OUR VISION
DEVELOPING LIFELONG FOLLOWERS OF JESUS
OUR STAFF
TIM PEACE
Lead Minister
Tim joined the Markle staff as the Lead Minister in April of 2022. Tim and his wife Angie have a son named Leonidas. They also have two dogs. Tim holds a B.S. in Preaching Ministry and a Master of Arts in New Testament Studies from Cincinnati Christian University. He is currently a PhD Candidate at Radboud University in Nijmegen, Netherlands.
DEEDA LEFFERT
Ministry Assistant
Deeda joined the staff as Ministry Assistant at MCC in 1997. She and her husband Jimmy have two children. She holds an Associate of Arts degree in Christian Education from Cincinnati Christian University and an Associate of Science degree in Paralegal Technology from Ivy Tech in Fort Wayne.
NATHAN PALMER
Administrative Minister
Nathan has served at MCC since January of 2002 and oversees all aspects of our building and grounds including our information technology and protective ministries teams. Nathan manages our worship technology and oversees all aspects of our church online experience and website. He and his wife Nikka have three kids. Nathan holds a B.S. in Youth Ministry and an M.A. in New Testament from Cincinnati Christian University.
NICK RIDENOUR
Student Minister
Nick joined the MCC staff in May of 2020 after serving as Student Ministry Intern in 2017. He currently oversees all programming for middle school & high school students, as well as our Young Adult Ministry. Married to Hannah, Nick holds a B.A. in Bible & Theology and Preaching & Youth Ministry from Johnson University.
SAMANTHA OAKLEAF
Children’s Minister
Samantha joined the staff of MCC in January 2021 with the primary responsibility of overseeing all ministry and programming for children from birth through 5th grade. Samantha and her husband, Shane, have been members of MCC since 2013. They have five children. Samantha holds a BS in Biology and Chemistry from Milligan University.
CORBIN LANTZER
Worship Minister
Coming soon…
EUNICE YOUKEY
Ministry Assistant
Eunice has served in the office part-time at MCC since 2015.
TYLER BROWN
Worship Leader
Tyler grew up at MCC and has been leading worship part-time since 2002. He and his wife, Katie, have two boys. Tyler works full-time at Reusser in Roanoke.
OUR MISSION
LOVING THE LOST, MAKING DISCIPLES, SERVING OTHERS
OUR ELDERS
BLAKE CALEY (chairman)
Blake is currently serving his third term as an Elder at MCC. He and his wife Peggy have two grown children. Blake is a former Financial Adviser with Edward Jones in Fort Wayne.
MARK WOLF (vice-chair)
Mark and his wife Emilie have three grown children and has recently retired as the Senior Vice President at First Farmers Bank & Trust. Mark is a lifelong member of MCC.
KURT GRAY (secretary)
Kurt began serving as an Elder at MCC in January of 2019. He co-leads an ABF class and oversees MCC’s lock-up ministry. He and his wife Donni have two grown children.
DERON OVERHOLT
Deron began his first term as an Elder at MCC in January 2020. He and his wife Marla have two adult daughters and one grandson. Deron works at LH Carbide in Fort Wayne and is a lifelong member of MCC.
DREW SMITH
Bio coming soon…
JIM PAUL
Bio coming soon…
OUR CORE VALUES
"The Bible Is Our Final Authority"
"Cultivating Christ-Like Maturity Through Small Groups"
"Partnering With Parents To Raise Lifelong Followers Of Jesus"
"Stewarding Our God-Given Talents And Resources To Serve Others"
"Called By God To Actively Engage In Mission"
OUR HISTORY
Markle Church of Christ was established in 1878.
Throughout the course of our rich history, MCC has strived to be a church led by the Spirit of God for the good of His people. For more than 140 years men and women have gathered together to worship and learn and serve together. As we have grown and transitioned through multiple buildings on multiple properties, one thing has remained the same--our unyielding commitment to seeing the Kingdom of Heaven realized in Markle and around the world.
OUR BELIEFS
Markle Church of Christ is a non-denominational, independent Christian church.
About God - God is the Creator and Ruler of the Universe. He has eternally existed in three personalities: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. These three are co-equal and are one God.
About Jesus Christ – Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Jesus lived a sinless human life and offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all people by dying on a cross. He arose from the dead after three days and He ascended to Heaven's glory and will return again someday to earth to reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
About the Holy Spirit - The Holy Spirit is present in the world to make men aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He also lives in every Christian from the moment of salvation. As Christians, we seek to live under His control daily.
About the Bible – The Bible is God's Word to us. God inspired the autographs (original writings) of the Scripture and those autographs were consequently without error. We accept the Bible as the final authority for all matters of faith and practice.
About Human Beings – People are made in the spiritual image of God, to be like Him in character. People are the supreme object of God's creation. Although every person has tremendous potential for good, all of us are marred by an attitude of disobedience toward God called "sin." This attitude separates people from God and causes many problems in life.
About Salvation – We believe that the Bible teaches that salvation and the forgiveness of sins is a free gift to us but that we must accept it. We believe the Bible teaches that one receives God's grace by putting faith in Christ, repenting of sin, confessing Christ, and being immersed into Christ--but that none of these is sufficient in and of itself for the assurance of salvation.
About Eternity – People were created to exist forever. We will either exist eternally separated from God by sin, or eternally with God through forgiveness and salvation. To be eternally separated from God is Hell. To be eternally in unison with Him is Heaven. Heaven and Hell are real places of eternal existence.