Pastor Gerry Stoltzfoos

Pastor Gerry Stoltzfoos from Freedom Valley Worship Center, opened up by sharing an email he got as came to class- an email from his physician who had experienced Christ for the first time in fifty years after he was welcomed into Freedom Valley. It was an encouraging way to start the discussion.

He grew up in an Amish family in Lancaster County. His first experience in a Pentecostal church freaked him out- the loud worship, the physical contact (hugs), the enthusiastic speaker, and especially the speaking in tongues part. He was so freaked out he ran out of the service at the end, but was met by people that really cared about him. And that’s what brought him back. The church, music, lights… that’s not what brings people back to church. A deep, sincere love is what draws a person back to a church family.

He worked as a full-time youth pastor and earned his educated over a seven-year period. He graduated from Valley Forge in 1990 and ended up on staff at that first Pentecostal church and worked there for twelve years. When the senior pastor left for the mission field, he was offered that position. And after a month of being a pastor, he was fired for being too “young, aggressive, and making too many mistakes,” so he moved a hundred miles away to plant a church in Philadelphia. With a nearby church’s financial help, the journey to plant a church started. Through a divine encounter, God directed him and his wife to a specific house. Though he had no money, no savings, and no job, God directed him to buy a house in Philly, and through a miraculous turn of events, it actually came to pass! This is where they’re living to this day. They opened the church next week, and at the beginning, they did everything textbook wrong, but they learned on the journey how to work with people. Years down the road, he co-published a book called 83 Lost Sheep inspired by a study on Luke 10, and through this journey, God radically transformed his view on leadership. Pastor Gerry describes church plants as discipleship factories, and stressed how they really focus on disciple making- that’s their priority! They are not institutions focused on the external, but on making relationships and discipling others to continue the work.

It was truly an honor to hear from Pastor Gerry. He's not afraid of failing or taking faith risks, and was clearly passionate about his ministry and it showed. He didn’t just prepare a speech or teach at us, but genuinely engaged in a conversation with us about his journey. It was refreshing to hear someone so transparent about the struggles, criticism, and opposition he overcame in ministry, and to hear about how God always gave provision. As he said, “When you’re following Jesus, there’s still a cross to pick up.” It was encouraging to hear his story, as God used someone who had been fired and criticized and had struggled to find a place in ministry, to go on to plant an entire network of churches. He went on to receive an award recognizing his work his church planting, as he’s been involved with about seventy church plants. To him, it's not about getting as many people as possible to his church, but to welcome them into the Kingdom. That's the perspective more of us need.

John Cicilioni

John Cicilioni, a 28-year old Assistant Pastor at Peckville Assemblies of God and graduate of Valley Forge, came to speak to our class about his ministerial and entrepreneurial experience. He started the conversation off by talking about his recent weight loss. He lost over 70 pounds by eating healthy and exercising regularly and was motivated to do so because life is short and he wanted to be healthy and beat the average life span so he could minister as long as he could. If you’re tired because you’re unhealthy, you can’t minister the way you have to. How does weight fit into spirituality? He said you have to watch three things- your time, talents, and treasures. If you get the right mix of them, you can accomplish a lot of things, but it one of them is not balanced, then the whole equation is thrown off. On top of his ministerial position, he is also an entrepreneur and businessman. His mom wrote a book called “Super Baby Food” in 1996 which became a self-published bestseller, sold 50,000 copies in one year, and was featured on several TV shows. In this business, he works eight hours a week, one day a week, and he makes over $80,000 a year. Him and his brother attend expos around the world and buy baby products in bulk from manufacturers to sell on Amazon. They outsource everything- marketing, customer service, phone calls, website, etc., and use odesk.com to delegate work to freelancers around the world. His philosophy is that since 20% of your effort produces 80% of your work, if something is unproductive, cut it off. When asked about his philosophy about money and ministry, he said that either money masters you or you master money. He doesn’t love money, but it’s a tool you can use. Money is directly connected to time- it buys you time.

There are felt needs and actual needs. The greatest actual need people have is salvation, but most don’t know it, but people know their felt needs. Because of this, the church starts a six-week series every fall and advertises it with attractional needs, and use that as an opportunity to present the Gospel. The church is also starting a follow-up discipleship program. The Great Commission isn’t just to go and save people- it’s to make disciples. To help with this, the church leaders handpicked 30-35 people from the church that had strong relationships with the Lord to attend a three-week training so they can do one-on-one coaching for seven weeks with people that are new believers. I absolutely loved this discipleship program.
Pastor Cicilioni definitely knows his stuff and I was really interested in how he balanced his ministry and entrepreneurial endeavors, and appreciated how he went into the background details of how he manages it all. He showed us how God honors good stewardship, and how we can use those things to give back to the Kingdom. I also was really impressed by how he organized discipleship programs in his congregation, really focusing on the follow-up aspect of it. All in all, I really appreciate the insight that Pastor Cicilioni shared with us.

Portrait of a Disciple: Mary Magdalene

Who am I? You can call my Mary. Mary Magdalene. No doubt you’ve heard my name before. And just to clear things up- no, I was never a prostitute. I think I’d know. And I would appreciate if you’d put an end to those rumors if you hear them. Like a lot of people have done, you may have mistaken me for the other Mary, a close friend of mine. She was the one who broke the alabaster jar of perfume to anoint the Teacher with, wiping his feet with her hair. She had repented and turned away from her sinful lifestyle and found freedom in Christ. Most people mistakenly think that was I, but no. My story is a different one. I may not have been a prostitute, but one thing is for sure- I was lost. At one point, I had lost everything. I was hopeless. With seven demons inside of me, I was tormented. And I believed what they engrained in my mind. I was in darkness. To others, not only was I just a woman, but I was an outcast. People wouldn’t come near me. To them, I was just crazy. Worth nothing at all. And I believed it. No one saw me. Until He did. The Teacher saw me. As he came through Galilee one day, he saw me and he saved me. He lifted me from the pit I was in and gave me a future. When no one else saw value, he saw worth. When everyone else walked by, he stopped and saw something worth saving. This was the compassion that marked his teachings.

Now he didn’t just leave me there once I was free. He didn’t just leave me to figure things out on my own after I was free. He taught me- he taught all of us. And he didn’t just teach us and leave us, he walked with us. Every step of the way… he walked along side of us with patience and compassion. This is how he discipled us. He kept his eyes on us as he kept his eyes forward. He kept up moving. And this is how he taught us to pass it on and disciple others. That was what made an impact. And once I saw this, this wasn’t just something I could keep to myself. Because he lived it, because he was so different from the Pharisees that just preached and didn’t do anything, I needed to do whatever I could to help. I got the other women together- Joanna, Susanna, Chuza, and a few others- and we funded his ministry out of our own pockets. And it was worth every penny we got together. He allowed us, as women, to be involved in his ministry. He didn’t just push us aside. While others might have done just that, he recognized that all people, men and women, young and old, had a purpose, had something they could do for the Kingdom.

He never abandoned us as he taught us. He taught us to the very end. And by his example, he taught us to be steadfast. And just as he hadn’t given up on all of us, I didn’t give up on him in his last days. All the disciples ran away and hid when he was arrest and in his death as he was crucified. But I stayed, until that very last moment. And wonder of wonders, when he came to life again at the tomb, he appeared to me first. Me, a lowly woman. He chose to show Himself to me first.

The bottom line is this: he could have left me after he saved me. But he didn’t. He led me, taught me, walked with me. He saw me as who I could become, not who I was. That’s what made him the leader he was.