DIRECTOR OF ENGAGEMENT
(Executive Director of Discipleship AND Teaching Team)
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Our mission is to reach and unleash people in, around, and beyond The Villages with the transforming message of Jesus Christ.
The Opportunity
The Opportunity
Live Oaks Community Church (LOCC) is seeking a relationally gifted, biblically grounded, and strategically minded Director of Engagement to help a growing church strengthen its pathway for connection, discipleship, community, and service.
As part of the Senior Leadership Team, this leader will provide oversight to key discipleship and engagement environments, including Encore Small Groups, Experience LOCC / Rooted Groups, discipleship Bible studies, Singles, Men’s, and Women’s ministries. Small Groups run October - April 10 and there are four discipleship sessions running 6-8 weeks each.
The ideal candidate will be a warm and engaging shepherd-leader who loves people, builds teams, equips volunteers, and helps people move from attending church to belonging, growing, serving, and making a difference.
As part of the Teaching Team, the Director of Engagement will contribute to the biblical formation of the congregation through expositional preaching approximately 50% of the calendar year, along with other teaching responsibilities. This leader must be biblically sound, theologically discerning, collaborative, humble, and able to communicate Scripture in a way that is faithful, clear, and engaging.
This is a compelling opportunity for a leader who believes deeply in the local church, sees senior adults as vital disciple-makers, and can help Live Oaks continue building healthy systems for spiritual formation and meaningful participation.
The right candidate will bring the heart of a pastor, the instincts of a strategist, and the discipline of a builder. They will be able to align with the vision of the Lead Pastor, work collaboratively with staff and volunteer leaders, and help a vibrant multi-campus church continue to mature in its discipleship culture.
Live Oaks Community Church exists to help people meet Jesus, connect into community, grow as disciples, discover their purpose, and make a difference in the church, community, and world.
Vision and Mission
Vision and Mission
Our mission is to reach and unleash people in, around, and beyond The Villages with the transforming message of Jesus Christ.
The church is shaped by the conviction that following Jesus changes everything—how people live, love, serve, and engage the world around them. Live Oaks is committed to biblical teaching, engaging worship, authentic community, pastoral shepherding, intentional discipleship pathways, and a missional mindset that sends people to serve both locally and globally.
At Live Oaks, discipleship is not simply a class or program. It is a pathway of spiritual formation that helps people take meaningful next steps in faith, relationships, service, and mission. The Director of Engagement will play a key role in strengthening this pathway so that people are welcomed, known, equipped, and mobilized as followers of Jesus.
Live Oaks currently gathers through several worship expressions and campuses, including:
Woodridge Campus in Oxford, Florida
The Grove, an outdoor worship venue at Woodridge where people worship from cars or golf carts
Southern Oaks Campus in Wildwood, Florida
Faith Campus in Leesburg, Florida
Online Campus, with services livestreamed through the website, app, and YouTube
Who is Live Oaks Community Church?
Who is Live Oaks Community Church?
Live Oaks Community Church began as a church plant approximately 15 years ago with a vision to make a difference in The Villages and the surrounding communities of Central Florida. As The Villages has grown, Live Oaks has grown with it. Today, Live Oaks has grown into a vibrant, multi-campus church with more than 2,000 worshipers made up largely of adults in a meaningful season of life—many retired, some still working, and many looking for friendship, purpose, spiritual growth, and a place to serve.
Because Live Oaks serves a predominantly senior-adult community, this role requires a leader who genuinely values older adults and sees them as essential to the mission of the church. The next Director of Engagement should believe that this season of life can be deeply fruitful for discipleship, service, leadership, and gospel impact.
Live Oaks is affiliated with the Evangelical Free Church of America and holds a high view of Scripture, the gospel, discipleship, and the mission of the local church.
BY THE NUMBERS:
Avg Weekly Attendance: 1,250 (2025); 1,500 (2026)
Total Annual Budget: $4 million
Full-Time Employees: 18
Part-Time Employees: 12
Total Employees: 30
Position Summary
Position Summary
The Director of Engagement provides strategic leadership and pastoral oversight for Live Oaks’ discipleship and engagement ministries. Working closely with the Lead Pastor, staff, and volunteer leaders, this person will help build healthy ministry structures, equip leaders, increase participation, and align engagement efforts with the mission, values, and discipleship culture of Live Oaks.
This leader will help Live Oaks create clear and meaningful next steps for people who are new to the church, already connected, or ready to grow deeper in discipleship and service. The role requires someone who can think strategically, lead relationally, communicate clearly, and execute faithfully.
As part of the Teaching Team, The Director of Engagement will also carry preaching and teaching responsibilities, contributing to the biblical formation of the congregation. As a member of the staff team, this leader must be collaborative, humble, aligned, and able to serve well in a high-trust, mission-focused environment.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
Lead the Discipleship and Engagement Pathway
The Director of Engagement will provide strategic leadership for the pathway that helps people move from worship attendance into meaningful connection, spiritual growth, service, and disciple-making. This includes helping new guests, regular attenders, and existing members understand their next step and find their place in the life and mission of Live Oaks.
Strengthen Encore Small Groups
Encore Groups are central to the relational and discipleship life of Live Oaks, with more than 900 people participating in 70 groups. The Director of Engagement will provide leadership for group health, leader recruitment, leader care, curriculum alignment, group multiplication, and the ongoing assimilation of new participants into group life. Small Groups run 6 months of the year (October - April).
Develop and Equip Leaders
This leader will identify, recruit, train, encourage, and support volunteer leaders across Live Oaks’ engagement and discipleship ministries. A key part of the role will be building sustainable leadership structures, so ministry is multiplied through equipped leaders rather than carried by staff alone.
