CHURCH PLANTING
WHY WE PLANT
The reason Maranatha exists is to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ--and that is why we plant churches. Our cities and towns need the gospel, and the presence of gospel-proclaiming churches. As God as blessed us in our first eight years of being a church, he has also provided opportunities for his congregation to grow by stepping into more areas to tell more people about the good news of Jesus.
WHERE WE ARE PLANTING
CANAL WINCHESTER
We began meeting as Maranatha Canal Winchester in 2022. In the first 3 years, we have seen evidence of God’s grace as He has allowed us to steadily grow and begin to invest and work in the city of Canal Winchester. We are grateful for how he has prepared us to begin this work, and sustained us the first 3 years. Please keep praying for us and for God to continue to be at work in the city and surrounding area of Canal Winchester.
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ETNA/PATASKALA
We are now looking at the Pataskala/Reynoldsburg area because our neighbors, like us, need a Savior. By God's grace, we want to bring a gospel-focused, Word-focused, and fellowship focused community to our surrounding areas. We want to help bring a clear gospel witness, deep Biblical teaching that opens the entirety of the scriptures up for the entirety of our lives, and a noticeable Christian community that shows the love, unity, and power of Christ to those around us. We want to help one another grow, that we would be ready to go and reach our world as we follow Jesus in His Kingdom work.
DAVID APPELT
God moved in David's heart to pursue local church ministry in 2012. As he and his wife were both serving in various roles in the church, God made it clear in 2018 that He had church planting in store for them. God brought them to join Maranatha and they began to experience what life in a church plant was like.
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David was installed as a pastor in 2020. A year later, Maranatha's eldership began to look ahead to a church plant.
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It was clear God had been preparing them to go and serve the community David grew up in, went to school in, lived in and loved. Maranatha Canal Winchester has continued to see God's faithfulness as they teach the Bible deeply and practice meaningful Christian community.
DAN CASE
Dan and Keela Case have been processing the calling to plant a church in the Etna/Pataskala area for the past 2 years. They have been at Maranatha since July of 2024 and have been affirmed by the Elders to plant a third Maranatha congregation sometime in 2026. They have been married for eight years and they are parents to two adopted daughters. Riley age 8 and Ari age 2. They are excited about the work the Lord has been doing during their time at Maranatha as Dan is completing his residency. They currently lead a community group and look forward to continuing to serve the body in various ways.
