To those who call Living Faith Church their church home,

As you know, the regional board was given the task of making a decision about the reappointment of Caleb Wold as your pastor. We opened it up to every regular attender in the Living Faith Congregation to express their perspective either by email or by phone appointment. After collecting information from many in the congregation, the regional board has made the unanimous decision to reappoint Pastor Caleb for a two-year term. As a part of this decision, Pastor Caleb will enroll, beginning in September, in the pastoral training track of Discover Ministry School, he will be coached by me personally, and we will increase his hours at the church and compensate him accordingly. 

In addition, the regional board also made a decision that for the sake of the church and the leadership of Pastor Caleb, it is best for Brett and Teresa Johnson to step aside from attending and serving at Living Faith. In accordance with the Open Bible ministerial covenant of ethics, this is the normal practice and expectation for the previous pastor so that the new pastor can establish their own vision and direction. Teresa served faithfully and with excellence at the request of the church board and Pastor Caleb since the transition in January of 2024. Her time as administrator will finish on August 30th. In the days to come the church will have an evening to honor Teresa for her years of service. We will inform you of that date as soon as it is planned. Brett and Teresa love Living Faith and want only the best for the church. 

This will obviously leave some gaps in ministry that will need to be filled. We are currently looking at the possibility of outsourcing the bookkeeping responsibilities to a ministry that specializes in this. Many of our churches are now using this service. We will also begin actively looking to hire a part-time church administrator. We are working on a job description, but if you are interested, please let Pastor Caleb know. And seasons like this provide a great opportunity for those in the church family to step up and serve in areas of giftedness. Scripture reminds us that "God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be." (I Cor. 12:18). 

Ephesians 4:3 reminds us to "Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace." The unity of the Spirit is a Kingdom reality, but it doesn't happen naturally. We need to "make every effort to keep it." How can we do this?

•       We support those God has placed in leadership over the church with our prayers, words and actions. This is the time to get behind Pastor Caleb and Heather with your prayers, words of encouragement, service and support! 
•       If we disagree with a decision, we will go directly to those with whom we disagree. Make every effort to avoid the enemy's trap of gossip or murmuring.
•       We will speak blessing over those who are here, and over those who have left. The word "bless" literally means "to speak well of." There is no “us and them” in the body of Christ!  

We know change is difficult and can leave a sense of uncertainty. But fortunately, God is not surprised by any of this, and our peace is in the fact that He goes before us. There are great days ahead for Living Faith Church! Jesus, our Great Shepherd, is leading the church forward!

If you have questions, please feel free to reach out to me at chris@pacificopenbible.com. We are praying for you. 

Blessings,
Chris Hansler, Regional Executive Director

Pacific Open Bible