Stephen Leon Meeks

June 7, 1958 – September 24, 2025

Stephen Leon Meeks, 67, of Pioneer, Tennessee, passed away unexpectedly from what we believe to have been a heart attack on September 24, 2025, at home, on his beloved GoodSoil Farm.

Born on June 7, 1958, in Gilmer, Texas, to Willie James Meeks and Katie Inez Williams-Meeks, Steve graduated from Gladewater High School in 1976 and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Bible from Harding University in 1980. He later pursued graduate studies in Missions and Church Planting at Abilene Christian University. He went on to earn a Master’s degree in Alcohol and Substance Abuse Counseling from Cornerstone University.

Laid to rest on the family farm in Pioneer, Tennessee, Steve is survived by his loving wife, Donna Jo Meeks, and their five children: Daniel (Kendall) Meeks, Caleb (Kristina) Meeks, Hannah (Ian) Dovan, Benjamin (Gabriella) Meeks, and Joshua (Baylee) Meeks. He was a proud grandfather to 14 grandchildren ages 15 to 1. Sophia, Hudson, Selah, (children of Daniel) Aletheia, Jedediah, Karis, Hezekiah, Eden, Iris, (children of Caleb) Isaiah, Judah, Cyrus, (children of Hannah) Nava, and Niko (children of Benjamin). He is also survived by his brother, Danny Wayne Meeks of Lone Oak, Texas.

Steve’s life was devoted to ministry and service. He served as a missionary in Kenya, East Africa, for ten years, worked as camp director at Camp Deer Run in East Texas, and spent the past thirty years in East Tennessee as a minister, counselor, and director of GoodSoil Ministries. 

A storyteller and teacher at heart, Steve shared God’s faithfulness in many ways. His book Provisions grew out of 25 years of journal entries recording the daily reality of relying on the Lord to provide for ministry. Save the Boys! and other works reflected his deep passion for equipping fathers to raise godly sons through biblical rites of passage. Perhaps most widely used was D60: Transformation Through Discipleship, a practical guide to walking with Christ that shaped not only his own ministry but was also embraced and practiced by many others across the world.

Yet his most profound writings were not bound in books. They were inscribed on the hearts of those he mentored, counseled, discipled, and loved. His legacy is written in lives changed by Christ through his words, his presence, and his faith.

From the pages of his journal during one of the hardest seasons of ministry, when both GoodSoil and his family’s personal finances were at an all-time low, Steve wrote these words:

“I keep reminding myself that the lowest point in a ministry such as ours holds the ripest potential to be its greatest moment. Yet I admit there is a sense of despair that wants to take root. Some part of me suggests, ‘It is over,’ but a stronger part replies, ‘No. It is not over—only farther along.’”

And in his last will and testament, Steve left this final message of faith and joy in Christ:

“Make it a day of celebration. I’m home y’all! The Lord is great, and so we do not grieve like others… We celebrate! Make it about HIM, not me.”

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