Crossroads Wesleyan Church to say goodbye to pastor

Crossroads Wesleyan Church members must wave goodbye to their pastor as God calls him to another church in Denton, North Carolina.
Pastor Alex Gebert, wife Katie and two daughters, Amelia, age 3 1/2, and Carolina, age 7 months, will be moving the end of December.
Pastor Gebert is originally from Easley, South Carolina.
After graduating from high school, he served his country in the Navy as a petty officer 3rd class for six years.
“While in high school, my original plan was to have a military career. I participated in and led various ministries in high school, the Navy and beyond, but God had other plans for my life that I couldn’t ignore,” he said.
Following God’s prompting, Pastor Gebert attended Southern Wesleyan University in South Carolina receiving a Bachelor of Arts in Christian Ministries.
He then received his Masters of Divinity at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky.
In 2018, he accepted his first pastoral position at Crossroads Wesleyan.
“This door (the Imperial church position) kept coming open while others kept shutting, so I and my wife, Katie, moved here in June 2018, and our first daughter was born a month later on the 4th of July,” he said.
He got right to work getting acquainted with the town and its people.
Busy in community
While serving as pastor at Crossroads, Pastor Gebert was very busy and involved with the community.
He joined the Chase County Ministerial Association soon after arriving and has served as its chairman for the last 2 1/2 years.
Pastor Gebert has been leading youth ministry at the church and is involved in transportation of youth to and from the church.
Before COVID-19, he was involved with TeamMates and as a volunteer cook at the community center for over a year, he said.
Pastor Gebert helped start a successful food pantry located within the church. This program is now being run by two church members who are carrying on Gebert’s initial plan to provide free food for any family who needs it.
He is teaching some classes at Mid-Plains Community College in Imperial, including a recent smoking class.
Pastor Gebert is skilled at smoking meats and cheeses. His smoked meat will be missed at church dinners.
While living here, he has put his talents to work as a volunteer judge at the annual Chili Cook-Offs and Smokin’ on Broadway.
In the beginning, Pastor Gebert was instrumental in helping plant the Saved by Grace Cowboy Church in Imperial, he said.
“One of the things I enjoyed doing for about two years was sitting outside 509 Broadway on nice days, drinking coffee and visiting with people on the street. It was a way to get acquainted and reach out to people,” said Pastor Gebert.
He is also currently on the district board of ministerial development, serving as a mentor for people working toward ordination.
Leaving can be hard
God is doing so much at Crossroads, he said.
“Leaving is bittersweet because this church is growing and people are getting involved with different types of ministries. God is at work in this church so it’s hard to leave,” he said.
“God is working through all the intentional efforts of myself and other people to ‘love people the way Jesus loves people’,” he continued.
“My desire is to live like Jesus lived,” he added.
He said God had been speaking to them for about a year, telling them they were going to make a change.
“It became clear to us that God’s fingerprints were all over this decision to move,” he added.
Pastor Gebert has accepted a position in the Denton Wesleyan Church as the assistant pastor.