Together Living the Beautiful Way of Jesus
Northeast Christian Church sits on Stellhorn Road on the northeast side of Fort Wayne, Indiana, where a steady stream of families, young adults, and longtime residents gather each Sunday at 10:00 AM around a single vision: Together living the beautiful way of Jesus for the glory of God and the good of the next generation. The congregation describes itself as a non-denominational community of disciples committed to ancient Christian essentials expressed in fresh, intentional ways.
The Six Values that Shape the Church
Northeast organizes its life around six values, which together function as a kind of congregational constitution. King Jesus comes first: members give their allegiance to Christ as the righteous King whose Kingdom the world is being made into, and they aim to live in the way of that Kingdom. Authentic Relationships follows, with the conviction that forgiven and redeemed people are called to keep showing up with sacrificial love for one another in the messy reality of being the Church together.
Intentional Formation is the third value. The church teaches that disciples are shaped by grace, by the Spirit, and by sustained effort over time, and that the main tool for this is a shared rule of life: a set of rhythms and practices the congregation is learning to adopt together. Joyful Participation calls every person, whether longtime believer or newer arrival, to serve and minister rather than be a passenger. The Next Generation reflects a commitment to deeply invest in children, youth, and young adults by including them, praying for them, and shaping the church's missional focus around them. The sixth value, The City, names a specific love for Fort Wayne and a desire to learn from and partner with the wider Church in the city and beyond.
The Sunday Gathering at 10:00 AM
The church's weekly gathering is simple and intentionally unhurried. Members and visitors meet at 10:00 AM, and the morning combines sung worship, the public recitation of the Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed, prayer, teaching, and the observance of the Lord's Supper. Children from birth through fifth grade attend age-appropriate classes during the gathering, with check-in in the foyer and a Children's Team that walks families through safety procedures and the route to classrooms. Middle and high school students gather every other week immediately after the service, meeting in a trailer on the southwest side of the parking lot for food, community, and teaching that runs to 1:00 PM; upcoming youth dates are listed on the screen before each gathering.
For those who cannot attend in person, the gathering is livestreamed on the church's YouTube channel, and recordings of messages, along with audio downloads, are available on the sermons page.
A Shared Rule of Life
What sets Northeast apart is the seriousness with which the congregation takes intentional formation. The shared rule of life is a set of practices the church is learning to adopt together, summarized in nine commitments: engaging the Scriptures daily, bringing the Good News in word and deed, devoting themselves to prayer, doing meaningful work, entering into meaningful rest, choosing restraint, confessing sins, serving in the power of the Holy Spirit, and doing justice.
These commitments are worked out over the course of a year-long journey called The Beautiful Way, which is the current series anchoring the church's formation work. The Beautiful Way walks through topics such as loving enemies, viewing others rightly, humility, prayer, and serving in the power of the Spirit. Companion formation resources extend the practice across seasons: Consecrated explores fasting as a way to awaken hunger for God; I Believe walks through the Apostles' Creed and pairs with Ben Myers's book The Apostles' Creed: A Guide to the Ancient Catechism; Feast develops a decades-long pattern of engaging Scripture; Bow, Sit, Walk, Run describes the way of Jesus as a counter-cultural life of worship, community, formation, and neighbor-love; and The Good News helps the congregation more deeply grasp and share the message of King Jesus. Other downloadable guides cover the Sermon on the Mount, the Book of the Twelve prophets, Advent, and forgiveness.
Beliefs and the Two Sacraments
The church holds to the essentials of the orthodox Christian faith as revealed in Scripture and articulated in the Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed. On non-essential doctrines, the congregation maintains a unity-in-Jesus posture, committing to boldly hold the essentials, humbly maintain unity on non-essentials, and lovingly live according to their belief statement.
The belief statement walks through God (eternally existing in three co-equal Persons), Jesus Christ (the Son of God who lived a sinless life, died on the cross, rose again, ascended to glory, and will return), the Holy Spirit (present in the world and indwelling every believer, giving spiritual gifts), the Bible (God's inspired Word without error), humanity (made in God's image but marred by sin), salvation (a free gift received by faith in Jesus Christ), and eternity (heaven and hell as real places of eternal existence). The church believes all the gifts of the Spirit still exist today and are to be exercised in love for the building up of the body.
