Pinelake Campus Pastor Makes ‘Eternal Investments’ in UM Students’ Lives

By Ally Nichols
Hottytoddy.com intern
asnicho2@go.olemiss.edu

Jody Schmelzer, the campus pastor at Pinelake Church in Oxford, is leading many people to Christ. Through encouragement, support, growth, and getting people involved, he is making a difference for Christians in the community.

After going to school at the University of Mississippi, meeting his wife and getting engaged in Oxford, coming back to the community has always been Schmelzer’s dream.

Jody Schmelzer is the campus pastor at Pinelake Church in Oxford. Photo via Pinelake’s Instagram.

“I had no idea that we were going to be back in Mississippi for the long haul,” Schmelzer said. “You know if I could’ve put together a bucket list for one day down the road, Oxford would’ve been the place in Mississippi that I would have given anything to come back to.”

Schmelzer not only met his wife in Oxford, but he gave his life to the Lord and surrendered to ministry here.

“The big picture for us was the dream of always coming back to where God started a lot of things in our lives,” Schmelzer said.

In 1999 as a junior in college, Schmelzer was first called to ministry. He was a part of Campus Crusade, now called Cru, and through that organization and one of the campus ministers, he sensed that God was calling him to ministry full time.

“The big thing was just that as I looked the next 10, 15, 20 years of my life ahead, I really wanted to do something that has an eternal investment in people’s lives. I just sensed that God was saying, ‘Hey what you have received I want you to now go pour that into others for your vocation’ and I just really felt a clear call,” Schmelzer said.

After graduating from Ole Miss, Schmelzer moved to Houston, Texas for about two and a half years and then to Sacramento, California for about a year before coming back to Mississippi. Upon returning to Mississippi, Schmelzer found himself working for Pinelake Church helping start the Madison campus.

“I was at the Madison campus for nine years and it was my first experience with what we call a multi-site church,” Schmelzer said.

Before the Madison campus was in a permanent facility, the staff was setting up and tearing down every weekend in a high school to have church on Sunday’s. Between the chairs and equipment, there was a lot of manual labor that went into getting ready for church.

“It was nine of the most fruitful years of my life for sure…loved the community of Madison. We had a huge heart for the area,” Schmelzer said.

By being part of the Madison campus before starting the Pinelake Oxford campus, Schmelzer felt pretty prepared for what was to come. Although he was doing the same thing, it was pretty different.

“It’s different in that I learned a lot of what not to do in Madison. It’s kind of like the first time you do something you experience a lot of things like, ‘Ok we probably wouldn’t do it like this again’ just from a wear and tear type standpoint on your equipment, the time you commit to it, and all those things,” Schmelzer said.

The Madison campus was the first portable campus so everything was new to all the staff at Pinelake Church. The Reservoir campus is the first Pinelake campus and in 2006 they expanded to Madison, Clinton, and Starkville before coming to Oxford.

“The Oxford campus was a bit easier to launch because it was our fifth campus at Pinelake and we knew what to step into and what to say no to,” Schmelzer said.

The Oxford campus of Pinelake has been unique in that they have had the incredible blessing of seeing so many lives changed.

“God has been so faithful and I am so grateful to have had a front-row seat in watching the Lord change lives for His glory,” Schmelzer said.

As a pastor, Jody (middle) ministers to college students in the area. Photo courtesy of Jody Schmelzer.

Although Pinelake wasn’t a new church, they were new to the area. The main draw of coming to Oxford was the campus of Ole Miss. There are many families from the Madison and Jackson area that have kids that come to Ole Miss, so they wanted to serve them.

“What started the Oxford campus was kind of the heart to go to the college campus, to the university, and just bring church to college students,” Schmelzer said.

The heart of bringing Pinelake to Oxford was the college campus, but it was never to just be a college church. Since then, adults and families from all around the community started pouring into the church and has helped it grow over the past four years.

Pinelake Oxford averages around 1,600 in attendance on Sunday mornings. This includes preschoolers, children with parents, and students.

“We have been blown away by the Lord’s favor. If I’m honest, I would never have expected for us to see this kind of growth in less than five years. God is so good,” Schmelzer says.

Because of the rapid growth, especially with the high demand for college students, Pinelake Oxford recently started their college program. It started last semester on Wednesday nights and a few hundred college students showed up for the first service.

“It’s not just about the number of students that are showing up, but watching them engage in worship and then seeing the conversations that come on the back end of these Wednesday nights and then watching students take steps of faith all throughout the week,” Schmelzer says.

One student, Grace Sudderth, who is very involved with Pinelake College Oxford, said how much getting involved has impacted her life.

“Thanks to Jody, getting involved with Pinelake was one of the best decisions I have ever made. College can be tough sometimes and to have this group of people standing behind you, supporting you and helping you keep your eyes focused on the Lord, has helped me out in so many ways,” Sudderth said.

Schmelzer remembers being a college student and thinks that it is so important to get involved at a young age.

“I think what I would say to any college student is make sure that you find your people,” Schmelzer says.

Schmelzer continues on to say that finding people in similar seasons of life is important to staying on the right path. 

“It’s about finding your community and encouraging one another in your walk with the Lord,” Schmelzer said.

Schmelzer has helped the Pinelake Oxford campus grow so much over the past few years, as well as the people in the community. Whether it’s through small groups, Sunday church, or college services, Schmelzer strives to make a lasting impact on the Oxford community.