Meet Our New Lead Pastor

Born and raised in Illinois, Brandon graduated from Illinois Wesleyan University in 2003. He became a follower of Jesus and launched a campus ministry on IWU's campus while in undergrad. This eventually led him to accepting the college pastor position at Eastview in 2006. During that same year at Eastview, Brandon met and married the love of his life, Jamie. He also graduated with his Master's degree from Lincoln Christian Seminary in 2009. Brandon led the college ministry at Eastview for seven years until 2012 when he and Jamie moved to San Diego, CA, with a dream to start a new church in one of the least churched cities in America. The dream became a reality in October 2013 when Rise City Church officially launched. In her first ten years, God moved miraculously evidenced by hundreds baptized, 13 new churches planted locally and globally, millions of dollars given away, and a weekly church attendance of over a thousand!

This all brings us to today with Brandon being named the fifth Lead Pastor in the history of Eastview Christian Church. Brandon and Jamie, along with their four children - Elyse (13), Shepherd (11), Hope (9), Connor (7), and their golden doodle Winnie - are making their way back home. They are so excited for this new adventure and believe wholeheartedly that God has brought them back to help write a new chapter in the legacy story of Eastview Christian Church.

Meet the Grant Family

Brandon loves a great cup of coffee, a hearty meal, cooking on the grill, coaching his kid's sports teams, traveling, playing pickleball, watching movies, and hanging out with his family.

Jamie is a photographer who loves capturing and making memories. She enjoys hosting people at the house, sharing a cup of coffee with friends, taking walks, fresh air, sunshine, traveling, and cheering on her kiddos in their various activities.

Elyse was the only Grant kid born in Illinois. She enjoys theatre, writing plays, swimming, drawing, meeting new people, and hanging out with friends.

Shepherd plays baseball and basketball. His favorite baseball team is the Chicago Cubs. He enjoys building and creating things, exploring, and hanging out with friends.

Hope loves to sing and listen to worship music. She enjoys writing stories, crafting, swimming, and playing basketball. You will often find her showing compassion and caring for people.

Connor loves playing basketball and baseball - and says his favorite team is the San Diego Padres. He enjoys wrestling around with his brother, roughhousing, jumping off things, and about anything that involves adventure.

Winnie always wants to be the center of attention. She has serious FOMO, loves belly rubs, long walks, and being fed food from the table (even when she's not supposed to be fed from the table!)

Brandon and Jamie's excitement to be back at Eastview

Eastview Christian Church has always held a such a special place in our hearts. It was at Eastview where Jamie and I met, and we began doing ministry together, seeing God move powerfully in the lives of college students. We also cultivated some of our richest and deepest friendships in that time that still remain today. While at Eastview, we were inspired to live fully committed to Christ from watching people's devotion to God's Word and living it out every day. Additionally, Eastview's intentional investment into the next generation, their passion to equip and send out leaders, as well as a continual sense of belonging deeply shaped us and our vision when we planted Rise City Church.

We are so humbled and honored to now be coming back to join alongside thousands of amazing people to be collectively used by God in incredible ways. We cannot wait to be a part of all that God has in store in the upcoming years through Eastview. God is doing a unique and remarkable work in BloNo, and we deeply believe God desires for Eastview to continue to play a significant role in that work! From being intentional, authentic, and vulnerable with one another, to being active, kind and generous patrons in our community, to taking a humble posture and spreading the Good News globally - we will seek God and follow His Spirit together wherever He leads!

We hope you're as excited as we are! See you soon!

Frequently Asked Questions

When will Brandon start?

We anticipate Brandon starting at Eastview in July of 2024. This allows Brandon three months to finish well at Rise City Church. While we’re excited for this announcement and what lies ahead, our sister church in California is losing their Founding Lead Pastor. We want to be gracious in how we partner with Rise City to set them up for future success as well as Eastview. Brandon is expected to finish up at Rise City at the end of April and then take a two-month sabbatical. This sabbatical was already planned by Brandon and Rise City before he began his interview process with Eastview. We think it’s wise to continue to take this sabbatical time to process letting go of Rise City, rest, and be refreshed mentally, spiritually, and emotionally before starting this new adventure at Eastview in July 2024.

What was the process for selecting our new Lead Pastor?

In collaboration with the Slingshot Group, Eastview formed a Lead Pastor “Search Team”. This team was responsible for reviewing the initial list of candidates that Slingshot provided Eastview. The Slingshot Group presented Eastview with a short list of five qualified candidates for consideration. These individuals were among the larger pool of over 40 candidates engaged in Slingshot’s official Eastview pipeline. The Search team began the interview process with these five candidates which included:

  • A thorough review of each candidate’s submitted profile, references, resumes, etc.
  • Two initial interviews with each candidate led by the Search Team
  • A sampling and survey of each candidate’s preaching ability via video sermon

After the interviews, the Search Team met to review notes, impressions, and ratings from the interview process. They used a guided “scorecard” to objectively evaluate each candidate individually, and then collectively against one another. The Search team unanimously agreed to pass along two candidates for final consideration to the Elder team which included a recommendation on a leading candidate. This began our final phase of interviews and on-site visits. After which, the Elders unanimously extended an offer to our leading candidate and they accepted!

Whose decision was this and how did they make their decision?

This was ultimately the Elder Board’s decision. We’re grateful for the search team’s investment in the initial phase, and that 20 unique Eastview staff were able to interact with our leading candidate throughout this process. But, the final decision was the Elder boards to make.

What was the guiding criteria that Eastview used when looking for our next Lead Pastor?

  • A Visionary Leader - Someone who brings vision and direction that inspires the church to reach the lost and transform the community. Someone who leads our staff in a healthy culture. Someone who can see the future and lead patiently through change.

  • A Collaborative and Dynamic Preacher - An excellent communicator of the Word of God whith a passion for developing and leading a larger teaching team that dives dep into God's word.

  • A Relational Collaborator - A person who understands how to steward decision-making authority while listening to, involving and empowering others.

  • A Humble Person - A person that is present, others minded, and has a teachable spirit. A person who welcomes feedback from others and coaching from the Elder team.

What does it mean to have a new Lead Pastor and still be committed as a church to having a “plurality of teaching voices” on Sundays?

We believe God has gifted and shaped Brandon to be the type of person described above in our guiding criteria as our next Lead Pastor. He will cast vision, preach and teach, develop and lead our staff, and help our church to partner with the Holy Spirit in what lies ahead. We believe Brandon’s best leadership will be expressed on stage on Sundays and throughout the week with his organizational leadership and vision. We are committed to Brandon leading our congregation through his vision casting and consistent preaching, but also recognize the beauty of having additional trusted teaching voices that compliment Brandon’s voice. Over the past year, we have grown to appreciate the diversity of multiple preaching voices so long as they are tethered to the word of God and dig deep into its truths. We anticipate Brandon preaching 26-32 times a year, coupled with 1-2 additional teaching voices that compliment Brandon’s voice and point towards the same mission and vision.