Meet the Pastor

Pastor Robert Butz grew up in the sunshine of Southwest Florida. However, it was not until in the back of a high school math class when a friend shared with him how he could have peace and forgiveness that he was truly able to see the Light. That day, he prayed and asked Jesus to come into his heart, and the Lord immediately began making his crooked paths straight by burdening him to start a Christian club there with the same young man that led him to the Christ.

Pastor Butz received a football scholarship to Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia. He met his wife Victoria while attending Liberty University getting married in 1996. He pursued his undergraduate studies at Liberty University and earned a degree in Social Sciences, with a minor in Psychology, and an emphasis in Government. Building upon this foundation, he furthered his academic pursuits, attaining a Master's in Education and a Doctorate of Education in Educational Leadership from Walden University.

The Lord opened the door for him to begin his professional career as a football coach at Liberty University, then at Nicholls State University in Louisiana. He then transferred to a career in education as a high school educator, teaching a broad spectrum of subjects, including Psychology, United States History, World History, Geography, Economics, and Government. Beyond the classroom, Pastor Butz shared his passion for sports and Christ by serving as a basketball and track coach, then assuming the mantle of head football coach, all the while sponsoring the same club he helped begin, sharing with others what Jesus had done for him. The Lord moved in the hearts and lives of young people to attend lock-ins where they were presented with a clear plan of salvation and the love of God. These events brought youth to the same Light for which their hearts were desperate.

God was forging Pastor Butz to be a vessel used for His service. After six years of teaching and coaching he transitioned to school administration, first serving as an assistant principal and later principal at the school he graduated from, Mariner High School. During his extensive eleven-year tenure as a principal, he also devoted his time as an adjunct professor at the Crown Graduate School, with a focus on nurturing the next generation of educational leaders to reach young people with God’s Light.

Pastor Butz and his wife joined Gulf Coast Baptist Church in 2000, where they began a family of four children (Christian, Elijah, Isabel, and Lucas). He served under Pastor Tom Sexton’s leadership and vision, helping to oversee the teen program, ushering, serving in the children’s ministry, the nursing home ministry, standing in as a preacher when Pastor Sexton was absent, and being ordained as a deacon. During their 23-year tenure at Gulf Coast Baptist Church the Butz family had the great opportunity to see over 4,000 young people come to know the Lord.



In 2023, Pastor Butz was honored to become the Director of Education and the Dean of the Graduate School at the Crown College in Powell, TN where he served for two years. The Lord guided his heart to obtain a Master of Ministry from The Crown College during his stay. All the while, the Lord was preparing him unconsciously for the next path, the pastor of the same church in which his life was molded. In March of 2026, Dr. Robert Butz was voted as the pastor of Gulf Coast Baptist Church.