S11E08 | Wired to Enjoy Encouraging People: Peter Wright
November 11, 2025
Peter Wright’s interview in this episode runs the gamut from youth pastor to communications director to recruitment specialist and more. He explains to host Dr. Matt Davis that God has “wired” him to enjoy encouraging people, whether through playing the piano, driving a bus, flying airplanes, or mowing a lawn. Their conversation glides through Peter’s call to youth ministry (though trained in music) and flows on to his call to Maranatha as communications director (overseeing things he disliked) and how the Lord eventually gave him his desire—ministry in music.
Then their dialogue settles on recruitment. Peter answers such paramount questions as why he advocates Christian education, why students should attend college even if pursuing a trade, and why Maranatha is a prime choice. They talk percentages—70-80% of Christians attending secular schools denouncing their faith, senior test scores placing MBU in the top 4% nationally with music students in the top 1%, and our CPA-track students making us number one in Wisconsin. Dr. Davis sites studies which validate that discipline trumps IQ, and Peter concludes the compelling analysis by enumerating college benefits beyond academics.
About our guest
Peter Wright is an MBU alumnus who served as a youth pastor for 21 years before coming to Maranatha. He has served in multiple capacities at MBU but is currently the Recruitment Specialist, Alumni Director, and Aviation Program Coordinator. A musician at heart and accomplished pianist, he is also the much-loved director of the Chorale, one of three traveling choirs within the university. He and his wife Debbie, an MBU alumna, have four adult children, all of whom attended Maranatha.
