Our Founder
Jared Pickrell
For more than 15 years, I’ve had the privilege of serving in youth and campus ministry—walking with students as they ask big questions, face real pressure, and decide what they truly believe.
I’m not a tech junkie. I’m a disciple-maker with a deep heart for evangelism and lasting discipleship.
One passage that has shaped my approach is 1 Corinthians 9:20–22—where Paul explains how he adapted his methods to reach people in the culture they were living in: “I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some.” Paul didn’t change the message—he changed the approach.
That matters today because students live in a different mission field than most of us grew up in.
Students spend 7+ hours a day on their phones.
So the question isn’t whether phones are forming students—the question is: will the Church show up there with purpose?
That’s why we’re building Fresh Fire.
Why Fresh Fire Exists
Fresh Fire was born out of three challenges I’ve personally wrestled with as a youth pastor:
1) Communication that’s clear, safe, and simple
It’s hard to keep everyone on the same page—students, parents, volunteers, and leaders. Communication needs to be easy, consistent, and safe, without relying on scattered group texts and multiple platforms.
2) Helping students grow outside the service
A powerful weekly service is great—but discipleship has to extend into the rest of the week. Students need simple next steps that help them build rhythms of faith when nobody’s watching.
3) Data that informs discipleship
The world uses data to understand and influence students, and the Church hasn’t always had great tools to do this well—often because the tools are scattered or non-existent. Fresh Fire brings key tools together so leaders can have better visibility into who is engaged and what they’re dealing with—not for performance, but for shepherding.
What We’re Building
Fresh Fire is designed to help ministries meet students where they already are—on their phones—with tools that support real discipleship:
- Clear communication
- Faith-building rhythms outside of services
- Leadership visibility through meaningful engagement insights
Our prayer is simple: that Fresh Fire helps leaders shepherd with wisdom, helps students grow with consistency, and helps more young people encounter Jesus in a way that lasts.
Want to connect?
If you’d like to learn more about Fresh Fire or see how it could serve your ministry, I’d love to talk.
