The pastoral team which serves four small town United Methodist churches are an
eclectic group of gentlemen, collectively UMCteam1.
They serve Calvary UM in both Grand Rapids and Tontogany, as well as Liberty Center
and Colton UM churches.
What they are achieving is difficult to wrap one’s mind around. If one started to
plan this model of church leadership it would never work.
Yet, because it evolved from one body of believers, it has become a vibrant and
cohesive team.
The team is led by the only full-time pastor in the group, Pastor Mark Montgomery.
"I have one goal, I am unabashedly an evangelical pastor. My goal is to help
shepherd the churches and this team," he said. "This team has brought
excitement to the churches we serve."
The other seven men each have full time jobs yet have a passion for ministry and
serving God and the people.
"This team was not appointed to do this work. As it emerged, his team concept
was created out of the relationships formed.
Here are a listing of the other seven, alphabetically by last name, along with a
thought or two each one has about the ministry and why it works.
• J.T. Bean, former youth pastor at another church, now in home nutritional business
– "I’m new to the team. I just started in July. What makes this work is
everybody keeps their ego in check. I sense everybody is rooting for each
other." His goal is to get to know people better and make himself better
known within the congregations.
• Scott Carman, service adviser for Rouen Toyota – "We have a brotherhood. I am
closer to these guys than some of my family." He also indicated there is
"extreme support" from all the churches which have "embraced
it." He said he truly appreciates the honesty of the members. "If I do
good they are going to tell me. But if I mess up something in the sermon, they
are also going to tell me. That makes my sermon that much more powerful. "
• Mike Kelley, attorney – "These guys have become my brothers. What I love is
the support. You can’t think of a better way to do something than with your
brothers." For the future, "We have exciting churches and what I hope
to do
is to keep the excitement alive and offer exciting sermon topics and Bible studies
that are on the cutting edge." He also said he finds it nice to be resource
for people outside of church.
• Kyle Kleeberger, self employed floor layer and at home nutritional business – He
was the last to address this topic and he got a big laugh from the group when he
said, "I concur." He truly meant that he could not add to the other
comments about the group which are listed above and below. His goal for the
immediate future is "I just would love to learn to be a better pastor and
lover of people." He also has aspirations to explore mission work.
• Jon Knitz, works for the railroad –
"I had to prove that I could do it before I could get up there," he said of
the process. "Noting the light-hearted atmosphere during the interview, he
said, "What you see here is how the group is. We can go from extremely
serious to having a good time and that’s what helps." "I’ve told these
guys I have a camaraderie I have never experienced in my life. They help me
concentrate on the good, and when the bad comes they help me through it."
He said he was extremely moved by the reaction to his Mother’s Day sermon when people
told him, "We just thought you were that goofy guy in the back, who thought
you could deliver something so powerful."
• Travis Montgomery, security at 5/3 bank – "We are highly organized in how we
approach each Sunday, each month and every aspect of the church. We are not
stepping on any toes or getting each others way." "My goal is to tell
people of the good news of Jesus Christ and the community."
• Bruce Perry, home improvement sales for Home Depot – "What we deal with is
life and death and the very essence. But we deal with it in ways that are
engaging and fun. It is not dull and we are changing some of the negative
stereotypes which don’t apply."
—
UMCteam1.org