Two sacraments are observed: the Lord's Supper, received in remembrance of Christ's death, and baptism, practiced by immersion as an outward sign of inward salvation and cleansing from sin.
The "Yes" Statement as a Form of Membership
Instead of traditional membership classes, Northeast uses an annual Yes Statement as its form of church commitment. Signers affirm the church's aim, the six values, the shared rule of life, and the belief statement, and acknowledge the two sacraments. The 2026 statement is available for download, and the form is signed online each year.
Community Groups and Life Together
Small-group life is central to the way Northeast practices community. The congregation includes men's groups, women's groups, and mixed community groups that meet on different days of the week across Fort Wayne. Visitors and newcomers can express interest through the Community Groups page and are paired with a group based on their schedule and zip code. Groups gather around shared study, prayer, and the practice of the rule of life in the rhythms of ordinary life.
Ministry Partners Serving Fort Wayne and Beyond
The congregation's love for the city is expressed through long-standing partnerships with ministries doing direct work in Fort Wayne and around the world:
- New Mercies Ministries mobilizes the church to serve the physical and spiritual needs of isolated families, building relationships and providing community referrals that empower families toward stability.
- Juvenile Justice Ministry (through Youth for Christ) places mentors as steady voices and presences in the lives of incarcerated teens in the Allen County Juvenile Center.
- Out of a Jam teaches young people to cook, training and certifying them with skills for the workforce, while running a food saving program that reduces food waste and helps neighbors in need.
- NeighborLink provides practical expressions of God's love to neighbors in need, from yard work and snow removal to wheelchair ramps and plumbing projects.
- Inasmuch Ministry shares the love of Jesus through benevolence: food, clothing, household and hygiene items, bus passes, vital records assistance, and limited financial help for housing and utilities.
- Hope Grafted In speaks up for those who cannot speak for themselves, engaging the orphan care movement through emergency relief, sustainable projects, and sponsorship facilitation.
- Josiah Venture is supported through several missionaries serving in Poland and on the international team, including the Tedder family, the Miller family, Sebastian Michalski, and Mallory Neebes, with the goal of seeing a movement of God among the youth of Central and Eastern Europe.
Leadership and Governance
The pastoral staff is led by Anthony Opliger, Lead Pastor, alongside Holly Parks (Executive Pastor), Hannah Opliger (Formation Pastor), Suzanne Baker (Children's Pastor), Sarah Williams (Children's Ministry Coordinator), Chloe Taylor (Interim Worship Leader), and Edwin Chow (Youth Pastor). Operations are overseen by Angie Parker as Director of Operations.
The church is governed by a body of elders - Anthony Opliger, John Nussbaum, Brad Taylor, and Drew Miller - and served by a team of deacons assigned to specific areas of congregational life: Chris Todia and Melanee Findley (Administration), Melanee Findley (Care), Matthias Haydock (Hospitality), Andy Parker (Prayer), Molly Harmon (Mission Partners), Kevin Neebes (Groups), and Rashelle Thoms and Austin Thoms (Stewardship).
What to Expect on a First Visit
Visitors are invited to park and enter through the door under the carport. The welcome team greets arrivals, points them to the coffee, and helps them find their way around. Children's check-in takes place in the foyer, where the Children's Team collects family information, explains safety procedures, and walks parents and children to their classrooms. Those unable to attend in person can watch the livestream on YouTube.
Weddings and Facility Use
Northeast opens its building for weddings and other approved events. The wedding fee of $950 includes use of the facility over two days, cleaning before and after the event, an A/V specialist, and a facility coordinator; officiant fees are separate. The full rules cover building access, audio/video use, decorations, an alcohol- and marijuana-free policy, and a $200 deposit, with $100 refunded after the event. Rental requests for the building are handled through the Facility Request Info page.
Music and Listening
Music is a regular part of the gathering, and the church has released music projects that can be streamed from the music page. The church also produces a sermon podcast available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, and weekly messages are posted as audio and video on the YouTube channel.
Where the Church Is
Northeast Christian Church is located at 4900 Stellhorn Road in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and can be reached by phone at 260-486-1272 or by email through admin@nefw.org. A standing weekly newsletter, The Northeast News, can be signed up for from any page on the church's site, and prayer requests can be submitted through the Prayer Requests page.