Align Adult Discipleship Ministries
The Director of Engagement will oversee and align key adult discipleship environments, including Experience LOCC / Rooted Groups, discipleship Bible studies, Singles, Men’s, and Women’s ministries. The goal is to ensure that each ministry is biblically faithful, well-led, clearly communicated, and contributing to the broader discipleship mission of the church. There four sessions of discipleship that run 6-8 weeks each.
Build Synergy Across Campuses
Live Oaks is one church with multiple campuses and worship expressions. The Director of Engagement will work collaboratively with campus pastors, staff, and ministry leaders to strengthen connection, consistency, and contextual effectiveness across the church.
Preach and Teach Faithfully
The Director of Engagement will contribute to the biblical formation of the congregation through preaching approximately 20% of the calendar year, along with other teaching responsibilities. This leader must communicate Scripture with theological clarity, pastoral warmth, and practical application.
CORE COMPETENCIES:
Discipleship Strategy
The Director of Engagement must understand how people grow spiritually and be able to translate that understanding into clear, accessible pathways for connection, formation, service, and mission. This leader should think beyond programs toward measurable disciple-making outcomes.
Leader Development
This role requires a leader who can multiply ministry through others. The ideal candidate will know how to recruit, train, coach, encourage, and empower volunteer leaders while creating sustainable systems for care, accountability, and future leadership development.
Relational Leadership
Live Oaks is a warm, relational church. The Director of Engagement must build trust with staff, volunteers, group leaders, and congregants through approachability, listening, encouragement, consistency, and genuine pastoral care.
Organizational Leadership
This leader must be able to manage multiple ministry areas, clarify priorities, create repeatable and scalable systems, communicate expectations, and follow through with excellence. This role requires both strategic thinking and practical execution.
Biblical Teaching and Theological Discernment
Because this role includes preaching, teaching, curriculum selection, and oversight of discipleship environments, the Director of Engagement must be biblically grounded, theologically discerning, and aligned with the doctrine, mission, and values of Live Oaks.
Multi-Campus Collaboration
The Director of Engagement must be able to lead across multiple campuses with unity and contextual awareness. This requires collaboration with campus pastors and ministry leaders, visible presence across the church, and the ability to build systems that serve the whole church while honoring local campus dynamics.
Change Management
The Director of Engagement will honor the history and existing strengths of Live Oaks while helping the church continue moving toward the future. This leader should evaluate ministries thoughtfully before introducing change, build trust with those affected, and implement improvements with prayerfulness, clarity, patience, and relational wisdom.
EXPERIENCE AND QUALIFICATIONS:
A genuine and visible relationship with Jesus Christ
Alignment with Live Oaks’ mission, values, theology, and EFCA statement of faith
Licensed minister with a bachelor’s degree or equivalent related ministry experience
At least five years of relevant ministry leadership experience
Proven experience in discipleship, small groups, adult ministry, or engagement ministry
Ability to preach and teach Scripture faithfully and clearly
Experience recruiting, training, coaching, and supporting volunteer leaders
Strong organizational, communication, and administrative skills
Ability to manage multiple ministry areas and priorities
Comfort working in a multi-campus or complex ministry environment
Demonstrated ability to lead change thoughtfully and collaboratively
Love for senior adults and belief in their continued spiritual fruitfulness and mission
Your Superpowers:
Shepherd-Strategist
The best candidate will bring the heart of a pastor and the mind of a strategist. They will love people deeply while also knowing how to build pathways, systems, and structures that help people take meaningful next steps in discipleship, community, service, and mission.
Relational Leader of Leaders
This role requires someone who can connect warmly with people while multiplying ministry through others. The Director of Engagement must be approachable, encouraging, and naturally curious about people, while also identifying gifts, calling people into service, developing leaders, and building teams that carry the mission forward.
Collaborative Champion for Senior-Adult Discipleship
Live Oaks needs a leader who can joyfully align with the Lead Pastor’s vision, collaborate well with staff, and build trust across campuses and ministry areas. The right candidate will genuinely love and value senior adults, seeing them not simply as people to care for, but as spiritually mature men and women who can serve, lead, disciple, mentor, encourage, and make a lasting Kingdom impact.
The Community
Live Oaks Community Church is in The Villages, Florida, one of the most distinctive and fast-growing active-adult communities in the country. The broader Wildwood–The Villages metro area has a population of roughly 132,000, while The Villages CDP itself is estimated at more than 83,000 residents. The community is known nationally for its active 55+ lifestyle, high homeownership, year-round recreation, and strong sense of neighborhood connection.
The Villages is often described as “Florida’s Friendliest Hometown,” and the lifestyle is a major part of the draw. Residents enjoy golf, pickleball, entertainment, hobbies, and social activities throughout the year, with a golf-cart-friendly environment that gives the community a distinctive rhythm and feel.
The housing market reflects the desirability of the area while remaining accessible compared to many coastal Florida markets. Current real estate market sources show typical home values in The Villages starting in the high $300,000s.
The Villages is primarily a 55+ active-adult community, with community guidelines noting that no full-time resident may be younger than 19, but adults under 55 can still live within the community. However, the surrounding region includes family communities, and The Villages Charter School is a significant local option for qualifying families. The Villages Charter School is a public charter-in-the-workplace school, meaning enrollment is based on a parent or guardian’s place of employment rather than the family’s home address. The school serves grades K–12 across its campuses, with NCES reporting just over 4,000 students in the 2024–2025 school year.
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