On April 26, 2026, we held a special meeting to vote to affirm Steve Welch as our new Senior Pastor. Steve comes with decades of experience in making disciples at Magnify Church, especially in youth ministry and young adults. He has a passion for evangelism, and a deep love for God and His word.
As Senior Pastor, Steve’s focus will be casting vision and shepherding both the staff and Magnify Church as a whole. He will continue to work closely with Stu Quackenbush, who has done most of the preaching at Rockford for the past two years and has accepted the role of Lead Teaching Pastor. Stu will continue to preach at Rockford and coordinate teaching and preaching across all three campuses.
We took a moment to hear from our Congregational Transition Team, whose many hours of work behind the scenes helped ensure this is the best path for our church family. We cannot thank these faithful members enough for their service! We heard from members of the board and from Steve and Stu about how God brought each of them to this moment.
We’re so grateful for the unity that we have in Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit. What a joy to celebrate a nearly unanimous vote of 99% in favor of Steve and this direction. We hope you will join us in person for an installation service for both Steve and Stu Sunday, May 3rd, at the Rockford Campus. We will gather at our Ensley and Northview Campuses for a Prayer of Commitment on Sunday, May 17th with Steve Welch: Ensley at 9am and Northview at 10:15am.
Prayer Focus
Please continue to pray for Steve and Stu and the rest of the pastoral staff and board as they look ahead to leading well in this next season:
- Pray for wisdom and words that courageously reflect the gospel of Jesus Christ (James 1:5, Ephesians 6:18–20).
- Pray for opportunities to make Jesus known in our communities (Colossians 4:2–4).
- Pray for deliverance from temptation, sin, and opposition (Matthew 6:13; 2 Thessalonians 3:1–3)
- Pray for hearts of love and strength, in step with the Holy Spirit (2 Timothy 1:7; Galatians 5:25).
“And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.” (2 Corinthians 9:8)
Together in Christ,
Magnify Deacons and Pastors
