AMBASSADOR SPOTLIGHT: DANIEL MCCOY
DANIEL MCCOY RENEWING EVERY DAY HOW ONE GRAD ENCOURAGES FAITHFULNESS AMONG THE DISCIPLES
Amy Storms
Ministry isn’t for the faint of heart. Often, the joys and blessings of ministry go hand-in-hand with its hurts and hardships. The pandemic, the political climate, and the everyday needs of the people in the pews can leave the shepherds of the flock weary, lonely, and discouraged. Where can the minister turn? Enter Daniel McCoy. An author, teacher, and minister himself, Ozark grad Daniel McCoy’s service can be summed up in one word: encouragement. Daniel encourages others like him to stay—and to stay faithful— in ministry.
After attending Ozark, Daniel’s dad David preached in southeast Kansas at Mound Valley Christian Church and Galesburg Christian Church. When Daniel was a freshman in high school, his father planted the Ambassador Christian Church in Chanute, Kansas. “The church plant gave everybody in the family valuable experience in various ministry tasks,” Daniel recalls. Daniel played bass, guitar, and drums at the church. “I also ran the overhead projector,” he says, “which takes a lot more coordination than you’d think—and often more than I had.”
Encouraged at Home
After high school, Daniel enrolled at Ozark. As a student, he spent time as a tour guide for prospective students, as a bass player for Frontline, and as a tutor for Ozark’s Learning Center (now, the Academic Resource Commons). “Where do I even begin?” Daniel says of his time at OCC. “The friendships, the classes, the convictions, the mission…I’ve never once regretted going to Ozark. My years there were encouraging and formative and fun.” “I remember giving a campus tour to my roommate’s younger sister,” Daniel says. “When she came to Ozark as a freshman, I realized, “There are a ton of guys interested in her. I’d better make my move. I attended the Living Christmas Tree three times that winter, just to see her sing in the second row from the top.” A week later, Daniel was dating Susanna Lang. In 2007, Daniel received a Bachelor of Theology in preaching ministry, and in 2008, he and Susanna were married. After graduating, the McCoys moved back to Chanute where Daniel worked with his dad as associate minister at Ambassador Christian Church. At the same time, Daniel also taught Bible, language arts, and speech at the Christian school in town. He
For Daniel, the ministry of encouragement started early in life. A preacher’s kid, Daniel was impacted by his dad’s decision to leave a well-paying career path in his thirties to attend Ozark Christian College and dedicate the rest of his life to church ministry. “I knew churches weren’t perfect,” Daniel says, “but I also knew that the church was profoundly important to God. One of the convictions I absorbed in the McCoy household was that in the grand scheme of things, what really mattered was, as my dad put it, ‘increasing the population of heaven.’”
I knew churches weren’t perfect, but I also knew that the church was profoundly important to God. 10
TO INSPIRE
Encouraged by Ozark
