 What a joy to worship with Pastor Michael Hewitt and 170 folks who gathered at Rising Hope Church for the two morning services on August 17. Pastor Mike and Kim brought their family to Muncie back in 2017 to launch this new ministry. It’s been a delight to watch how God has been working through their sacrifice and leadership. Last conference year, Rising Hope averaged 148 in worship attendance with 34 professions of faith and 31 baptisms.  Two new believers were baptized in the second service yesterday. Pictured here is one of the teenagers with Faith Strand, youth pastor, baptizing a high school student she’s been discipling. In addition to loving their local community, Rising Hope has invested significantly in Cafe Con Dios, a church planting initiative in Spain that now includes churches in three cities. Last week began with our office staff meeting and then connecting with Assistant District Superintendent Dr. Chris Williams in Marion on Monday. Tuesday morning, I met with Pastor Shane Wilson and his team at New Hope Wesleyan Church in Columbia City. The DBA provided training in CliftonStrengths (Gallup StrengthsFinder). I’ve enjoyed every opportunity to serve our district churches with this staff development resource.  Pastor Shane and the team joined me for lunch following our workshop. God is on the move at New Hope. They averaged 399 in worship attendance last year and celebrated 28 baptisms. The church is on track to be debt-free in the coming year. Their plan is to use this extra margin in their budget to ramp up their missions giving to 10% of their income. Pray for New Hope! On Wednesday morning, I met with Dr. Eddy Shigley, professor at IWU and one of our circuit riders. I met with Michael Wood in Fishers on Wednesday afternoon and then came back to Fairmount for the first night of Legacy Camp.  Dr. Joe Harmon was the evangelist for this year’s Legacy Camp at Fairmount Camp. Rev. Ken Dykhoff was back again to lead worship. I was able to attend the Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday evening rallies. Pastor Joe’s messages were timely and anointed. I was able to hear Dr. Chris Williams preach at the Thursday evening service at The River. Since The River and Lakeview became one church, Dr. Chris has joined the teaching team and serves as an executive pastor. The River opened up this Thursday evening worship opportunity to accommodate growth. Thursday evening worship attendance has been over 200 in the first weeks.  Friday, I was back in Fishers to meet with Michael Wood as we wrapped up the final edits for this year’s conference journal. Pastors will receive a link to the 2025 Crossroads District Conference Journal this week. Special thanks to Michael for his excellent work in completing this project two weeks ahead of schedule! I was able to drop in on the Legacy Camp Bible study on Saturday morning. Dr. Amanda Drury shared a powerful teaching on the way that gratitude brings us into the presence of God from Luke 17. You’ll need to ask her the story about her peach tree!  Pastor Terry and Lennaire Vaughn are working hard at building the launch team for the new church in Fountain Square. We met over lunch for an update and then I joined Pastor Terry for the monthly Urban Pastors Cohort that he leads in Indianapolis. I’m grateful for these leaders who are planting churches in our largest city. The key thought of the day came from Dr. Craig Thurmon when he said, “Is it really ministry if you’re doing it alone?” We’re stronger together!  I was able to be back at Fairmount for the closing rally of Legacy Camp. This inspirational evening featured the musical ministry of Anchored and another powerful message from Dr. Joe Harmon. Just a reminder that Dr. Harmon is another one of our district’s circuit riders and he is available for special Sundays and revival services. You can reach him at our district office.  We love to share the encouraging stories of lives being transformed. Pastor Dan Fisher and the team at Delphi Wesleyan Church are rejoicing with three new believers who were baptized yesterday. Pastor Dan also led another lady to the Lord who will be baptized next month. The church in Delphi is praying and believing for 52 conversions this conference year.  Don’t miss out on ReEquip, our ministry training day on Saturday, September 27, at Eastview Wesleyan Church in Gas City. We have breakout sessions for church treasurers, youth leaders, children’s ministry directors, and even sessions on using AI in ministry. Check out the link for more information and registration: https://forms.gle/PaW8vrCNatv17ZD87  Pastors, just a reminder that Circuit Riders are scheduled this year at your invitation. You should also have received a link to sign up for our monthly “Lunch and Learn” gatherings. We’re excited to share these times of leadership development and fellowship with you! There’s still time to register for the Wesleyan Holiness Connection’s Pastors & Church Leaders Day on Tuesday, September 23. Click here for more information and registration.  The Wesleyan Church is hosting regional youth events this fall with the closest one coming to Grand Rapids on Friday and Saturday, October 24-25. Our own Andy Riemersma is one of the featured artists. For more information, here’s the link: https://wesleyan.org/empoweredtour2025  Keep on making a difference in the cause that counts for eternity! Your servant in Christ, Mark Gorveatte Comments are closed.
|
Archives
December 2025
|
RSS Feed
