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Welcome Living Water, East Greeley

Living Water Fellowship is a church with a long history on the East side of Greeley, Colorado.  In 1969 Majestic View Mennonite Church purchased a building on the corner of 4th Avenue and 11th Street in East Greeley.  Over the years the church has had an impact on the surrounding community and has had its ups and downs.  In 2015 they left their Mennonite roots behind and changed their name to Living Water Fellowship.  It has been reported that during the years of Majestic View, there were 25 baptisms, 24 marriages, 50 babies born, 3 deaths, and 23 high school graduates.  The church has always been on the small side with a maximum membership of 50 adults.

In April 2020, Dr. Gordon Penfold (Windsor Community Church) completed a Fresh Start Ministries analysis of this small declining church on the East side of Greeley.  This was a very thorough analysis of Greeley and this specific church’s concerns, needs, and direction. He made “fresh start” prescriptions including a new leadership team and pastors, new vision, outward missional focus (specifically hispanic due to neighborhood), and a new worship style.

The analysis also observed that the people of this congregation are kind, loving, and willing to take risks.  They are faithful and resilient workers who are committed to God’s Word.  Their facilities are maintained and “ready for company.”  The concerns for this church were that we are a very small and aging congregation that does not reflect the ethnicity of the immediate area and who do not live in this immediate area.  Their  facilities are owned “free and clear,” but have limitations like limited parking and handicap accessibility and a small worship center & fellowship area.  More importantly, it was observed that the congregation does not envision a “clear path forward in the endeavor to reach the people of Greeley with the Gospel.”  

The church agreed with Gordon’s analysis that they needed a “revitalization pastor and a planting team who bring children, youth and young adults to the fellowship” and includes those who are bi-lingual (Spanish/English).  This change needed to be “an intense, sudden movement on the part of the church.” 

Fast forward to October 2020 when Gordon was introduced to Rob Moser, who subsequently introduced him to Mike Hodgin, the Living Water “transitional” pastor.  Mike invited Rob to preach a couple of times and Rob and Mauri felt they had a kindred spirit with the faithful remnant in this church (22+- people).  In January Rob and Dan met with Mike and Gordon to see if Crossway might be a fit for Living Water as the prescriptions Gordon laid out providentially pointed to Crossway and the Moser family (even though that was not his intent).  It was clear that if God was in a Crossway “re-plant” of Living Water, it would need to be a completely fresh start . They would need to adopt Crossway’s Policy Manual, fully embrace Crossway’s DNA, establish a new elder-lead church polity (previously congregational), and fully embrace all new Crossway pastors/leaders.

On May 23rd through many twists and turns, ups and downs, Living Water voted to be restarted/replanted by the Crossway Network with a pastor team of Rob Moser, Dan Harty, Aaron Santini, with close advisory from Clark Richardson.  

We can’t help but be in awe of the sovereign hand of our Lord in bringing the Moser family to East Greeley and Gordon Penfold to Windsor Community in order for Living Water to come alive to shine and share the Good News in East Greeley.  Greeley has been on the church planting radar of Windsor Community and the Western Region for a couple of decades. In fact, we planted Crossway Chapel Greeley in 2006.  This church thrived as a disciple-making church for a number of years, but unfortunately unaffiliated with Crossway and then eventually closed their doors in 2016.  It was hard to understand what the Lord was doing through this painful plant, but as a church and a Region we have learned a ton while trusting in His good will and purposes. 

Now after planting a healthy core group in Greeley on Easter Sunday (Redemption Church of Greeley), by God’s grace we have two disciple-making churches in Greeley to advance Christ’s Kingdom! 

This “re-plant” is sponsored by Windsor Community Church and The Crossing Church, and will be led by Rob Moser with Dan Harty and Aaron Santini serving as interim elders until a functioning plurality can be established.  Sean and Katie Hawley (Sean is a recent PLI graduate from Redemption Loveland) is also being sent to be additional “boots on the ground” with Rob and Mauri Moser.

There is a lot to do in order to see this church replanted and impactful in East Greeley. Please pray for the team and by all means seek the Lord and process with your pastors if God might even be leading you to serve with this “new” work in the season to come. Living Water’s first official service as a Crossway Network church is Sunday, June 6th.

Note: Crossway Network’s website will be updated with both new Greeley churches, Redemption Church, Greeley and Living Water, as the ministries progress further and we know more about actual locations, websites, and social media pages.

Dan Harty