Article by Steve Edwards, current ICPA Executive Director
On June 4, 2022, the Board of Directors for the Intermountain Church Planting Association (ICPA) made the unanimous decision to hire Derek Murphy as our new Executive Director, beginning September 1, 2022.
During July and August, 2022, Derek and I have been working together to make the transition between us as smooth and productive as possible. The two of us have been great friends for the past 20 years. Sometimes one plus one is more than two. The synergy between us has been off the charts.
The decision to make this transition was not taken lightly. Beginning in March of 2020, on my neighborhood prayer walks, I began praying every day that God would greatly increase the strength of our ICPA ministry through a God honoring transition to a new Executive Director. In October of 2021, the ICPA Directors set up a Vision Initiative Team, and asked them to make their top objective that of discovering the right person to become our new Executive Director. God was way out in front of us, and clearly directed our path to the Murphy family, while simultaneously clearly calling Derek and his wife, Bri, to this new ministry.
Derek has a wonderful marriage with Bri, a servant minister of Jesus in her own right. Vocationally, Bri serves the state of Utah as an Assistant Attorney General. Derek and Bri are the parents of Myles (11), Hazel (7) and Jameson (soon to be 3). Derek is a graduate of Boise Bible College with a graduate degree from Emmanuel Seminary. He served 8 years on the staff of Real Life on the Palouse, one of our church planting churches with campus sites in Moscow and Pullman. For the past 5 years, Derek has served on the staff of another new church planting church, K2 the Church, in Salt Lake City, focusing on disciple making.
Vocationally, Derek will be serving God in two major capacities as we move forward. He is leading a new church planting church in Salt Lake City, as well as serving as our ICPA Executive Director. He is in the process of building an ICPA staff of two to three additional persons who will work part time. He has asked me to be one of those staff persons. I am thrilled. Derek will be based out of Salt Lake City, UT, and I will continue to be based out of Boise, ID.
Our ICPA Directors have a vision that we will reach 100,000 new souls with the gospel over the next 10 years. You will be hearing much more about this from Derek, soon!