CHURCH LEADERSHIP
LEADERSHIP
Jim Upchurch
Pastor
Jim was born and raised in Raleigh and has served in pastoral roles in North Carolina since 2005. He is a graduate of Campbell University and Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He began serving Christ Church in April 2015. Jim and his wife, Rachel have two children, Isaiah and Jana.
Dr. Tracy McKenzie
Pastor
Tracy was born and raised in Kansas and moved to Wake Forest in 2001. Tracy serves as Professor of Hebrew and Old Testament at Southeastern where he has taught since 2005. Tracy and his wife, Beth, have attended Christ Church since 2013. They have four sons, Micah, Joel, Josiah, and Noah. Tracy and Beth started a specialty coffee roasting company in recent years where they attempted to develop and live out a theology of work and vocation. However, Tracy’s heart for the Old Testament and teaching students at Southeastern required full-time focus. They sold the coffee business in 2017.
Shawn Langley
Pastor
Originally from east Tennessee, Shawn and his wife, Meredith, returned to her home of North Carolina after finishing seminary in Louisville, KY. Shawn works at Wake Technical Community College, where he has served in many roles, teaching a wide variety of subjects to an even wider variety of students. He holds a PhD from Aberdeen University in Scotland, and he is a research fellow with BibleMesh and at the Kirby Laing Centre for Public Theology. God has blessed Shawn and Meredith with two boys to help in their ongoing sanctification.
Nick Nail
Director of Music & Administration
Nick is a native of Tampa, Florida and moved to Wake Forest in 2019. He graduated from Southeastern Seminary with an M.Div in Christian Ministry. He started leading worship as a teenager and has a desire to serve the church in various capacities. Nick met his wife Skyler at the seminary and they were married in January 2022.
