Dr. David Johnson has been teaching at the Arizona Campus since it opened in 1995. He shares Golden Gate’s vision of training leaders in the context of their ministry field to grow healthy churches to fulfill the Great Commission. He came to be the Director after 23 years of pastoral experience in four churches; two in Texas and two in Arizona. His last pastorate was First Southern Baptist Church in Phoenix. Dr. Johnson has also taught at Grand Canyon University, Dallas Baptist University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He has written articles for Baptist publications like Arizona Southern Baptists’ Portraits magazine and Proclaim! Dr. Johnson serves on the Board of Set Free Ministries in Phoenix and has served as interim pastor of several churches in the Phoenix area.
He has a passion for Arizona, having lived there longer than any other place in his life. Dr. Johnson has served as President of the Arizona Southern Baptist Convention from 1996 to 1998. He and his wife, Diana, make their home in Peoria where she is an elementary school teacher. They have three children: Rachel, Talitha, and Merritt and one grandchild, Joshua. They enjoy camping, hiking, and kayaking. He also likes to watch the Arizona Diamondbacks play baseball. David and Diana lost a 21 year old son, Jeremiah, who was killed while serving as a missionary in Mozambique, Africa in 2010. Since that time, they have become actively involved in mission work in Quelimane and the surrounding area. |