GOING THE going to be in his final semester of his senior year, the opportunity to receive one-on-one coaching from legends in ministry was too good to pass up. After all, what’s new? His plate has always been full. Along with carrying a double major, he has served two years as president of his social club Sigma Tau, hosted Songfest twice and emceed one year, took the stage multiple times in the YC One Acts, played soccer his freshman year, ran cross country and track the last two, served as a junior representative in student government, and is a four-year member of Concert Choir and Celebration Singers… and all while consistently making the Dean’s List with a cumulative GPA of 3.96.
Hearing the Call
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hird generation Yorkie Justus Coppinger graduated at the end of April with a couple of degrees behind his name, a bachelor’s in vocal performance and another in biblical studies. His plate was full in his final semester with voice and piano lessons, classes in Old Testament and Greek, running indoor and outdoor track, a church internship in Lincoln, preparing for his senior recital, and… or maybe it really should be AND—planning his summer wedding! Coppinger’s plate has always been insanely full, but we’ll get to that a little later. On one particular Thursday this spring, he hit pause on all his YC responsibilities and boarded a plane to the west coast for an all-expenses paid stay on world renowned Malibu beach. Well, almost. Before you get too jealous, he actually was on the campus of Pepperdine University that overlooks the beach. And instead of soaking in the sun and enjoying the scenic landscape, Justus went through an intense two-day coaching/training workshop to enhance future sermons he might give. Sound fun? Next Gen Preacher Search (NGPS) is a unique outreach to young Christian students in high schools and colleges across the country who have an interest in preaching and teaching. Designed to encourage and inspire young people towards the ministry of God's word, it is an open invitation for students to submit a 5-minute video of their speaking for review and critique. At the encouragement of Dr. Terry Seufferlein, professor of Bible and Tom N. Schultz chair for mission studies at York College, Coppinger submitted a sermon clip. “Justus has a gift for communicating the biblical text in a way that impacts lives,” said Dr. Seufferlein. “He had just completed an assignment for one of my classes in which he gave a quality sermon on the ten lepers cleansed by Jesus and the gratefulness of the one who was a Samaritan. It would be a challenge to condense it down to five minutes, but I told him he should enter it into the Preacher Search competition.” Coppinger reflected, “My initial thought was, that’s really cool! There’s no way I’ll get it, but I’ll try. It was empowering to me that he thought I had the talent to make it.” The added gesture of the Bible department and York Campus Ministries offering to pay for his flight if he was chosen sealed the deal. Someway, somehow Coppinger knew that as busy as he was
10 | Heritage | SUMMER 2022
Coppinger decided to add biblical studies as a major after interning a summer with Ricky Pruitt ’93, Youth and Family Minister at the Kerrville Church of Christ in Texas. Through Pruitt’s friendship, how he mentored his role to Justus, and the appeal of working with kids, Coppinger decided, “I think I want to pursue doing something like this.” His junior year went as he hoped, splitting his time between the music and Bible departments, and he signed up with Pruitt for a second summer internship in 2021. “Serving alongside Justus for two summers was an incredible privilege,” commented Pruitt. “His willingness to learn from any situation or conversation magnified his credibility in the eyes of those he served as well as those on staff. He grew immensely in his ability to lead a class through experiences, discussion, Bible exploration, and application. His interpersonal skills allowed him to connect with teens and adults, relating to different generations naturally. He was excellent at forming relationships and using that connection to encourage those around him.” When asked about the takeaways he gleaned from his internships, Coppinger said, “Ministry takes a lot of patience, particularly with youth ministry and getting to know these kids. It takes a lot of smaller conversations that lead up to some bigger things. I had some really awesome experiences and conversations, but that’s at the end of two summers of getting to know these kids. It wasn’t like come in and change everybody’s lives real quick and head out.” One of Coppinger’s recognizable gifts is of course singing, whether he’s leading worship on campus, church services, or being part of a praise team. His time at Kerrville was life-changing in that regard. “I think for the first time I experienced “church” in general on a different level,” he said. “Because I had a role and tried to be as intentional as possible in that role, I remember every Sunday coming away from a church service being so filled myself. Not because I was there to fill myself necessarily, but I think it was because my mindset changed from what is this service going to do for me—to how can I invest, what can I bring this morning.”
Equipped to Answer To his surprise, of the hundred-plus video entries, Coppinger’s made the cut. He was invited to the weekend workshop, February (above) Justus presented his NGPS lesson Clickbait at Pepperdine's Harbor 2022 Bible Lectures.
