Stepping away from a lead position is sometimes all about reducing workload. That was the case for Gerry Stoltzfoos, the founding pastor of Freedom Valley Church (Assemblies of God) in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Four years ago he had a motorcycle accident that changed his life.

After a lot of prayer and counsel, Stoltzfoos recently handed the reins of Freedom Valley to his daughter, Candace Pringle.

But that doesn’t mean Stoltzfoos is retired. Far from it. In fact, he serves in a position of pastoral care and leadership development at FVC and still oversees the Freedom Valley Network, a growing group of more than 100 church planters across the nation.

“I am more tuned in to pleasing God than building a big church,” Stoltzfoos says.

It’s the attitude that helped him launch Freedom Valley more than 25 years ago. Within a year, FVC was launching its first church plant from the Gettysburg campus.

Over the years, FVC has sent out many church planters who arrived at its doorstep.

“God kept sending us people,” Stoltzfoos says. “Every church planter came to me. I don’t go find leaders. We’ve always been looking for anybody who was willing to follow Jesus and make Him famous.”

It takes a willing heart and a parenting soul to be so effective. What each church planter needs, primarily, is money. But they also get insight and wisdom from the Freedom Valley team, as well as the experience and expertise to make their own launches successful.

“I am more tuned in to pleasing God than building a big church.”
— Gerry Stoltzfoos

That’s at the core of the Freedom Valley Network.

“Our goal is to find a way to give pastors some connection, let them know they are loved and supported,” Stoltzfoos says.

Church planting can be lonely and often full of incredible challenges. Stoltzfoos says the best thing he and his team do is get together weekly for a Google Hangout. They talk about their churches and talk through any issues they’re facing. Those weekly meetings lead to yearly conferences that provide input, sessions on specific topics, and speakers who provide leadership and development.

Though never searching out leaders, Stoltzfoos is always on the lookout for those God brings his way. What is Stoltzfoos looking for?

“First and foremost, they need to have a passion for lost people,” he says. “This can’t be a hobby for them.”

That, coupled with a passion for the Word of God, is the fuel for church planting.

Another factor is relationship. Finding people to invest in also means finding people you click with. In many ways, Stoltzfoos sees himself as a spiritual father at this point in his ministry.

“You have to have a way to father people on a regular basis,” he explains. “It’s a system, yes. But it’s more than that. It’s a way to love your spiritual sons and daughters.”

Spiritual parenting is at the heart of the Freedom Valley Network. But it’s also a part of who Stoltzfoos is.

“At age 11, when I got saved, very quickly I realized I had a deep desire to help others on their journey,” he says.

That is now being realized throughout the country in many different ways through many different ministry partners. 

This article originally appeared in the September/October 2018 edition of Influence magazine.