Josh Howerton (born July 3, 1983) is an American pastor and podcast host best known as the Senior Pastor of Lakepointe Church, a multisite Southern Baptist congregation with six campuses across the Dallas-Fort Worth area. A third-generation pastor, Howerton built a national following through his practical, culturally engaged preaching style and the “Live Free with Josh Howerton” podcast, before becoming one of the most publicly scrutinized pastors in America following a viral 2024 sermon and its widely criticized apology.
[IMAGE: Josh Howerton preaching at Lakepointe Church, Rockwall, Texas]
At a Glance
| Personal | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Josh Howerton |
| Born | July 3, 1983 |
| Age | 42 (as of 2026) |
| Nationality | American |
| Spouse | Jana Howerton |
| Children | Eliana, Felicity Hope, and Hudson (all adopted) |
| Parents | Rick Howerton (father, also a pastor) |
| Education | |
| Undergraduate | Union University, Biblical Studies |
| Graduate study | The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, KY |
| Ministry | |
| Title | Senior Pastor |
| Church | Lakepointe Church, Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas |
| Denomination | Southern Baptist; broadly evangelical |
| Since | February 2020 (senior pastor); co-pastor from February 2019 |
| Previous church | The Bridge Church, Nashville, TN (2008-2019) |
| Career | |
| Known for | “Live Free with Josh Howerton” podcast; Strategic Launch Network church planting |
| Net worth | Not publicly verified; estimates vary widely and are unconfirmed |
Early Life and Background
Josh Howerton is a third-generation pastor. Both his father, Rick Howerton, and his grandfather served in ministry before him, and Josh has said watching his father pastor throughout his childhood and teenage years shaped his own sense of calling. He had a personal, transformative encounter with Christ at age 16, an experience he points to as the moment his commitment to ministry solidified.
Education
Howerton earned a degree in Biblical Studies from Union University before continuing his theological education at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky.
Ministry Journey
The Bridge Church, Nashville
Howerton spent a decade, from 2008 to 2019, as pastor of The Bridge Church in Nashville, Tennessee. It was during this period that he and his wife, Jana, built much of their family life and public ministry profile, including their adoption journey.
Lakepointe Church, Dallas-Fort Worth
In February 2019, Howerton and his family moved to Texas to join Lakepointe Church, a large multisite, multilingual congregation. He served as co-pastor alongside Steve Stroope for a year before being installed as Senior Pastor in February 2020. Under his leadership, Lakepointe has continued to grow across its six campuses and expanded its digital reach, including an online church community reported in the thousands.
[IMAGE: Lakepointe Church campus exterior, Rockwall, Texas]
Howerton also leads Lakepointe’s Strategic Launch Network, a church-planting initiative the church says has planted or coached more than 60 churches, largely in secular, urban settings across the United States. Later, in late 2024, he invited his father, Rick Howerton, to join Lakepointe’s staff as well.
Live Free with Josh Howerton and Public Ministry
Beyond the pulpit, Howerton hosts the “Live Free with Josh Howerton” podcast, a weekly resource built around Scripture meditation and practical application. He’s also co-authored Bible study material, including “The Truth: Engaging the Foundations of the Faith” with fellow pastor Craig Etheredge, and is a regular voice at leadership conferences and church-planting summits.
Personal Life
Josh met his wife, Jana, on a blind date. Jana holds a degree in Communication Disorders from Western Kentucky University. The couple has been open about a long and difficult journey with infertility, at times describing years of unanswered prayers for biological children. Rather than pursue further fertility treatment, the Howertons chose adoption, welcoming daughters Eliana and Felicity while still in Nashville, and later their son Hudson, whose adoption they documented publicly online, including a fundraising campaign titled “Bringing Home Hudson.” None of the Howertons’ three children are biological; all three joined the family through adoption.
[IMAGE: Josh and Jana Howerton with their three children]
Theology and Denomination
Lakepointe Church is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention, and Howerton’s preaching reflects a broadly evangelical position, affirming the Bible as the authoritative Word of God. He is not formally identified with the Reformed tradition in a denominational sense; his ministry sits within the wider evangelical, non-Reformed SBC mainstream, alongside DFW-area peers like Matt Chandler. His sermons tend to focus on practical Christian living: marriage, culture, discipleship, and leadership, delivered in a conversational, often humor-forward style.
Criticism and Controversies
Howerton has faced several public controversies, each covered here as reported, without editorializing on either side.
The February 2024 Wedding Night Sermon
During a February 24, 2024, sermon at Lakepointe, Howerton offered advice to brides for their wedding night, telling women to “stand where he tells you to stand, wear what he tells you to wear, and do what he tells you to do” to make their husbands happy. A clip of the remark circulated widely online, and critics, including marriage author Sheila Wray Gregoire, argued the language echoed harmful tropes about consent and normalized coercive dynamics in marriage. Supporters characterized it as a lighthearted joke taken out of context.
