Pastor– is a person who is ordained and charged to teach, care for and equip other believers to do the ministry of the church. There is also the spiritual gift of pastor, which is different than the office of pastor.
Pastor Steve Corbett
TESTIMONY: I trusted Christ as my Savior May 13, 1968 in my dorm room at the University of Illinois. Although I had been exposed to religion (confirmation in the Methodist Church, Billy Graham Crusades, a David Wilkerson Crusade and Young Life) I never understood that a person must trust the Person and the Work of Christ. Don Clark, a Navigator, presented the gospel to me, I believed, and Don began to disciple me. I continued working with the Navigators from May, 1968 to November, 1972. I was baptized by immersion in the Twin Cities Bible Church in Urbana, Illinois.
A year or so after I trusted Christ an interest was stirred up in me concerning a pastoral ministry. At the time I was very active with the Navigators and some of the men tended to chide me for this interest because they felt the Church was no longer on the cutting edge of things. However, for the next two years I kept this thought rolling around in the back of my mind. In July of 1972 my ship deployed to the Mediterranean Sea for a six month cruise. While in the "Med" I was reading J. Dwight Pentecost's Things to Come. I was not that familiar with Dallas Seminary but my interest in prophecy spurred me on. As I saw how this dear man handled the Word of God my heart was again drawn toward more in-depth training and a pastoral ministry. The burden became so great that I finally asked the Captain for an "early-out". At the time, our ship's Navigator (literal) was on leave and I was the acting Navigator. Furthermore, since I was in line for promotion to ship's Navigator, the Captain said "no"! That was in late September of '72. I believed God wanted me in seminary so I claimed the promise that "the heart of the king is in the hand of the Lord" and asked God to work it out. Two weeks later the Captain sent a personal letter to the Chief of Naval Personnel requesting an "early out" for me. One week later the CNP wrote back OK'ing the request. On 6 Nov. '72 I was standing in Philadelphia, discharged! So far, I had not applied to a Seminary. But I was convinced that God was leading me into a pastoral ministry!
TRAINING: So as soon as I got home to Rockford, I applied at Dallas Seminary. I did not apply anywhere else. I knew that the school had a reputation for a strenuous education in the Biblical languages, that's what I wanted, so that's where I applied. Thank God I was accepted! My training might be summarized thus:
University of Illinois : 1966-1970 B. S. Marketing The Navigators: 2 years in the college ministry U.S. Navy: Aug. '70 - Nov. '72
USS Trenton LPD14
First Division Officer
CIC Officer
Navigator The Navigators: 2 1/2 years in the military ministry Dallas Theological Seminary: 1973-1977 Th.M. degree
Major - Greek
Minor - Hebrew
1980-1986 D.Min. degree
MARRIAGE: God has blessed me with a wonderful wife, Rita. We have three adult children, Eric, Cari, and Kati.
Pastor Mike Gormican
Pastor Mike Gormican was born in Los Angeles and raised in Black Earth, WI. Mike graduated from Wisconsin Heights High School in 1975. He attended Grand Rapids School of the Bible and Music and graduated with a decree in Pastoral Studies in 1979. Mike attended one semester of graduate school there before returning to Wisconsin. He attended Black Earth Congregational Church and was co-youth group leader and an elder on the church board. While there he attended UW Madison and got a degree in Ancient History. Mike was married to Carolyn Evenson in 1984 and ordained in 1983. He served as interim pastor at Arena Bible Church from 1981 to 1983 and as pastor of Madison East Bible Church from 1983 to 1990. Two sons, Tim , who is with the Lord and Ben, at home. Mike became associate pastor at Grace Bible Church in November of 2004.
Pastor Alton Schultz
I was born in Hopkinsville, Kentucky in 1983. My family moved a few times when I was young, but finally found a home in Hobart, Indiana. I graduated from Hobart High School in 2003. I then moved to Kansas City, Missouri to attend Calvary Bible College. For about a year I was undecided on my major. I always had a passion for youth and preaching, so i decided to work on an Advanced Biblical Studies degree using my electives for youth and pastoral classes. I finished Calvary in December of 2007 and graduated in May of 2008. I am serving in Portage, Wisconsin as youth Pastor at Grace Bible Church. I married Valerie Thyren on July 12, 2008.
Elders of Grace Bible Church
Elders are men who oversee churches and are responsible for the protection and care of the flock. 1 Timothy 3:2-7, Titus 1:6-9, 1 Peter 5:1:3 show us what elders would look like: be above reproach, faithful to wife, self-controlled, live wisely, be respectable, be hospitable, not abuse alcohol, be gentle, peace loving, free from the love of money, not a new believer, devout and disciplined life, shepherd the flock, able to teach sound doctrine, manages household well, and has a good reputation.
Current Elders Steve Corbett, Mike Gormican, Alton Schultz, Jerry Blystone, Terry Kowalk, Ken Krizan, Chuck Ness, Rik Rickerson, Dave Robinson, Dave Stowell, Vern Vangen and Tom Wiersma.
