WE BELIEVE
The Bible is the inspired Word of God (II Timothy 3:16). Indeed, “The Bible is our rule of faith and Christ alone is Lord; All are equal in His sight when we obey His Word.” (Quoted from the hymn The Church’s Jubilee)
There is only one true God with three active persons in the Godhead: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. (Deuteronomy 6:4,
Matthew 28:18-19)
All persons have sinned and fall short of God’s requirements for heaven and eternal life. (Romans 3:23)
Christ’s death and resurrection paid the penalty for everyone’s sins and God now offers a salvation that forgives our past, gives hope for the present, and the assurance of eternal life in heaven... as a free gift. No one can earn it or achieve it. We receive salvation, through faith in Christ, as a gift of God’s grace. (Hebrews 13:12, Ephesians 2:8-9)
The Holy Spirit sanctifies each person who yields himself—cleansing of sin, empowering God’s children to live a victorious Christian life, and equipping each one for service to make Christ known to the world. Ephesians 5:18 declares, “Be filled with the Spirit...” and 4:1 tells us to “Lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called... making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace..”
There is divine healing through God, and the possession and use of divine spiritual gifts through the Holy spirit, for the equipping of the body of Christ, which is the church. (James 5:14-15; I Cor. 12:1-11)
There are three Scriptural ordinances: baptism by immersion, the Lord’s Table of Communion and foot-washing. They are open to all persons who would honestly draw near to Christ. (Acts 3:38, Luke 22:14-20; John 13:1-17)
God’s church is the community of all God’s redeemed children living in a harmonious relationship with God and serving under the headship of Christ. (Ephesians 5:23)
All who have become Christian are members of the universal church and are welcome in our fellowship. There is no formal ceremony for becoming a part of the Pennway Church of God. Membership is through salvation. (Acts 2:47)
God’s church is intended to be a unified community and the dividedness among Christian people is inappropriate and unacceptable. Unity among Christians is not based on the achievement of full agreement on all theological questions. Rather, it is based on a common membership in the church through the grace of God. (John 17:20-21
PASTOR JOHN & PATTY DAVEY
ABOUT PASTOR JOHN...
The purpose statement for my life is, “to help people know and grow closer to Jesus.”
QUALIFICATIONS
Since the age of 17, I have felt God calling me to full-time ministry. This has taken several turns through the years: Youth For Christ staff, Youth Pastor, Minister of Pastoral Care, Pastor of a church that was dying, Planting Pastor, and Pastor of a church in a rural setting. In all of these situations, God has used me to help the unchurched find Christ, the churched to be discipled, and those who have been discipled to get plugged into ministry. My greatest quality is God working in me. I know I am nothing without Him.
I have a deep commitment to discipleship. I believe we need to help new believers, and even those who have been believers for a while, to understand how to have a personal quiet time, extended prayer times, memorize scripture, share one’s testimony and salvation plan, and many other disciplines that are necessary to grow closer to God. Without that our churches are full of weak Christians that are not able to fulfill God’s plans. In each church I have pastored, I have led discipleship classes, small groups, and practiced one-on-one discipleship with those in the church. It has been great to see people really grow. This is one thing I will do for the rest of my life no matter where I am in ministry.
I have a strong family, which is one of my greatest assets, as well as a strong family heritage in the Church of God. Not only do I have one of the best pastors in the Church of God movement as my father, but my brother is a Pastor, my sister is an Editor for Warner Press, my brother-in-law is a former Pastor, now Professor at Warner Southern University, my three nephews and one niece are in ministry or studying for ministry, and each of my children are involved in serving God. They are a priority for me, as well as a strength to my ministry.
My wife, Patty, is also very involved with my ministry and dedicated to her own ministry. She works extensively with the children’s and youth groups, VBS and women’s groups and is committed to them. She is gifted in hospitality, mercy and music, utilizing these abilities to benefit the church and glorify God. Her education in Family Science lends expertise and support to these avenues as well and will help her develop more family ministries in the future.
WORK HISTORY
Pastor, Edgewood Church of God, Ithaca, MI - September 1995 to present
We have seen growth in this church and in the people here even though it is located away from any major city or subdivision. I have served with 3 different associates.
Planting Pastor, Indiana State Ministries - Ft. Wayne, IN - August 1990 - July 1995
We went to the growing side of the city, began knocking on doors and built a church where there was none. The church grew to over 60 and since they were all new Christians, they needed some additional mature leadership. After trying several options, we merged with Park Forest Church of God, where I served as associate for 6 months to help with the transition.
Pastor, Parkway Church of God, Huntsville, AL - July 1988 - July 1990
This church had gone from 120 down to 30 the year before we came. We were able to start rebuilding the congregation during this time.
Associate Pastor, Pawnee Avenue Church of God, Wichita, KS - August 1981 - July 1988
After seminary we went there as Youth Pastor for 4 years, served as Interim, then Minister of Pastoral Care under a new pastor for 2 years, then Interim again before moving on after the new pastor came.
Staff Member, East Central Indiana Youth For Christ, Anderson, IN - September 1975 - August 1981
Served 2 years as part-time staff (Club Director), 2 years as intern (directed 3 clubs), and 2 years as Staff (directed 2 clubs and trained volunteer staff)
EDUCATION
Doctor of Ministry, Anderson School of Theology – 2007
Master of Divinity, Anderson School of Theology – 1981
Bachelor of Arts in Christian Ministry, Anderson College – 1976
2 years training for administering the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
Completed Navigators Discipleship Training
Youth For Christ Ministry Institute
PERSONALITY AND GIFTS
My personality type (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator) is ENFJ - which means I am an extravert (energized by people), intuitive (big picture, process thinker), feeler (people-oriented), and judging (finishing the job is important). I believe some of the strongest aspects of my ministry are: preaching, discipleship, teaching, setting goals, counseling, and pastoral care. My Spiritual Gift mix is pastor-teacher, leadership, and exhortation. I have always found myself in leadership in most any group in which I have been involved and have had some good success in helping organizations move forward toward accomplishing their goals. In addition to my family being one of my greatest strengths, my prayer life and Bible study are my lifelines and they have been a daily habit for over 30 years. I also feel I possess a good sense of humor.
INTERESTS & ACTIVITIES
President of Chamber of Commerce
President of Rotary Club
Served 6 years on State Division of Church Planting, 2 years on Board of Directors
Volunteer at Jr. High/High School as much as possible
Helping with other community activities that help me have contact with non-church people
Sports - play softball, basketball, golf, tennis, football, racquetball, skiing, snowmobiling, bowling, fishing, and anything else that comes along, plus watching sports of all kinds as well.
Music - love to sing (but mostly in groups)
Paint landscapes