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Pastor Mark Gould
Since 2000, Mark Gould has been the cowboy pastor of Morning Star Ministry on a twenty-acre horse training facility in Leesburg, Florida. His wife Debbie joins him in hosting horse shows, trail rides and other faith based equestrian events along with a fresh-grilled pancake breakfast every third Sunday. The ministry has grown exponentially in a short amount of time and was built from an unlikely foundation.
Though often said, lightning seldom hits the same place twice, Pastor Mark is living proof it does. He emerged from the first experience a changed fifteen-year-old. " I lost my best friend David. We had just been talking about dying and finding a way to let each other know about the other side. Then the bolt hit us and David was gone. I prayed. I would have done anything to get him back. Now I realize David went to a better place and wouldn't want to come back. I was given absolute faith that day. I lost my best friend but I gained a new best friend in Jesus."
He also remarked, " My best friend on earth now is my wife Debbie." They married in 1999. With her love and love for the mission to spread the gospel, he began to heed the call to preach, but not on the traditional pulpit. He came from a family combined of pastors and horsemen so his faith was deeply rooted. However, disdain was expressed by the clergy in his family when he earlier chose a goal to become a member of the Olympic Equestrian Team. That meant horse shows on Sunday, and not church.
But God is everywhere! One Sunday, he discovered" Cowboy Church" in the bleachers of a show arena. He heeded the call to do the same. That goal was realized, but the Olympic dream became a nightmare in 1992 when he was struck by a vehicle. His back was broken in eight places and he was nearly paralyzed. This would have also broken the spirit of most men, but Pastor Mark said, "My passion to preach comes from my life experiences." And he knows better than most, the meaning of Daniel 10:6 and Matthew 28:3 that mention the Lord's face is like "lightning." Mark's own face lights up when he preaches. His heartfelt, passionate messages help many others to get through their personal storms.
