’re so grateful for the session that he’s bringing to us on the 5 things every leader needs to get right!
More about Jim Wideman:
Jim Wideman has the unique ability to help build the local church by strengthening the family, empowering leaders, and releasing today’s children to be the church. He is a pastor, speaker, author, and ministry coach with more than 40 years of experience serving in all areas of the local church, including 17 years leading one of the largest children’s ministries in the United States. Jim has trained thousands of children’s ministry leaders in the US and around the world. He has worked with six different thriving churches in the span of four and a half decades and published over 15 books.
Although he has been called the “Grandfather” of modern children’s ministry for the work he’s done in pioneering this movement, Jim remains actively engaged. As time moves forward, he works to keep the local church and its families moving and thriving while also staying grounded in its solid foundation.
Throughout his years of ministry, investing in countless children, families, and leaders around the globe, Jim’s influence and intentionality has been continuously acknowledged. In the 1980s, The International Network of Children’s Ministers (INCM) awarded him with their Ministry of Excellence Award. In the 1990s, Children’s Ministry Magazine named him one of the Top 10 Pioneers of the Decade. In 2010, Children’s Ministry Magazine continued their praise, naming him one of the Top 20 Influencers in Children’s Ministry. And in 2012, INCM presented Jim with their first ever Legacy Award for his lifetime achievement in children’s ministry.
But as long as Jim still has breath in his lungs, he knows he is not finished yet. He continues to engage with and empower the next generation. Jim currently serves as the Executive Pastor of Families and Volunteers at The Belonging Church in Nashville, Tennessee. He and his amazing wife, Julie, have two grown daughters and two of the cutest grandsons ever born.
