Lancaster, Thanksgiving, and Baptisms

Sunday morning, December 1, I was blessed to worship with Pastor Doug Sharrard and the team at Lancaster Wesleyan Church. Rev. Duane Cragen serves alongside Rev. Sharrard as they lead the church in reaching out to their rural community. They lit the candle for the first Sunday of Advent and we shared the first carols of the season.
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Two of our pastoral families were impacted by the passing of beloved family members. Rev. Carla Working’s grandmother passed away on Sunday morning. Earlier last week, Rev. Noah and Christie Farmer received the heartbreaking news that Annalysa McMillan, their 19-year-old daughter, died in a tragic accident. The obituary and funeral notice was distributed directly to our district team and your prayers are requested for their family.

Rev. Kyle Horton and the Three Rivers Wesleyan Church hosted Rev. Aldean Pablo this morning to bring the morning message and to share the vision for disciple-making and church planting in Fort Wayne. I’m grateful for each of our pastors and the churches in Region 1 that have stepped up to become partners in the SEND Church project.
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Pastor Brad LeRoy and Harvest Church in McCordsville announced today that they’ve completed their extensive search process and have called Josiah Gorveatte as their new worship pastor. He’ll begin his ministry with the Harvest Church team on January 5. Josiah has previously served at Crosspoint UMC in Florida and 12Stone Church in Atlanta. Josiah’s parents (Sherry and Mark) are also excited to welcome him to the Crossroads District.
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Congratulations to Pastor Dave Cox and the Laketon Wesleyan Church who welcomed seven new members into their church family on Sunday morning, Dec. 1! Just a gentle reminder that January is an opportune time to complete annual membership affirmations as your congregation launches into the new year. There are several helpful resources available from The Wesleyan Church to assist with this process:
https://resources.wesleyan.org/wesleyan-church-affirmation-membership

Pastor Rick Fletcher and Associate Pastor Andy Jellison celebrated 5 more baptisms at Fort Wayne Lifeway Wesleyan Church on Sunday morning bringing their total for this conference year to 18! Pastor Rick also shared the exciting news that he met with a couple on Saturday night who both prayed to receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
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I trust that you had a great Thanksgiving Day gathering with loved ones. Our district office was closed on Thursday and Friday for our staff to spend time with family. Sherry and I were blessed to have all of our children home for the Thanksgiving break. We started a family tradition in 2015 when most of us ran our first 5k Turkey Trot together on Thanksgiving morning. We were able to do our 5k again this Thanksgiving. This year, the younger Gorveatte’s did their run through Upland while I was limited by doctor’s orders to doing mine on the treadmill. We have so much for which to be thankful!
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I’ll be back on the road this week with coaching conversations and can’t wait to see many of you at the regional Christmas gatherings hosted on Tuesday and Friday evening by our Assistant District Superintendents. Next Sunday I’ll be with Pastor Heath Croft and the team at Level 13 Church in Fort Wayne. Then, on December 12, our District Board of Administration will have our quarterly meeting and share a Christmas meal together at Wesleyan HQ. Thank you for your prayers as my rehab and recovery continue.

Just a reminder that you are invited to sign up for a monthly e-mail newsletter from Wesleyan HQ that will profile proposed legislation, prayer promptings, and information that help you prepare for this important gathering whether you will be on site or watching online. Please click here to subscribe: https://www.wesleyan.org/unleashed

Keep on making a difference in the cause that counts for eternity!

Your servant in Christ,
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Mark Gorveatte
Crossroads District Superintendent