Tim Captain: Rooted in faith

USD leadership studies professor shares his life journey in finding his purpose through faith and leadership

Kylie Horstmeyer / Contributor / The USD Vista

University of San Diego lecturer Tim Captain found his knack for leadership when he moved to Zimbabwe from the United States. Captain’s parents, Louis and Lisa,  worked as missionaries in the U.S. When his dad Louis got a job at a Bible college in Zimbabwe, his family moved. This move provided uncharted territory for Captain but helped him find his purpose: helping others. 

The people of Zimbabwe welcomed Captain’s family with open arms. He explains it was an experience that helped him develop a different view of the world. 

“The people of Zimbabwe are wonderful,” Captain said. “They are generous and very different from my peers (I met) later on in life. I remember growing up with a much more global view of the world. The AIDS crisis was going on during that time, so I was aware of everything from poverty to death from such a young age.”

Captain believes that as a white person, it can be easy to develop a narrow point of view because you live in a country like the U.S., where everyone is surrounded by people who look like them. Captain explains that living in Africa helped him gain a sense of gratitude for the privilege, health care, and other available resources he has. This later blossomed into a sense of initiative to create change and help others. 

“When you are surrounded by huge crises and problems that not one person, family, or organization can change, you develop a sense of gratitude,” Captain said. “I started to understand that my mission or purpose in life is to help people. When I saw people’s difficulties from a young age, I wanted to change that. I don’t want to see other people’s pain.”

While living in Africa, Captain and his two brothers, Brent and Josh, were homeschooled by their parents. He stated that the little communication the family had with people in America allowed his immediate family to grow close with one another.

“Moving around so much, my parents were big influences in my life,” Captain said. “Our family unit stayed the same as we moved around the world. There wasn’t really internet, and long-distance calls were expensive, so it was hard to stay connected with anyone back home.” 

Moving to Zimbabwe was the first move of many for Captain. He later moved to Indiana and Hawai’i. Captain explained that constantly moving around challenged him to find his own identity.

“I never felt rooted,” Captain said. “Even though Africa was where I grew up, I am not ethnically Zimbabwean, so I was often confused about where I belong. After moving back to the United States, I didn’t feel fully engaged in my American identity or my Zimbabwean identity. It was challenging to figure out where I belonged.”

At the age of 13, Captain and his family moved to Eaton, Ohio, where he attended Eaton High School. Eaton was a predominantly white town with roughly 8,000 people, a stark contrast from what he was used to in Africa. However, the small community in Eaton made the transition easier.

“I grew up in a bigger city in Africa and then moved to this little small town in Ohio,” Captain said. “On the one hand, there was a lack of diversity in Eaton which was strange. However, it was a very tight-knit community that was similar to Zimbabwe. This made the transition much easier.” 

After high school, Captain went on to attend Cincinnati Christian University. Here he ran cross country and graduated with a bachelor’s in general ministry and honors in leadership. Captain then went on to get his master’s in leadership studies. Unlike Eaton, Cincinnati had a very diverse community. He explained that traveling around the world at a young age helped him fit into college life. 

“Cincinnati is a lot more diverse and is a lot bigger than my high school,” he said. “Cincinnati Christian University was actually a great fit for me because my experience traveling around the world allowed me to find my place in college. It is where I started down some leadership tracks.”

Through both undergraduate and graduate school, Captain explained he wasn’t always sure he wanted to be a pastor or work in a church. Captain had a certain idea of what a pastor looked like from seeing his parents who were both missionaries. He discussed the many leadership opportunities he took advantage of that motivated him to become involved in churches. 

“I really didn’t think I was going to become a pastor,” Captain said. “I had a perception of what they did or what you had to do. As I went through college, I was able to take my unique style of leadership and found out I could be a pastor but maybe a little differently than the prototypical ways you see it done.”

Captain went on to work in Annapolis, Maryland, where he worked as a staff member for a startup church. Here he met his wife Julia, who was working at a different church just down the road. 

After working as an associate minister on the East Coast, Captain moved to California and became the lead pastor at The First Christian Church in San Diego. The church has provided over 600,000 pounds of food to food insecure families and has started the largest licensed early learning center for young children in the nation. 

Though religion had always been a major part of Captain’s life, traveling at a young age allowed him to see religion as a means of helping others. 

“Growing up around the world has caused me to have a different perspective on religion,” he said. “Religion wasn’t always tied to my national identity. Religion has had a major role in thinking about my purpose in the world and telling me that my purpose is to help other people. I am here to be a leader not for myself but more to help somebody else.”

While working as head pastor at The First Christian Church, Captain and Julia welcomed their four children. While balancing being a dad and work, Captain is also currently studying to get his Ph.D. at the University of San Diego and teaches several leadership courses such as LEAD 150, Emerging Leaders at the University. 

Captain explained that he teaches in an effort to influence children to become leaders in their own community. Captain emphasized that he wants them to follow their passion for making a transformative change in the world. 

“I want to encourage passions,” Captain said. “I empathize and remember being so passionate about bringing change. Bringing change in communities is challenging and difficult. I feel like we need to have more leaders that are compassionate. We need leaders who are developing a sense of leadership, wisdom, and maturity.”

Captain isn’t just excited to see leaders bring excitement to the classroom, he is also excited to see the long-term change that can happen. Whether in church or the classroom, he also encourages young leaders to find their purpose in life to make the community a better place.

“I want young leaders at a higher level, not just to use their leadership as a position of power,” Captain said. “I want them to understand it’s about finding their purpose and bringing social change.”