Michael Youssef, the founding pastor of Church of the Apostles in Atlanta, Georgia, has announced that he will resign from his pastoral role to pursue expanded ministry work through his international organization.
In a statement released Sunday, he said he plans to step down next summer to devote his time fully to Leading The Way, the global ministry he founded more than three decades ago.
Youssef confirmed that his youngest son, Jonathan, age 41, will become the next lead pastor of Church of the Apostles. The transition was also announced at the church’s annual congregational meeting and has been part of long-term planning in recent years.
“Now that God has raised up my son Jonathan to lead The Church of The Apostles for its next stage of growth, I will be devoting my full attention to Leading The Way,” Youssef said.
He expressed gratitude for the opportunity to remain connected to the congregation, adding, “I am deeply thankful to the Lord and know that the best is yet to come. I am also deeply grateful to The Church of The Apostles' leadership for inviting me to remain in the church as the ‘Founding Rector Emeritus’ — thus helping to ensure continuity.”
Youssef emphasized his renewed sense of urgency for global evangelism, saying he hopes “to take as many people to heaven with me as possible” and staing that “we don't know how long the door is going to remain open to proclaim the Gospel in the places where we are ministering.”
“So, I'm really putting my foot on the accelerator now,” he added. “We would love to walk through those open doors as long as God keeps them open. Because if we go to sleep, we will have missed a great opportunity.”
Born in Egypt in 1948, Youssef converted to Christianity at age 16 in 1964. His academic credentials include degrees from Moore College in Sydney, Fuller Theological Seminary, and a doctorate in cultural anthropology from Emory University.
Youssef founded Church of the Apostles in 1987, growing the congregation from roughly 40 members into a church of more than 3,000 worshipers.
In 1988, he launched Leading The Way, originally a radio ministry based in Atlanta. It has since expanded into a global multimedia outreach available in 28 languages and reportedly reaching tens of millions of people each week.
According to the ministry’s website, “Today, the ministry continues to leverage cutting-edge technology to passionately proclaim the uncompromising Truth of Christ through every available means — from Evangelistic Celebrations to podcasts to our Awake America prayer movement and more.”
