New Ark is guided by the Spirit of God, and we follow the leadership of our pastor who is a very capable administrator. We have a Deacons Ministry that assists with the spiritual and administrative needs of the church and a Trustee Board that assists with certain financial and external matters and all legalities. There are several ministries in which you can get involved, and each of those ministries has its own leaders who fall under the direction and vision of our overall leadership structure.

Devin Wright is a pastor, educator, mentor, and fierce advocate for systemic change in marginalized communities. He sees all the work that he does as aspects of the calling God has placed on his life. At the age of 13, he accepted his calling into the Gospel ministry and was officially licensed a year later. He was ordained at age 17, shortly after graduating from Baton Rouge Magnet High.

 

To further his education, Pastor Wright moved to Tallahassee, FL to attend Florida State University. He graduated in 2010 with a B.S. degree in sociology and is an extremely proud Seminole alumnus. His theological training has resulted in a Doctor of Ministry degree, conferred in 2022.

During his time in Tallahassee, Pastor Wright served five years as the Director of Children’s and Youth Ministries at the largest black Baptist church in the area and later as the senior pastor of Mt. Zion Primitive Baptist Church where he labored faithfully for 4 years. He also served for three years as an assistant director of the Children’s Rally for the National Baptist Convention where his greatest accomplishment was leading an evangelism effort with over 200 young people in Haiti.

 

Aside from his ministry work, Pastor Wright has been an educator, primarily in mathematics, for 12 years. Most recently, he worked as an instructional specialist, providing support, ongoing development, and growth strategies for other educators. His passion for education and changing the life-trajectories of people who are set back by demographics leads him to work with several organizations across Southeast Louisiana that are focused on creating tangible and sustainable change.

 

Pastor Wright is often heard saying, “If God called us to worship in this community, He also called us to work in this community”. His current role as New Ark’s pastor  brings with it a sense of great pride and great urgency. His focus is not only on proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ and engaging in pastoral care ministry, but he is also adamant about transforming the community and breaking down the strongholds that keep people from advancing.

 

At the age of 34, Pastor Devin J. Wright has grown to understand and firmly believe in the words of the songwriter who wrote, “Only what you do for Christ will last.” Knowing this, the most important thing that anyone could know about him is that he is a child of God merely trying to live a life pleasing in His sight.