Pastor of Worship
jlagrone@twumc.org
281.297.5932
Growing up, Jessica LaGrone loved science and people, and sensing God’s call to be a healer, headed for a career in medicine. After a couple of summers of working in a clinic for low-income families, she made a realization: “We were fixing people’s illnesses, but their lives were still broken. I wanted so badly to introduce them to the one Person I knew could really help and heal them.”
After finishing a degree in pre-medical Biology from Southwestern University in Georgetown, God directed Jessica’s path to ministry. She worked in youth ministry before attending Asbury Theological Seminary. “What I learned there confirmed my call to be a healer, just in a different light.” At Asbury she discovered a love for international missions and for preaching, and was awarded the seminary’s preaching award.
Jessica’s gift for making the Biblical story come alive brings with it the realization that Jesus’ love is real and relevant today. An acclaimed preacher, writer and teacher, Jessica enjoys speaking at retreats and events at churches around Texas and the rest of the United States.
Her position as Pastor of Worship at The Woodlands UMC is best explained as Worship Architect, planning and developing four of the church’s seven weekly worship experiences and working with amazing contractors whose talent in music, media and preaching build worship services that shine for the glory of God. Jessica also acts as Pastoral Liason and Chaplain to the Asbury Theological Seminary ACE program that offers classes at The Woodlands UMC.
Jessica and her husband Jim, a doctoral candidate at the University of Houston, were married in 2005. After practicing parenting on their two dogs for several years, they welcomed their son Drew in March 2010. Life since then has been a whirlwind of joy, gratitude and exhaustion. They wouldn’t have it any other way.
Her blog, Reverend Mother, can be found at jessicalagrone.com.