United Wesleyan, Winchester Response, and Baptisms!

Sunday morning, March 17, Rev. Joe Jackson and the team at Anderson United Wesleyan Church welcomed me to bring greetings and share a message from God’s Word. I’m glad to report that Anderson United Wesleyan Church collected over $500 in donations for the Winchester relief efforts. After the service, I met with the LBA and then toured the newly remodeled childcare wing. The church is now hosting a new preschool program that is serving 25 children each week.
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The Jackson family joined me for lunch and it was fun to hear updates from their family members who are in college and high school. In addition to leading worship and partnering with Pastor Joe at the church, Jennifer serves special needs children in the public school system. Continue to pray for Assistant Pastor Nick Wilson in his health rehabilitation journey.
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Sunday afternoon, I had the joy of serving Pastor Gawin Anderson and the team at Indianapolis Divine Direction Church as they are working through the process of relaunching this important ministry on 46th Street. Pastor Gawin and Monique Anderson have stepped up to the challenge of seeing this congregation revitalized and back on the mission making disciples. In addition to pastoring and working a full-time job in the marketplace, Pastor Anderson is also continuing his ministerial studies at Indiana Wesleyan University.
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Last Monday I was able to connect with several of our ministry leaders who are participating in leadership learning cohorts. Rev. Carla Working leads a cohort for women in ministry and Rev. Matthew Trexler is leading two cohorts, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, for pastors. All three cohorts met on Monday at The River Church in Marion. Next year, we are planning to add a Saturday leadership cohort option for our bi-vocational pastors. You’ll hear more about this at the Crossroads District Conference, June 29.
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On Tuesday morning, I accepted the invitation from Pastor Noah Farmer to join his staff meeting at Gas City Eastview Wesleyan Church. Each team member had each taken the Clifton StrengthsFinder assessment and we spent a fun hour together learning more about leading from our strengths. The district board provided StrengthsFinder coach training last summer so that I can assist our pastors and their leadership teams with this resource. If you’d like to learn more, you can reach out to the district office and we’ll set up a time to connect.
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From Gas City, I traveled to Indianapolis to meet with Pastor Cary Sanders over coffee and then joined Pastor Barry Dixon later that afternoon. My final stop on Tuesday was with the Anderson Lone Oak Wesleyan Church Local Board of Administration. Pastor Jerome Bell has been helping Lone Oak but will be giving his full attention to Autumn Hills in the new conference year. Lone Oak will be posting their pastor position on the Wesleyan.org/jobs website and hopes to begin interviewing candidates in the next few weeks.
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Wednesday and Thursday were office days with the exception of a quick trip to Lebanon for a coaching conversation over lunch with Rev. Dr. Morris Jones on Thursday. The weather situation grew worse through the day on Thursday and Friday morning dawned with news of the storms' impact in Winchester and the surrounding area.
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Pastor Randy Yaryan, Winchester Wesleyan Church, and Rev. John Hannan, Union City CrossRoads Church, were both involved in the response efforts. We’re thankful to God that our churches were not damaged, but the toll to the community is still being calculated. Volunteers from the church provided more than 400 meals on Saturday to workers and impacted families. The volunteers also helped with clean-up efforts that afternoon.
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I’m grateful to Rev. Yaryan and Rev. Hannan for the way they’ve stepped up and mobilized team members to respond in this crisis. After a meeting in Indianapolis on Saturday morning, I was able to drive to Winchester to thank them personally. Thank you also to each church that has already responded with financial donations. I received word just this morning that the generous Lifeway Church in Fort Wayne received more than $3000 in donations. You can send those offerings through our district office. If you have donations of supplies (water, toiletries, clothing, etc.), the CrossRoads Church in Union City is serving as our staging point for those materials.
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We love to share the stories of how God is at work in our churches and changing lives. Rev. Mark Atkinson has been serving as interim/supply pastor at Elwood Central Wesleyan Church. Attendance has been rebounding from 66 people in January to 96 yesterday, Most importantly, yesterday was a celebration with two people publicly professing their faith in Christ through baptism. Praise God for lives being #MadeNew!

There’s still time to register! Crossroads District high school students won’t want to miss Fusion 2024! An amazing event at a great price, and did we mention Crowder? Registration is still open at: www.indwes.edu/youthministry/fusion
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The Heartland Gathering is right around the corner with the full schedule posted on the conference website. We look forward to seeing you in Pigeon Forge, April 2-5!

On April 11-13, 2024, College Wesleyan Church will host the first-ever Marketplace Multipliers Conference. The goal of this conference is to inspire and empower ordinary people to effectively live out their faith in the workplace. You will hear from clergy and laity alike—practitioners on the front lines of this movement, and those in the trenches. You can learn more about the conference and register for the event at this website:
https://collegewes.com/multipliersconference
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You are invited to join us for the OCHLOS Conference, April 13-14, 2024 at Southview Wesleyan Church in Indianapolis. Speakers include Santes Beatty, Director of Next Gen for The Wesleyan Church; Yamil Acevedo, Executive Vice President of Wesley Seminary; Zachary Szmara, Executive Director of Immigrant Connection and Pastor of the Bridge Church in Logansport; and Meg Puello, Executive Director of ASPYRE Inc. Click Here for more information and registration.
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Join us for the Crossroads KidMin Huddle, Saturday, April 20th, at Brookhaven Wesleyan Church in Marion. For $25, you'll enjoy a full day of learning and networking with fellow children's ministry leaders, volunteers, and pastors. A continental breakfast and lunch is included in your registration. Stephanie Rhyne, Kids Ministry Catalyst for The Wesleyan Church and content creator for David C. Cook (Wonder Ink), will be our guest speaker. Lead pastors who register to attend can bring two additional volunteers for free! Register now at this link:
https://crossroadsdistrict.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/2227324

Save the date! Our 2024 Crossroads District Conference will be held on Saturday, June 29th at Lakeview Wesleyan Church in Marion. This annual gathering is a wonderful time of celebration, inspiration, and Kingdom connection across our district family. Mark your calendars now and make plans to join us!

​Keep on making a difference in the cause that counts for eternity!
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Your servant in Christ,

Mark Gorveatte

​Crossroads District Superintendent​