The Apology and Plagiarism Accusation
Howerton addressed the backlash from the pulpit on April 7, 2024, describing his original comments as “careless words” while also suggesting the online reaction had distorted his broader message. Commentators, including Baptist News Global’s Rick Pidcock, criticized the apology as dismissive. Shortly after, journalists and Gregoire pointed out that Howerton’s apology closely mirrored one delivered two years earlier by Florida pastor Joby Martin following a similar controversy. Howerton addressed the similarity but did not deny the overlap in phrasing.
This wasn’t the first time Howerton faced plagiarism questions. In 2022, Gregoire had already published an analysis alleging that one of his sermons closely mirrored language from a book by Rick Warren, a phrase associated with Mark Driscoll, and quotes from other well-known pastors without clear attribution. Howerton responded at the time by saying pastors commonly share sermon material and language with one another.
Other Public Controversies
Lakepointe also drew criticism after church leadership reportedly encouraged members to help influence the outcome of a city traffic study near the church, a move the church later acknowledged and apologized for. In June 2024, some former Lakepointe members told the Houston Chronicle that Howerton’s leadership style and preaching had contributed to hundreds of people leaving the church, describing a broader culture shift under his tenure. In January 2026, a sermon on biblical womanhood, in which Howerton described traits of a “godly wife” drawn from Song of Solomon, again drew criticism from progressive and moderate Baptist voices online.
The March 2026 Mass Wedding
Not all recent coverage has been critical. In March 2026, Christian outlets reported that 52 cohabiting couples at Lakepointe chose to marry after Howerton challenged unmarried couples living together to formalize their relationships. The church hosted a joint wedding ceremony, which Howerton and supporters described as a powerful example of preaching leading to real-life commitment.
Net Worth and Financial Information
No verified financial disclosure exists in the public record for Josh Howerton. Lakepointe Church does not publish individual staff salaries, and Howerton hasn’t disclosed his personal compensation. Online estimates of his net worth vary enormously, from roughly $500,000 to several million dollars, but these figures come from unsourced aggregator sites rather than any confirmed filing or statement. Industry data on megachurch senior pastor compensation, unrelated to Howerton specifically, suggests base salaries in the $116,000 to $185,000 range for churches of Lakepointe’s size, with total packages sometimes exceeding $200,000, but no church-issued figure confirms where Howerton falls within that range.
Interesting Facts
- Josh Howerton is a third-generation pastor, following both his father, Rick Howerton, and his grandfather into ministry.
- All three of Josh and Jana’s children were adopted, following years of infertility the couple has spoken about publicly.
- He met his wife, Jana, on a blind date.
- He led The Bridge Church in Nashville for a full decade before moving to Texas to join Lakepointe.
- In 2024, his apology for a controversial sermon was itself accused of being copied nearly word-for-word from another pastor’s earlier apology.
Timeline
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1983 | Born July 3 |
| 1999 | Has a transformative encounter with Christ at age 16 |
| 2008 | Becomes pastor of The Bridge Church, Nashville, TN |
| 2019 | Moves to Texas; becomes co-pastor at Lakepointe Church |
| 2020 | Installed as Senior Pastor of Lakepointe Church, February |
| 2022 | Faces first public plagiarism allegations over sermon content |
| 2024 | February wedding night sermon goes viral; April apology draws further criticism and plagiarism accusations |
| 2024 | Invites father, Rick Howerton, to join Lakepointe staff |
| 2026 | January sermon on biblical womanhood draws renewed criticism; March mass wedding of 52 couples draws positive coverage |
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is pastor Josh Howerton?
Josh Howerton is the Senior Pastor of Lakepointe Church, a multisite Southern Baptist congregation in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, known for his podcast and for a widely publicized 2024 sermon controversy.
What is Josh Howerton’s denomination?
Lakepointe Church is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention. Howerton is broadly evangelical and is not formally identified with the Reformed tradition.
Who is Josh Howerton’s wife?
His wife is Jana Howerton, whom he met on a blind date. She holds a degree in Communication Disorders from Western Kentucky University.
Does Josh Howerton have biological children?
No. Josh and Jana have three children, Eliana, Felicity, and Hudson, all of whom joined the family through adoption after the couple faced years of infertility.
What was the Josh Howerton apology about?
In April 2024, Howerton apologized to his congregation for a February sermon in which he told brides to “stand where he tells you to stand, wear what he tells you to wear, and do what he tells you to do” on their wedding night. The apology itself then drew criticism after commentators noted it closely resembled a 2022 apology from another pastor.
What is Josh Howerton’s net worth?
No verified figure exists publicly. Online estimates range widely, from around $500,000 to several million dollars, but none are backed by confirmed financial disclosure.
What do you make of Josh Howerton’s ministry and the controversies surrounding it? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
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About the author: This biography was researched and written by the Flicxa editorial team, dedicated to accurate, well-sourced profiles of pastors, ministry leaders, and gospel artists.
