East Liberty, Coaching, and Baptisms

Sunday morning, July 9, I had the joy of welcoming East Liberty Church (just north of Decatur) as the newest congregation in our Crossroads District service. This former EUB congregation, originally founded in 1845, completed the disaffiliation process with the United Methodist Church and voted to join The Wesleyan Church. Our DBA approved their reception so I was present to bring the morning message and lead an organization meeting after the service.
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They do not have a pastor but Rev. Dennis Croy, an ordained Wesleyan minister in our district, has graciously agreed to preach for them this summer as they make plans for the remainder of the conference year. Please keep East Liberty Church in your prayers as they begin this new chapter in their 178-year history.

Since the service at East Liberty began at 9, I had time to check in with Pastor Aldean Pablo and the team at ARISE Church in Roanoke. Pastor Aldean and Jessie Pablo are doing a great job leading this new ministry and reaching out to their community.

After celebrating July 4th with family, I was back on the road Wednesday for coaching conversations. I met with Pastor Randy Yaryan for lunch in Winchester and met with Pastor Andy Cole (Lapel Daybreak) later that afternoon.

Thursday, I was in Marion for our office staff meeting. We had a productive time debriefing on district conference and planning for next year’s conference (June 29 at Marion Lakeview). We were able to present Rev. Nicholas Reynolds with his new iPad, a door prize provided through the generosity of Marvin Miller, our Brotherhood Mutual agent. Congratulations, Pastor Nick!
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Our last stop on Thursday afternoon was in Elwood Central Wesleyan Church where we presented Rev. Jon Noggle with his certificate of ordination affirmation as he completed his transfer into The Wesleyan Church. We are delighted to have Pastor Jon and his family serving with us in the Crossroads District.
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Friday morning, Rev. Wayne and Dr. JoAnne Lyon welcomed me to their home. On behalf of our district, I was honored to present Dr. Lyon with her official retirement award (although she’s still on the fly) and to thank her for her ministry at our ordination service. Pastor Wayne closed our time together with a powerful prayer. He also introduced me to one of his newest hobbies, boxing. If you ever need someone to pray with you or for your church, you’ll be blessed if you reach out to Pastor Wayne!
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Saturday morning, I met with Pastor Phil Carder and the LBA at The Branch in Lafayette. They’ve just added Rev. Naomi (Umfleet) Small to their team and are making plans for growth this fall. From Lafayette, I drove on to Shunem House in Noblesville to check in with Pastor Mike Hewitt who was providing “relaunch” training for the team at Anderson Living Hope.
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My last stop on Saturday was at Daybreak Church in Lapel. Pastor Andy Cole and the team at Daybreak do a great job hosting events like this car show that was part of the community fair. If you look closely, you can find four ordained Wesleyan ministers in this photo (Rev. Dan Clark, Rev. Andy Cole, Rev. Richard Cole, and Rev. Joe Jackson).
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We love hearing reports of lives being changed by the Gospel so please pass along your praise reports and pictures. One of the best stories this week was Pastor Josh Bowlin (Marion Chapel Pike Wesleyan Church) baptizing his son in the very same baptism pool as he was baptized in many years ago!
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Pastor Michael Hewitt, Muncie Rising Hope, passed on the the good news that Cafe Con Dios, a part of the Rising Hope’s multi-site network, held two more baptism services (in Madrid and Chiclana, Spain) for a total of 35 new believers baptized in these new sites in four weeks!
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​Please pray for the leaders and teams at Frankfort Family Camp and Fairmount Children’s Camp as they minister this week!

​Let’s keep making a difference in the cause that counts for eternity!

Your servant in Christ,

Mark Gorveatte

Crossroads District Superintendent