Leadership Structure

The Elders
They are known around Harvest as the E-Team. Harvest is governed by the leadership of the Lord Jesus Christ who is the head of the Church. The Elders are the pastors of the church responsible for the teaching and oversight of the ministries of Harvest. Harvest has Vocational (Paid) Elders and Non-vocational (Volunteer) Elders.

At Harvest, we believe the terms “Elder” and “Pastor” are interchangeable. Both vocational and non-vocational elders are responsible to prayerfully lead the church to grow the health and size of God's church everywhere. Each member of the Elder team is, therefore, equal in authority.

Our Elders have regularly scheduled meetings. Our Vocational Elders and staff meet weekly, usually on Tuesday to discuss and coordinate the ministry events of Harvest, and to pray for each prayer request communicated to the Church that week.

Deacons
In addition to Elders, Harvest has Deacon positions. These men and women are selected by the Elders and must complete a study of biblical leadership in addition to a period of substantial service with Harvest's ministries.

Harvest believes that the people of God are to be involved in various ministry efforts. The Elders of Harvest, therefore, are invested with the power to delegate or commission members of the church to carry out specific ministries, whether within the church body or for outreach. The Elders and Deacons can also form teams of people to carry out various functions of the church.

Office Staff
We have an office staff which carries out many of the support functions at Harvest during the week.

Ministry Teams
Currently, for example, we have a prayer team, a mission team, an adult education team, a jail ministry team, a women’s ministry team, and many others. For a full list of ministry teams please contact the church office or the web site at www.harvestpa.org. New teams can be created whenever God raises up Harvest members to work in a new area of His Kingdom and Mission.

Conflict Resolution
When facing potential problems within the church, we are committed to dealing with people rather than dictating impersonal policies that attempt to deal with future problems. Our goal is always restoration. The pastor and the rest of the Elder Team care enough to confront potential problems so that peace may be maintained in the body of Christ.

Membership
There are at least three reasons for having formal "church membership."

  1. The concept of membership is Biblical. A member is a “part” of the body of Christ, the local church.
  2. Formal membership is valuable to the leaders of the church as they seek to fulfill their God-given task of shepherding. It is important to identify the core that can be counted on to build and sustain the ministries of the church.
  3. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, experience shows that membership benefits the individual. Recognizable membership is an important step that moves each of us out of the vague clouds of good intentions and into the clear light of committed participation. Each Christian should be an active part of a local church and under the spiritual care and protection that brings. We invite Christians to join us in our ministry, binding our lives and ministries together and committing to love one another in Christian community.

We are committed to having every member of our church being involved in some form of ministry. Harvest Community Church is a place to serve, not observe!

Please take the time needed for you to decide that Harvest is the church you want to be a part of. For membership information, contact us.