Pursuing Life

Joshua Brussel serves as Calvary’s Middle School Director, working with 7th and 8th grade students. Joshua grew up overseas, and his experience as a missionary kid really paved the way for the work that he does today. Joshua brings a lot of fun and energy to our staff, and we are so grateful for the heart he has to walk alongside teens as they wrestle with what it looks like to follow Jesus in an...

Laura Leigh Kinley serves as Calvary’s Communications Manager, and she is one of the people responsible for the many visual media elements that you’ll find around Calvary Church. Laura Leigh exudes creativity, possessing talents across a broad spectrum, and, as she’ll share today, that made it difficult for her when it came time to choose a college major and, eventually, a career. She has gained s...

Mike Derus was living a life far from the Lord when he found himself in a desperate situation and in need of a place to live. At the time, he was dating his now-wife, Tami, whose parents agreed to take Mike into their home until he got back on his feet. Tami’s parents, Jere & Judy Brubaker, were committed followers of Jesus, and it was ultimately their love and kindness towards Mike that event...

Having been adopted as a baby, Julianna Gerlach struggled in her adolescent years with feelings of being abandoned. This led to many years of looking for love in all the wrong places. Eventually, this pursuit of love led her across the country, where she found herself pregnant, twice, and facing circumstances that left her feeling devastated and hopeless. Eventually, God led Jul home, and through...

John Noel has been serving on the Worship Ministries staff at Calvary for over a decade. You may see him most often playing piano or keyboard on a Sunday morning, but he also does valuable work behind the scenes helping to plan for worship services, leading the worship choir, scheduling musicians, creating music charts, transcribing and arranging music, serving with our live production team, and s...

Emily Bechtel longed to be a mom since she was a little girl. But her expectations fell short when she and her husband learned that having biological children would be difficult. After a four-year journey with infertility, God answered Emily’s prayer and gave her a son. Emily joins us to reflect on God’s faithfulness to her in the waiting, and, ultimately how He showed her what it means that He is...

In 2019, Melinda Smith and her husband, Nate, became certified for foster care, and quickly found themselves matched with a newborn baby girl. In the years that followed, God worked in the Smith family to teach them what it looks like to extend love to the world around them, even when it’s uncomfortable or inconvenient. Today Melinda shares how the love of God, through the work of the Holy Spirit,...

We all have family, yet no two families are alike. For some of us, family brings to mind the people who are, or were, most directly related to us – our parents, siblings, children. For others, family is untraditional; it’s the people who extended love when we most needed it. And yet, for some, we acknowledge that family is a reminder of brokenness – that on this side of heaven, things are just not...

Monica Kirsch has been hosting Pursuing Life since it launched in December 2021. Today we flip the script to hear directly from her as she reflects on the last year of the podcast, shares her hopes for what’s to come in 2023, and tells us part of her own story of following Jesus. Guest hosted by Liz Rodriguez.

Mike Fueyo is a physician who is passionate about serving individuals who have special needs, and he runs a program locally for those with Autism and Developmental Disabilities. Mike has been attending Calvary Church for more than 15 years, and he also serves as a buddy in our Disability Ministry. Today he is sharing how he came to faith in Jesus, how he ended up in his vocational field, and why h...

Scott Powell and his wife, Leslie, (who was featured on the podcast in August of 2022) are Global Partners who served in Asia for more than twenty years. Today Scott is sharing with us how God led them overseas, then back to the states, how they ended up in Lancaster, and how God located them strategically for the work that they now do locally with refugees. If you are interested in getting involv...

Today we kick off our Meet Our New Elders series with Brad Mullen. Brad was on staff at Calvary Church for several years, and has also served terms as an elder in the past. Before coming to Calvary, Brad dedicated many years to teaching students about the Word of God. God has taken Brad far and wide on his journey, and we are so thankful that he is a part of our church body and leadership.

Abby Reiner has had a passion for working with children who have special needs since she was a child herself. Now, as a Special Education teacher, Abby gets to use that passion to share the love of Jesus with kids both inside and outside of the classroom. Today she joins us to share how she has seen God at work in the world of education.

