Sunrise is led by a team of elders, composed of both full-time paid elders (called “pastors”) and non-vocational lay elders. The Bible teaches that the responsibility of elders is to “shepherd the flock of God,” the church (1 Peter 5:2). This responsibility to shepherd takes three primary forms:

Know - The elders are called to embody the love and care of Jesus, our Chief Shepherd. This includes praying, especially for the sick and suffering (James 5:14-15); reaching out to those who’ve strayed (Ezekiel 34:1-6); and dispensing personal instruction and counsel (Acts 20:20-21).

Lead - The elders are responsible for seeking God’s will for how to fulfill Sunrise’s mission of introducing people to Jesus and helping them grow by his grace in each new stage of our life together, and for envisioning and equipping the people of Sunrise to invest their own time, gifts, and abilities in our mission together.

Feed - The elders are responsible for ensuring that the people of Sunrise enjoy sound, biblical teaching, with the aim that each person will grow into Christian maturity (Colossians 1:28) and be equipped to build up the church according to their own gifts (Ephesians 4:12).

Elder candidates are chosen from among men already serving faithfully and caring spiritually for people within the church, and after a period of training and discernment they are presented to the church so that the congregation may have an opportunity to ask questions or express concerns before the candidate is installed as an active elder. Qualifications and “job” descriptions for elders are found in 1 Timothy 3:1-7, Titus 1:5-9, 1 Peter 5:1-4, and Acts 20:17-38.

The elders meet weekly to pray for the church and monthly to make decisions related to the spiritual health and present direction of the church.

The members of the current elder team (pictured below) are: