Sunday morning, January 24, I joined Rev. Mark and Sharie Schnell to worship with the team at Albion Wesleyan Church. Mark and Sharie have been commuting from Marion to serve this congregation as transitional pastors. The Schnells were intending to conclude their service last spring when the pandemic changed their plans. I am grateful for the way that they have served the church in person and online through this challenging season. After the worship service, I met with the leadership team for a brief conversation about the upcoming transition. I am grateful for the leaders who have held Albion Wesleyan together through this difficult period.
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Sunday afternoon, I chaired a Local Church Conference for Muncie Memorial Drive Wesleyan Church. This was an important conversation for their members to explore next steps. They are prayerfully considering a significant shift in their ministry and wanted to have this opportunity for open and honest dialogue. I appreciated the generous spirit of this meeting and anticipate a positive outcome for the Kingdom. Special thanks to Keith Wheeler, LBA vice-chair, for his assistance in this transition.
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Sunday evening, I joined the team at Hartford City Wesleyan Church for a prayer gathering. Two of our dedicated LBA members led us through a time of prayer for unity in our nation and in the body of Christ. This was my first opportunity to connect with the congregation since the DBA authorized my appointment as interim pastor. While I’ve been serving in that unofficial capacity for the past several months, this appointment allows for me to make staffing recommendations for the coming year. Attendance has been rebounding with 123 present yesterday morning.
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The greatest news from Sunday, January 24, was when Pastor Brent Miller reached out to let me know that they had baptized 8 believers who wanted to follow Christ in this step of obedience. Praise the Lord for this wonderful report of spiritual victories from Southside Wesleyan Church in Gas City. If you’ve not yet planned a baptism service for this spring, please add one to your calendar. Consider planning a baptism opportunity on the Sunday before or after Easter.
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Monday was a quiet office day, writing the team update, following up on calls, emails and other connections from the previous week, and preparing for the week ahead. Tuesday morning, I joined with Assistant DS Mike Colaw and the pastors of Region 2 for a leadership development event hosted by Trinity Wesleyan Church. Charlie Alcock, IWU professor and youth ministry expert, shared a compelling session on developing next generation leaders. Charlie’s presentation was insightful and his passion is contagious.
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Tuesday afternoon, the General Board of The Wesleyan Church connected for a brief Zoom call. Some district conferences will not attempt to convene in person this summer due to the uncertainties of the pandemic. The General Board was asked to approve a resolution authorizing these delays where necessary.

Dr. Jim Lo and Dr. David Smith met with our district office team to continue to develop the pastoral care and prayer support model that we’re planning to implement in the new conference year. I am deeply grateful for their willingness to partner in this ministry as district shepherds to our local church leaders.

Tuesday evening, I connected with Pastor Brian Williams and his leadership team at Sims Wesleyan Church. Brian was first appointed to serve this congregation in 1987. While the community has undergone a great deal of change in the past three decades, Brian has faithfully led Sims Wesleyan forward through his effective preaching and compassionate congregational care. The LBA unanimously affirmed his extended call.

Wednesday morning, I met with Rev. Claudia Silva at Casa del Alfarero Iglesia Wesleyana in Richmond for our annual coaching conversation. Pastor Claudia is another of our committed bi-vocational pastors who leads this congregation and also for an Hispanic congregation in Union City. My next stop was in Muncie for lunch with Rev. Lee Miller who has been appointed to plant Crossover Wesleyan Church on the east side of the city. Lee took me to Camp Redwing near the reservoir where they will be hosting their first gatherings for this new ministry. It was encouraging to hear how God has opened doors and helped Pastor Lee connect with unchurched people in the area.
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Thursday morning and early afternoon was set aside for the Superintendents’ Institute hosted online by our General Superintendent Dr. Wayne Schmidt. This meeting was originally scheduled for San Antonio but it was still productive to convene via technology. In the morning session, Dr. Schmidt was excited to share about a marketplace multiplier’s initiative that he’s been developing with his team. The afternoon session focused on the development of networks within The Wesleyan Church (i.e. Dirt Roads Network) and how they relate to existing governance structures.

The best thing about our meeting was hearing the stories of disciples making disciples and churches multiplying. The Heartland Region was well-represented with multiple new churches being planted in Greater Ohio, Indiana South, and the Kentucky-Tennessee districts. It was also exciting to hear from Dr. Dennis Jackson, Executive Director of Global Partners, who shared that 276 new churches were planted last year in our international fields.
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Later Thursday afternoon, Seth and I met with Michael (Woody) Wood about expanding his role with our district team. As some of you will know, we’ve contracted with him over the past few years for communications services, including our website. Michael has also graciously assisted local churches who needed help moving online. We’re excited to announce that the DBA has approved bringing Michael on staff part-time while he continues to serve with the team at Tipton Trinity.

Michael is joining the team to fill the role that opened up with Hannah Searcy Brown accepting a new position with Watermark Wesleyan Church (Hamburg, NY). She’ll serve Watermark as a social media manager for an exciting new outreach campaign. Hannah was a blessing to our team and we pray God’s best for her in this new assignment.

The last meeting on Thursday was with the LBA at Hartford City Wesleyan. We’re working together on upcoming staff transitions, implementing our StratOp plan, and moving the governance into the accountable leadership model (provided for in Discipline 781). I’m blessed to serve with these committed lay leaders.

Friday morning, I caught up with Rev. Jerry and Teresa Alexander in Anderson and met relatives of theirs who are exploring ministry in The Wesleyan Church. The Alexanders serve with Circle of Hope’s Anderson campus under the leadership of Dr. Rich and Rev. Carol Schenck. It is exciting to see how God is raising up workers for His harvest!

Rev. Mark Atkinson and I met for lunch in Gas City. Pastor Mark continues his miraculous recovery and is enjoying being able to spend more time in ministry. After lunch, we met with Rev. Shawnda Dykhoff who leads the ministry at Brinker Heights Wesleyan Church. Gas City Eastview Church has been assisting with this ministry for the past few years. Pastor Shawnda and Mr. Kyle Bilbee are engaged to be married on February 27 so lots of exciting changes ahead!
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​The School of Theology & Ministry at Indiana Wesleyan University invites you to discover The Called Collective, an online resourcing service for high school students who are discerning a call to ministry. Students can access articles, videos, and coaching opportunities all developed by the IWU School of Theology & Ministry. If you have a student sensing a call to ministry, you can send them to the link below to access these resources and receive weekly updates:
https://www.indwes.edu/undergraduate/school-of-theology-and-ministry/called-collective/

Pastors, there is still time for you to take advantage of this special opportunity! The Crossroads District and the Thrive Initiative of The Wesleyan Church are providing a practical way to bless our pastors. You are running hard in ministry but, to sustain long-term effectiveness, you also need to rest well. Toward that end, we are making available a $475 grant towards a retreat of two nights or more. Learning resources and planning tools are provided to make this time as profitable as possible. When you complete your retreat, the Thrive Initiative has a $500 matching grant available with a second set of learning resources.

​If your church also elects to participate in this initiative (i.e. paying down ministerial student loans, topping up retirement, fitness equipment), additional matching funds up to $500 are available. For the first month, this opportunity is only available to the first 100 solo or senior pastors that sign up. This opportunity will be made available to assistant pastors starting February 2, 2021.

For more details, please follow this link:
​https://www.crossroadsdistrict.org/restwellinitiative.html

I’m always glad to hear stories of our churches working together to advance the Kingdom. Rev. Craig Thurmon (planting The Encounter Assembly and also serving as our district treasurer) and Pastor John Miller (planting Way City Church in Speedway) combined their services for the last few weeks as they find creative ways to minister in the pandemic. We are stronger together!
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​Keep on making a difference in the cause that counts for eternity!

Your servant in Christ,

Mark Gorveatte

Crossroads District Superintendent

Sherry and I had the privilege of worshiping with Pastor Allen and Grace Gross at Cicero United Family Church on Sunday morning, January 17. Since my last visit, they’ve returned to the original sanctuary for their worship services. Attendance (in person) has been rebounding with 55 on a recent weekend. They have welcomed first-time guests again this month. Last conference year, they celebrated 10 professions of faith and 2 baptisms.
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After the service, I met with the Local Board of Administration and then Sherry and I hosted the Gross family (with their three beautiful children) for a fun time over lunch. Allen, another one of our faithful bi-vocational ministers, has served at Cicero United, first as assistant and now as pastor, for 12 years.

Sunday afternoon, I joined Rev. Zack Working and Rev. Carla Working at Hope Rising Church in Huntington for a Local Church Conference (LCC) to re-establish the church. The congregation had requested that the DBA place them in developing church status for a few years as they revitalized the ministry. Average attendance has increased from 47 in 2018 to 108 last year. Although they’ve had to close on a few occasions during the pandemic, attendance for the month of January has continued to average over 100. The membership has grown from 30 to 60 in the past two years. Last year they baptized 24 new believers. It was a delight to celebrate this milestone as the LCC adopted standing rules and elected their representative leaders.
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Last week’s schedule included pre-vote conversations with Rev. Jeremy Armiger (Chesterfield Parkview), Rev. Jarod Osborne (Warsaw Pathway), Pastor Ben Jones (Beaver Creek), and Rev. Dr. Oliver Dongell (Plymouth). I also enjoyed connecting with Rev. Logan Patriquin (Lafayette The Branch) for our annual coaching conversation.

The highlight of the week was the opportunity to be part of the District Board of Ministerial Development interviews with ordination candidates. Dr. David Smith, chair, and Rev. Carla Working, vice-chair, lead a great team of committee members across our district who serve as many as 100 ministerial candidates each year. On Saturday, we interviewed Allen Gross, John Miller, Brandon Shroyer, Christian Kelley, Kyle Horton, Joshua Warren, Edward Ensley, and Joyce Dixon. Every candidate shared encouraging reports of God working in their lives and ministry. Our 2021 ordination service is schedule for Friday evening, June 25, in Marion.
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We are praying and working toward launching 10 new Kingdom communities each year. The pandemic hasn’t slowed our progress with 3 projects approved at the last DBA and at least one coming to the DBA meeting February. The most effective way to plant churches is when one healthy congregation launches a new daughter congregation or campus. This past Saturday evening was a beautiful example of this as Rev. Eliorgy Guerrero and the Elkhart Cielos Abiertos Iglesia Wesleyana congregation helped Rev. Ruben Santos launch a new Saturday evening service in South Bend hosted by Rev. Greg Holmes and the Sonlight Church. Sixty people showed up to help with this launch and, best of all, two people prayed to receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord!
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Sherry joins me in expressing sincere condolences on behalf of the Crossroads District team to the family Mrs. Nancy Snell, (widow of Rev. Jim Snell one of our retired pastors who had served at Beaver Creek Wesleyan) on her passing. The funeral service will be held at Beaver Creek Wesleyan Church, 66027 Redwood Road, North Liberty, on Saturday at 11 am. Our thoughts and prayers are extended to the Snell family.

In addition to the team members for whom we are already praying, please include Mrs. Lenita Bell, wife of Pastor Jerome Bell (Autumn Hills church plant). Both of her aging parents have contracted Covid-19 and her father is critically ill. Lenita is caring for her mother at the family home in Ohio while her father is hospitalized in Columbus.
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​You still have time to sign up! The Crossroads District and the Thrive Initiative of The Wesleyan Church are providing a practical way to bless our pastors. You are running hard in ministry but, to sustain long-term effectiveness, you also need to rest well. Toward that end, we are making available a $475 grant towards a retreat of two nights or more. Learning resources and planning tools are provided to make this time as profitable as possible. When you complete your retreat, the Thrive Initiative has a $500 matching grant available with a second set of learning resources.

If your church also elects to participate in this initiative (i.e. paying down ministerial student loans, topping up retirement, fitness equipment), additional matching funds up to $500 are available. For the first month, this opportunity is only available to the first 100 solo or senior pastors that sign up. This opportunity will be made available to assistant pastors starting February 2, 2021.

For more details, please follow this link:
​https://www.crossroadsdistrict.org/restwellinitiative.html

Thank you for all you do to advance the Kingdom!

Your servant in Christ,

Mark Gorveatte

Crossroads District Superintendent
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Sunday morning, Sherry and I had the privilege of worshiping with Pastor Jeremy and Ana Armiger and our friends at Parkview Wesleyan Church in Chesterfield, Indiana. After the morning service, I met with the LBA and then Sherry and I hosted the Armiger family for lunch. We are blessed to have this family as part of our district team.
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Parkview Church has experienced a significant transition in the past few years. The church has walked together through the death of their long-term and dearly-loved Pastor Paul Trent, through two effective interim pastors (Rev. Bob VanCise and Dr. Jim Lo), and then on to welcoming the Armigers. While the pandemic has slowed the momentum that they were experiencing, the church continues with prayer walks and community outreach.
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Most recently, Rev. Armiger and Dr. Lo led the effort to distribute 1000 candy canes and prayer cards to homes in the surrounding community. They celebrated 19 new professions of faith last conference year and baptized 15 new believers in the past 2 years. Change is never easy for any church. In fact, some churches would rather die than change. I’m grateful for changes that Parkview has been willing to make so far to regain their focus on making more disciples. Pray for God’s continued blessing as they make the Great Commission their first priority.

Sunday afternoon, I met with the LBA at Muncie Memorial Drive Wesleyan Church. They’re in a time of transition with Rev. Lee Miller stepping out to plant Crossover Church near the reservoir on the east side of Muncie. The LBA has secured a supply pastor to help with preaching. After a good time of discussion, we have planned a Local Church Conference for January 24 to allow for broader input from the membership as they consider options for the future. Pray that God will bless with direction and unity.

Yesterday morning, January 10, was the first church visit assignment for Dr. Jim Lo as the newest member of our district team. Dr. Lo visited with Pastor David Leitzel and the Hamilton Wesleyan Church family yesterday to bring greetings and encouragement from our district team. Dr. Lo shared a positive report from this first appointment.
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Rev. Seth Bye, who has been making church visits, will now be preaching each Sunday at Nehemiah Church through the spring and assisting them as interim pastor. Dr. Lo agreed to come alongside to help me with church visits through this spring season. With permission from the DBA, we’re developing a plan that will have a district coach like Dr. Lo, assigned to every pastor. Our district pastor coaches will visit a group of churches each year to preach or bring greetings, meet with the LBA, and visit with the pastor for encouragement and counsel. They will also be available for prayer and counsel to the teams of pastors with which they’ll be working.
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Leadership development, church revitalization, and church planting are the top three priorities for our district collaboration. I saw each of these partnership opportunities on full display last week. Saturday afternoon, Dr. Richard Schenck and the District Board of Ministerial Development for Region 2 met online for interviews with 4 ministerial candidates. The clergy and lay leaders who serve on our DBMD play a significant role in the preparation of those who are answering God’s call to ministry. In a given year, our DBMD members will serve as many as 100 candidates. We are grateful for their service!
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Church revitalization matters. Every church can become increasingly intentional, better aligned, and more effective in making disciples. One of the ways that our district team helps local church leaders is by facilitating StratOp events. StratOp is an opportunity for your leadership team to assess current realities and plan for the future potential that you sense God is initiating. Hartford City Wesleyan Church worked with Rev. Jason Tash last summer for their first round of StratOp planning. Last Tuesday evening, Jason was back for the plan review. It was encouraging to see the progress the team had made, even in a pandemic, by completing 9 of their short-term objectives.
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Church planting is the third key of our district collaboration. While almost any healthy church can plant a daughter congregation, one of the strengths of being part of a district is that we can do this together. Assistant DS Mike Colaw leads our team in Region 2 and took time last week to interview Lee Miller about the new church he’ll be planting. Mike shared the video with the Region 2 pastors. Every partnering church will be part of the story of Crossover Church. Together, we’ll be celebrating every new believer and every baptism.
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Speaking of baptisms, I was delighted to hear that Pastor Shane Wilson (Columbia City New Hope Wesleyan) and Pastor John Hannan (Union City CrossRoads) were able to connect last week to give and receive a blessing. New Hope Church had a portable baptistry that they were able to donate to CrossRoads Church. Pastor John and his team brought it back to Union City and set it up in time to celebrate two more baptisms this past Sunday. Thank you to Pastor Wilson and New Hope for their generosity. Praise the Lord for partnerships and lives being made new!
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Another exciting way churches can partner is in united prayer. Yesterday was the launch of “21 Days of Prayer” with Brookhaven Wesleyan, Lakeview Wesleyan, and The River Church partnering in this prayer initiative. Pastor Tony Bye, Pastor Chris Williams, and Pastor Matthew Trexler committed to working together to raise the prayer temperature in their congregations and community. There is power when we agree together in prayer!
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​Sherry joins me in expressing sincere condolences on behalf of the Crossroads District family to Rev. Dr. Joe Harmon (interim pastor at New Castle Memorial) on the passing of his mother, Anna Belle Fraker of Beckley, West Virginia. Our thoughts and prayers are extended to Dr. Harmon and the extended family. https://www.roseandquesenberry.net/obituary/anna-fraker
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The Crossroads District and the Thrive Initiative of The Wesleyan Church have teamed up to provide a practical way to bless our pastors. You are running hard in ministry but, to sustain long-term effectiveness, you also need to rest well. Toward that end, we are making available a $475 grant towards a retreat of two nights or more. Learning resources and planning tools are provided to make this time as profitable as possible. When you complete your retreat, the Thrive Initiative has a $500 matching grant available with a second set of learning resources.

​If your church also elects to participate in this initiative (i.e. paying down ministerial student loans, topping up retirement, fitness equipment), additional matching funds up to $500 are available. For the first month, this opportunity is only available to the first 100 solo or senior pastors that sign up. This opportunity will be made available to assistant pastors starting February 2, 2021.

For more details, please follow this link:
​https://www.crossroadsdistrict.org/restwellinitiative.html

Thank you for making a difference in the cause that counts for eternity!

Your servant in Christ,

Mark Gorveatte

Crossroads District Superintendent

Sunday morning, January 3, I had the privilege of bringing greetings from our district team and worshiping with Pastor John and Beth Hannan at CrossRoads Church in Union City. Many of you have been praying with John and Beth as they launched CrossRoads Church on September 27, 2020. While attendance has fluctuated with Covid-19, they’ve welcomed 34 last Sunday and have baptized 8 new believers since launch. They had two first time guests yesterday who filled out a connection card and expressed their desire to get to know Christ.

