Today’s story is about a small-town pastor, some free time, and how a side hustle will turn into a blessing for both his family and the startup world.
He preaches on Sundays and builds startup pitch decks during his free time. And thanks to a little creativity and AI, he’s now earning $3,000 a week doing it.
Pastor Larry Lunchstrom leads a small church in rural Arkansas. Like most pastors, he wears many hats. But behind the sermons and the hospital visits, Larry has another skill: design. And when tools like ChatGPT started gaining traction, he had an idea.
What if we could help startup founders tell their stories better?
So, he started building pitch decks. Those clean, compelling presentations used to raise investment money. He worked in the margins, early mornings, late nights, and whenever he had a free moment. Before long, it started to grow. One deck turned into five, five turned into 10.
Now, he’s earning around $3,000 a week, helping other entrepreneurs clarify their vision with a combination of creativity, storytelling, and a little AI tool to help.
And here’s the best part. Larry never left ministry. He’s still preaching, still leading, still shepherding. He just found a way to extend his calling into a new space.
Too often, we box ministry into a single lane. Preaching, pastoring programs. But what if your skills could serve the marketplace, too?
Pastor Larry isn’t just funding his life. He’s serving people who would probably never walk into his church to begin with, but they still need hope. They need clarity. They need encouragement. That sounds a lot like ministry to me.
So, if you’ve ever wondered whether it’s okay to explore something on the side, consider this your green light. You don’t have to leave ministry to grow. You don’t have to choose between your calling and your creativity. Sometimes, your free time is the exact space where God wants to do something new.
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