Tipton Trinity, Christmas Sunday, and Baptisms

Sunday morning, December 19, I had the privilege of bringing greetings and worshiping with Rev. Johnnie Blair and Rev. Amanda Blair at Tipton Trinity Wesleyan Church. Tipton Trinity has prevailed through the pandemic with new families joining and new believers being baptized this past year. In addition to her pastoral responsibilities, Rev. Amanda Blair is a member of our Crossroads District Board of Administration. She also has a powerful ministry as a worship leader. Michael (Woody) Wood, our district administrator, is also part of the staff at Trinity so it was good to catch up with Michael and Melissa as they count down just five more weeks until the due date for their first child.
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Last week’s schedule included coaching conversations on Tuesday with Rev. Mark Atkinson and Rev. Noah Farmer (Gas City Eastview). Wednesday’s coaching conversations included Rev. Ethan Linder, Rev. Beau Hamner, and Pastor Jordan Rife (all at College Wesleyan Church). Thursday, I was on the road connecting with pastors and distributing Christmas blankets to Rev. Brad LeRoy (Greenfield Harvest), Dr. Joe Harmon (New Castle Memorial), Pastor Steve Arnett (New Castle Mt. Zion), Rev. Ron Ferguson (Grant City), Dr. Steve Bray’s staff (Richmond LifeSpring Church), Rev. Tim Becker (Elwood Main Street), Rev. Duane Seitz (Silver Lake), Rev. Brian Williams (Sweetser), Rev. Bob McHenry (Marion Nelson Street), and Rev. Ben Parker (Fairmount Back Creek). It was great to connect with these pastors and pray together for this season of high ministry impact.
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I enjoyed connecting with Pastor Sam Maddox and members of the Albion Wesleyan Church local board of administration on Monday evening. The church is making good progress under Pastor Sam’s leadership. On Tuesday evening, I met with Pastor Dan VanCise and the LBA at Marion West 8th Street for their very positive extended call review.

Nothing is more exciting than rejoicing with our churches who are celebrating lives being #MadeNew by the Gospel! On Sunday morning, December 19, Pastor Mark Atkinson and the team at Gas City Eastview Wesleyan Church celebrated two baptisms. Praise the Lord!
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Dr. David Wright announced his plan to retire at the end of the 2021-2022 school year. For the full announcement, here’s the link: https://www.indwes.edu/news/2021/12/indiana-wesleyan-university-president-dr.-david-wright-announces-retirement

​Dr. Wright has provided exemplary leadership in every phase of his career, both as an ordained minister and as a Christian educator. We pray that God will continue to bless David and Helen as they enter this new season of life and ministry.
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Fairmount Camp announced adjusted dates for their 2022 summer ministries. The teen camp will now be June 12-17, children’s camp will be July 5-9, and family camp is set for July 17-24. For the most up-to-date information, you can visit their website:
https://www.fairmountcamp.org

Congratulations to Mrs. Kassidy Bye, wife of Rev. Seth Bye (our Crossroads District COO), on her graduation from the transition to nursing degree program at Indiana Wesleyan University this past weekend. This is a significant step for the Bye family as they prepare to relocate to Avon to lead the restart project known as 317Church.
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FUEL Conference is coming to Muncie on February 3-4! To encourage our Next-Gen leaders to invest in their personal & ministry development by attending, a full registration scholarship ($79 value) is being offered to up to 20 of our full-time district Next-Gen leaders. To claim your scholarship, please fill out this form by December 27th. For questions, email District Youth President Jessica Folz at [email protected]. For more info on FUEL, visit:
www.wesleyan.org/fuel
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There is still time to register for the Heartland Gathering on March 22-24, 2022 in Pigeon Forge, TN. Every local church received a scholarship for one pastoral couple to register and that amount can also be applied toward the THRIVE initiative. For the speaker lineup and more detailed information, please visit: https://gathering.heartlandregion.org
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Like many of you, Sherry and I are hosting family during this Christmas season. We were blessed to have Sherry’s brother Kerry bring his four children, his daughter-in-law, and his first granddaughter coming all the way from Louisiana to spend time with us this weekend. Our four children, three spouses, and Lennon Joy, our first granddaughter, joined us on Sunday afternoon, so we’ve been making some special memories at our house.

May you and your loved ones have a blessed week celebrating Christ’s birth and preparing your hearts for His soon return!

​Your servant in Christ,
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Mark Gorveatte

​Crossroads District Superintendent

P.S. Our office will be closed for the Christmas week break reopening on January 3, but lead pastors can always reach me on my direct line or by text. The next Team Update will be released on January 3.