Pastor John and Beth are committed to expressing God’s love in practical ways. This Christmas they raised funds to bless a grandmother in their congregation. The frame in her car rusted through and the vehicle had to be scrapped. She still wanted to attend with her granddaughter so members of the church had been driving out to bring them. The church raised enough money to purchase a vehicle. Since the fundraising had been anonymous, even the grandmother had contributed to help with the project. Imagine her surprise when they gave her the keys to the car on Christmas Sunday morning.
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Few people would recommend trying to launch a church plant in the middle of the pandemic, but God is on the move as we answer His call into the harvest. Pastor Lee and Jennifer Miller are doing just that on the east side of Muncie. Rev. Miller has served effectively at Muncie Memorial Wesleyan for the past few years but sensed God’s call to reach out to the community where he and Jennifer live near the reservoir. God opened a door for them to hold launch team meetings and preview services in a former Boy Scout camp near the reservoir. This past Saturday, they hosted a sneak preview event that they shared on Facebook. Imagine how encouraged they were when more than 75 people showed up to learn more about Crossover Church. They will plan to continue building a launch team and holding preview gatherings this spring with a launch tentatively scheduled for August. Please keep our church planters in your prayers!
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Many of you who are leading in the local church can relate to Pastor Scott McDermid’s Christmas update from Six Points Wesleyan Church in Sheridan. He wrote: “This Christmas Eve did NOT go as planned. A few days before, we got word of several members who had attended the previous Sunday and now tested positive for COVID (they are doing fine) but due to an abundance of caution we decided to have our Christmas Eve services online only. This was disappointing (it is often one of our busiest services of the year and a great opportunity to have visitors) but our team did a great job creating an excellent online service. Over the past 10 months we have been buying, installing and upgrading our tech (equipment, software, internet speed…) and it all came together on Christmas Eve to allow the online viewer to see and hear all the parts of the service at home.”

The year 2020 confirmed that church is more than just meeting in a building. Pastor Rich Van Vuren shared that Shiloh Wesleyan Church, near Plymouth, reached out in a new way this last year. He wrote: “We have a large number of homeless and extremely needy people in the Plymouth area and responded by doing a drive through Thanksgiving dinner in November.  As a result of the Thanksgiving initiative a few ladies from our church were further burdened and spearheaded a Christmas Dinner initiative in which we dropped off over 200 meals to some of the higher homeless density areas of Plymouth and trailer parks.  We had over 20 volunteers all together.”
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The Crossroads District and the Thrive Initiative of The Wesleyan Church have teamed up to provide a practical way to bless you and your family. You are running hard in ministry but, to sustain long-term effectiveness, you also need to rest well. Toward that end, we are making available a $475 grant towards a retreat of two nights or more. Learning resources are provided to make this time as profitable as possible.
​

The Wesleyan denomination’s Thrive Initiative has a $500 matching grant available when you complete the second learning journey. If your church also elects to participate in this initiative (i.e. paying down ministerial student loans, topping up retirement, fitness equipment), additional matching funds up to $500 are available. For the first month, this opportunity is only available to the first 100 solo or senior pastors that sign up. This opportunity will be made available to assistant pastors starting February 2, 2021.

For more details, please follow this link:
​https://www.crossroadsdistrict.org/restwellinitiative.html
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I’ve been encouraging our pastors to rest well and some of them have challenged me to do the same. Last week, Sherry and I enjoyed a two-day getaway with an overnight stay in Jasper, Indiana. Joel, our youngest son, and Christie, his wife, joined us for this adventure. The highlight of our trip was exploring Marengo Cave National Landmark. If you haven’t been there yet, add it to your list. One surprising fact was that this cave has often hosted worship services in one of the larger rooms. There is even a pulpit rock dedicated (1924) to Bishop H.H. Fout of the Indiana Conference Church of the United Brethren. I’d be glad to hear about your favorite places in Indiana to rest and recharge.
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There is no guarantee that 2021 will be any less challenging than 2020, but never doubt that God will prove Himself to be faithful again this year. The spiritual needs have never been greater and the Kingdom opportunities have never been more abundant. I am believing with you for a terrific year of ministry as we labor together here at the Crossroads of America. Thank you for your partnership in the Gospel!

Your servant in Christ,

Mark Gorveatte

Crossroads District Superintendent

“I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” ~Philippians‬ ‭1:3-6‬ ‭NIV‬‬

P.S. – I encourage you to check out this helpful article from Dr. Dan Reiland:
​https://danreiland.com/5-steps-to-lead-strong-in-2021/