By Josh Pack
I bet I can make a statement that no other Free Methodist pastor can make: I’m an Elvis tribute artist.
I bet I also made a statement that no other Free Methodist pastor wanted to make.
Truth be told, this wasn’t on my radar at all until a few years ago. We’ve all seen pictures of guys in Vegas with jumpsuits that barely hold in their bellies (which are trying desperately to pop out). We’ve likely had experience with some friend of a friend who did the Vegas “thing” and went off to a random chapel in the middle of Nevada to be married by someone who incorporates cheesy references to “Burning Love” and “Can’t Help Falling in Love” into the wedding vows. We’ve all been to a restaurant where pictures or small statues of Elvis adorn the walls. Elvis holds a unique spot in the culture of the United States to this day, nearly 50 years after his death in 1977.
I started down this path by accident when I learned that I did a pretty decent Elvis impersonation with some friends at karaoke one night. Time passed, and I learned that there were lots of Elvis tribute artists out there — and not only that, but there were full-blown competitions to see who was the best Elvis. By this time, I’d won plenty of karaoke competitions. The time had come! Full of confidence, I went down to Tupelo, Mississippi, in 2021 thinking that I — with a cheap wig and my eBay costumes — would be able to blow everyone away with how much I sounded like Elvis. I thought it would be easy. How wrong I was!
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“One learns fast that this is its own world, and if you want to be a part of it, you must adapt.”
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What I discovered (aside from humility) was an entire subculture. From the outside looking in, it may not seem like it’s all that unique; from the inside, however, one quickly realizes that there’s a LOT to learn about Elvis Presley and how his fans keep his memory alive through tribute artists. If your jumpsuit hasn’t been made by top-of-the-line creators, fans will notice; if your hair is out of place, fans will care; if you can’t exude that same charisma that Elvis had on stage, well… sorry about your luck. One learns fast that this is its own world, and if you want to be a part of it, you must adapt.
I was actually done with this little subculture as of the summer of 2024. I had been in four competitions and hadn’t placed in one at all. I had learned nuances of Elvis’ vocal performances, and yet it seemed that I just couldn’t connect much with judges and audiences. I had given it a shot and had some fun, but I was done. I had one final performance scheduled at the Lincoln Jamboree in Hodgenville, Kentucky. This was my “widow of Zarephath” moment – fresh off another competition loss, I was going to make my last batch of bread, eat it, and let my Elvis tribute die a natural, peaceful death.
But something happened that night, to my surprise. The crowd went nuts. I’ve never had that kind of reaction before. Somewhere within, I had found “it.” That charisma (a suitable word to use for us as Christians, since a “charism” is a gift of the Spirit) had finally shown up. Not only that, but I met a retiring tribute artist that evening who was willing to give me his old top-of-the-line suits — and they were just my size. When I thought I was done, God seemed to be saying, “Look — there’s still oil and flour. Bake another batch.”
Now here’s the real curiosity in all of this: In this little spot right outside of Elizabethtown, Kentucky, people started to ask questions of me because they knew I was a pastor in my regular work. As I did more shows, more people would come up to me and ask, “Now what’s a Free Methodist pastor? I’ve heard of United Methodism, but never Free Methodism.” So Elvis would stand there in his Aloha jumpsuit and have a full-fledged conversation about denominations, B.T. Roberts, and Methodist doctrinal distinctives. Then the questions became, “We’re having a revival at our church. Would you be willing to speak?” Not only this, but, “We want to know what you preach like. Can you bring us some sermons to put on the radio so we can listen to your messages?”
And all of this because, one day, I went to a little place to sing some Elvis songs.
Gifts + Goals
I’ve long been convicted by Jesus’ parable of the talents. Obviously we know this is in reference to money in Jesus’ time, but we also realize that Christ forms us in unique ways to serve His kingdom – and thus we are each uniquely “talented.” God has given us something and expects us to use it. It used to be easy for me to figure out what that was; if I could speak well and was convicted about orthodoxy, it made sense that God was calling me to preach. But “I can sound like Elvis Presley”? That was an odd gift I wasn’t quite sure what to do with.
The more I’ve done with it, the more I’ve asked, “What is the ultimate goal here?” Do I enter competition after competition until I’ve won Memphis’ coveted title of Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist? Do I record more and more in the hopes of some sort of record deal? Do I perform everywhere I can? What’s the end of this particular gift?
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“We believe that God creates whole persons. That means none of how He has made us is wasted.”
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Yet, as I’ve reflected, I’ve come to the following conclusion: the end goal is always Christ. That seems like an odd conclusion, to some extent, but by this I mean that the gift is no longer useful when it becomes the goal in and of itself. The focus is not on being the best Elvis; it’s on being the best pastor. In my case, that simply means that for some oddball reason, God has given me this gift because some people hear the gospel best when it comes from the mouth of Elvis Presley.
Each of us as pastors or as Christian leaders within our own communities finds ourselves uniquely gifted to meet people where they are at some part of the subculture. We may not go on to impact culture more broadly, as perhaps, say, a politician might. Maybe you have a particular gift for making decks in the Pokémon Trading Card Game. Maybe you’re a really solid referee for your local football team. Maybe you can diagnose car troubles with the best of them.
I think many of us have skills that we would normally look at and simply wonder, “How is this useful for the kingdom?” And you know what? It turns out they’re useful after all if we simply take the time to use them with Christ as the end goal.
We believe that God creates whole persons. That means none of how He has made us is wasted. You may not know the intricate details of systematic theology, but you know how to make a mean bowl of macaroni and cheese. Come to find out, there’s a whole group of people who love macaroni – and who need to hear how Jesus is working within you.
Bridging Cultural Gaps
Faith has a unique way of coming up when we’re interacting with the culture as God has intended for us to do. Sometimes our hobby or gift is a conversation starter. It may bridge the gap and help us to meet people where they are. I think it’s often our “Paul and the Areopagus” moment — we see some similarity that exists between us and the culture, and we use it to teach the gospel. “I see you have an altar here to an unknown god — so let me make Him known to you.” We, similarly, say, “I see you like the King — so let me introduce you to the King of kings.”
As culture gives us opportunity to proclaim the message of Christ, let us boldly witness to the God who has uniquely created us for such a time as this.
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Josh Pack has worked in ministry for more than 10 years. He has an M.Div. and a D.Min. from Asbury Theological Seminary as well as a Th.M. and a Ph.D. from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. His research interests are preaching and patristic theology. As an Elvis tribute artist, he has appeared onstage in competitions across the nation and regularly performs shows across Kentucky as “Kentucky Elvis.” For more information, visit kentucky-elvis.com.