Meagan Landis joined Calvary’s staff in July 2022 as a part of the Global Ministries team. In the Spring of 2020, Meagan was getting ready to be commissioned as a Global Partner. But, over the next 18 months, her journey took many unexpected turns, which ultimately led her to role she’s in now. Today, Meagan is here to share that story with us -  a story of how sometimes, things don’t go as planne...

Joel Sims joins us today to share how God has been at work through his role as an architect and, more recently, as a property owner. After many years in his field, Joel started praying for ways to be used in more impactful ways for the gospel. In the years that followed, God began to answer that prayer in ways that only He could, which is the story that Joel is here to share with us today. This is...

Anna Fillgrove serves as Calvary’s Director of Nursery Ministries and the Calvary Kids Communication Coordinator. Anna came to saving faith in Jesus as a young adult as a result of the ministry of Calvary Church! Before coming on staff, she and her husband, Kevin, were involved in an Adult Bible Fellowship and served in various areas, and their kids grew up and served at Calvary as well. Now, as a...

Like many people, Amanda Rock didn’t know what she wanted to do after she graduated from high school! But, over several years, God directed Amanda’s steps, and she discovered a passion for financial planning. As a certified financial planner, Amanda works for a company that uses God-honoring principles to assist people in stewarding their finances. She sees her work as a way to come alongside othe...

We all have a job to do. Whether we’re clocking in and out every morning, or raising up little ones in our home, God calls us to do that job as service unto Him. When we view our work as worship, we’re ultimately redirecting the glory back to Him, and, hopefully, in turn, inspiring others to do the same. Starting next Monday, October 24th, we’ll hear stories from individuals who are actively viewi...

Olivia Huss came to Calvary as a 10th grader and, having just moved to the area, she didn’t know any other kids her age. But, she took a step of faith and got plugged into a student group, which ended up impacting her so greatly that she went on to become a leader, which she’s been faithfully committed to for the last 8 years. Olivia is an example of how God uses even the seemingly trivial parts o...

Bill Schmidt was on staff at Calvary Church from 1965-1970 and, in the 1990s, he and his wife, Eunice, became global partners. After they retired from the mission field, they settled back in Lancaster and got plugged back in at Calvary Church. Today, Bill joins us to share how God has been faithful to him through Calvary Church. And, as he shares, we’ll also see how God was faithful to Calvary Chu...

Kaylee Glessner started attending Calvary when she was a senior in high school, after her family decided it was time to transition to a new church home. Not only was Kaylee uprooted from the church she’d attended her entire life, but she was about to enter another season of transition as she would graduate from high school and navigate through the unknowns of post-graduate life. During this time,...

Curt & Diane Bitterman have faithfully served at Calvary Church for over four decades. Diane’s primary role has been serving with children, where she’s been involved since the beginning of Wednesday night programming, and Curt has faithfully served with Global Ministries, where he helped start the short-term missions program, and now assists with missionary housing. Curt & Diane have so fa...

Pastor Beau Eckert has been Senior Pastor at Calvary Church for the last 11 years, but prior to stepping into his current role, he served primarily with youth and young adults. Today we’ll get to hear about his history with Calvary Church, how he came to saving faith in Jesus Christ, and the ways that God faithfully guided his path to lead him to where he is today.

This year, Calvary Church is celebrating it's 85th anniversary! We'll be joining in on the festivities on Pursuing Life as we reflect on God's faithfulness and hear stories of His goodness. Join us as we kick off our new series, Celebrate Faithfulness, on Monday, September 12th.  Do you want to publicly celebrate the faithfulness of God in your life? Submit your story at: calvarychurch.org/sh...

Last week we had the privilege of hearing from Peter & Sarah Hoang about their passion for discipleship, and today, Sarah joins us again, along with her mentor, Leslie Powell, and mentee, Megan Grant. These three ladies are sharing with us how their relationships with one another have contributed to growth in their relationships with Christ.