LEADERSHIP!

Meet the dedicated leaders of Greater Grace Word Alive Ministries , including our clergy and staff. Learn about their backgrounds, their roles in the community, and how they are working to serve our 

congregation.

The History Of  Greater Grace Word Alive Ministries 

Very early on in our marriage, my wife Angela and I discovered this undeniable stirring deep within, a persistent pull toward something greater than just business accomplishments.  It wasn’t just a thought, but a steady, growing urge to respond to a higher calling.  As time passed, we found ourselves more and more captivated by the idea of serving others and being a vessel for healing, guidance, and hope in a greater way.  As we prayed and reflected, this sense of purpose became clearer, as if God was whispering directly to both our hearts, urging us to step forward into ministry. Throughout the years, the desire to serve and make a spiritual difference in peoples lives became more evident of the calling that we could no longer ignore.

After Angela and I married in the fall of 1993, I can recollect as far back as 1994 that we began sensing a deep inner desire for ministry. Early on, it was primarily a burden for youth that would be the focal point of that desire. In 1994 we became members of a very structured and inspirational church in Savannah, Georgia (Overcoming Faith Foursquare Church) that was extremely instrumental and influential in helping us to better identify with what we believed was our calling.  The church had great leadership under the Pastor (Dr. Ricky R. Temple) and was thriving extremely well.  So after careful consideration, we both felt very secure with our decision to become members.  Over time, we both began serving as volunteers at OBF ministries for several years, with Angela ultimately becoming a volunteer administrator for the church (which was her background as she served in the military for 24 years).

She later began serving in various ministries such as (Ladies Only, Youth Ministry, OBF Staff Ministry, Wedding/Decorating Ministry, Youth Ministry and Military Ministry).  I also began serving in the Youth Ministry, Young Adult Ministry (Jym Jam), Stewardship Ministry and Men’s Ministry just to name a few.  Although we both served in various ministries early on at OBF, it was the Life Changers College Age Ministry that would sparked in us the vision of beginning a ministry ourselves. It was the Life Changers Ministry that inspired me personally to enroll at Columbia College where I took courses in Psychology, (my major), Bible History and Religion for 3 years and later enrolled at Saint Leo University for 1 year to learn more about Biblical Theology.

Serving in the college-age ministry offered the opportunity for us to make a meaningful impact on young adults during a critical stage of their lives.  It also allowed us to foster community, provide guidance, and help students grow in their faith as they navigate important life decisions.  Additionally, it helped us develop our leadership and mentoring skills while building lasting relationships that encouraged spiritual and personal growth for both us and all the youth we served.

Our commitment to the college age ministry for about 8 years, really inspired us and gave us vision and an ideal opportunity to learn on a lower level what ministry would entail on a higher level.  During those years of service with The Life Changers Ministry, we volunteered to conduct an on campus bible study. A ministry that helped us develop lasting relationships with many of the students that attended. Our service to that ministry challenged us to be more aware of the importance of leadership and sacrifice while serving with passion and compassion in helping meet the spiritual needs of each young adult attended the study.

Angela and I continued to attend and serve at OBF for several years and then the Covid-19 virus epidemic arrived and everything took a major shift.  Churches along with businesses began closing their doors and sadly, the lives of many were impacted and some lost during this epidemic which caused many people to panic and seek spiritual guidance.  During this period, people were in desperate need of hope and encouragement.  Unbeknownst to us, this would become a “great and effectual door” that God would use to bring about something very special that would help promote spiritual healing and wholeness to many in need.

It was during this period that the idea of a call-in ministry was suggested by a family member.  My wife’s sister (Barbra), approached me with the idea that she and another family member was contemplating putting a Bible line ministry in place, but there was a slight difference in both their visions on how the ministry would be implemented.  Although both visions were very inspiring, their views on a timeline of operating it differed. So after much debate, they both decided to follow their hearts and formed two separate Bible line ministries, one for the noon day and one for the midnight. 

I offered to help Barbra with the noon day study as an occasional speaker, supporter and encourager as often as my time would allow.  She, along with my wife Angela, agreed and decided to move forward with the ministry.  So we decided that the name “Greater Grace Words Of Encouragement Bible Line” would be an appropriate name.

Since 2019, and this present day, Greater Grace Words Of Encouragement Bible line has been an amazing source of encouragement and inspiration to so many people. Little did we know that God would use this Bible line as the gateway to Angela and I becoming licensed ministers and consider starting our own ministry.  Although the Bible line was and is still a thriving ministry that continues to impact lives, offering guidance, prayer, and sound scripture teaching, while providing hope and support to those seeking spiritual growth and encouragement, and one that we are still very much committed to, it did not satisfy the deeper longing we had of establishing a church. 

So after nearly 30 years of attending and serving in several ministries at our local church (OBF), with 8 of those years being dedicated to teaching a college age bible study ministry, and assisting other ministries outside of our local church and conducting a Bible line study for 5 years, starting a church felt like the natural next step. 

The close-knitted group that was formed during the weekly Bible line sessions, and has grown in their faith and deepened their relationships, expressed a shared desire for a more structured and communal form of worship experience.  The consistency of studying scripture together, cultivated a solid foundation and the group felt we were equipped to expand the gatherings into regular Sunday services.  So we agreed to start “Greater Grace Word Alive Ministries Inc” which is simply an extension of the weekly Bible line, Greater Grace Words Of Encouragement.

We wanted the ministry to not just be a Bible line teaching ministry only, but also a worship, prayer, and outreach ministry. This offers a more structured and intimate form of fellowship amongst the group. This transition marks a shift from a small fellowship to a more formal church body, united by a common vision to serve God, support one another, and reach a wider community with the love of Christ.

Greater Grace Word Alive Ministries was founded with the understanding of God’s unmerited favor, mercy and everlasting love for humanity (John 3:16). We intend to reflect this throughout our ministry as we seek to fulfill “the great commission” that Jesus Christ has commanded.