Get To Know Us

Our Mission & Vision

We call our vision at Ponderosa a 3D Vision–“Developing Devoted Disciples.” In three words it explains the commission given by Jesus to the church.  It involves bringing people to the Lord through evangelism and helping them grow in the Word through edification. The mission of Ponderosa Bible Church is to love God, to love others, and to magnify the name of Jesus Christ.

 

What we believe:
 

HOLY SCRIPTURES

We believe that the Bible is God’s Word, inerrant in the original documents, that it was written by men divinely inspired and that it is the supreme, infallible authority in all matters of faith and conduct (II Tim. 3:16-17; II Peter 1:21.)

 
THE TRINITY
We believe in the Trinity, i.e., one God existing in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, but One in essence and all having the same attributes and perfections. (Gen. 1:26; Deut. 6:4, Is. 45:22; Matt. 3:17, 28:19.)
     1. We believe in God the Father, perfect in holiness, infinite in wisdom,
measureless in power, the Creator of the universe and of all things. We rejoice that He concerns Himself mercifully in the affairs of men, that He hears and answers prayer, and that He saves from sin and death all who come to Him through Jesus Christ. (Jer. 33:3; Rom. 6:23; 10:13.)
     2. We believe in Jesus Christ, the eternal and only begotten Son of God, conceived of the Holy Spirit, of Virgin Birth, sinless in His life, making atonement for the sins of the world by His death and shed blood on Calvary’s cross. We believe in His bodily resurrection, His ascension and visible, personal return to the world according to His promise. (Is. 7:14; Matt. 1:18-25; Luke 1:26-38; II Cor. 5:21; I Pet. 1:18-19; 2:24; John 20:24-29; Acts 1:9-11; John 14:3; Titus 2:13-14.)
     3. We believe in the Holy Spirit who came forth from God to convince the world of sin, of righteousness and of judgment; and to regenerate, sanctify and comfort all those who believe in Jesus Christ. (John 14:16-17; John 16:7-14; Rom. 8:14-17; Ephesians 1:13-14.

 

SIN, SALVATION AND ETERNITY

We believe that all menby nature and by choice are sinners (Rom. 3:23), but that “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16). We believe, therefore, that those who receive Christ as Lord and Savior will rejoice forever in God’s presence (II Cor. 5:8), and those who refuse to receive Christ as Savior and Lord will be forever separated from God. (Rev. 20:11-15). Those who receive Christ as Savior are kept by His power eternally. (John 10:27-28; Rom. 8:38-39). The punishment of unbelievers and the rewards of the righteous are both everlasting and conscious.

 

THE CHURCH AND ORDINANCES We believe in the church, a living spiritual body of which Christ is the head and of which all regenerated people are members. We believe that a local church is a company of believers in Jesus Christ, immersed on a credible confession of faith, and associated for worship, work and fellowship. (Rom. 12:5; Col. 1:14-18). We believe that to those local churches were committed, for perpetual observance, the ordinances of Baptism (Matt. 28:19), and the Lord’s Supper (Matt. 26:26-30).

     1. Baptism by immersion is a public confession of Christ as Savior and Lord; it is the symbol of one’s union with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection. (Rom. 6:3-6).

     2. The Lord’s Supper should be observed by all believers and symbolizes the death of Christ for the remission of sins and our continual dependence upon Him for our sustenance. The Lord’s Table is open to all believers who are in right relationship with God. (I Cor. 11:23-28).

 

SEPARATION FROM THE WORLD

We believe in separation from the world unto Christ. Since our Christian citizenship is in heaven, as the children of God we should walk in separation from this present evil world, having no fellowship with its evil ways, (II Cor. 6:14-18), but are to be salt and light [in the world but not of the world]. (Matt. 5:14, 16).

 

INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITY AND CHURCH AUTONOMY

We believe that every human being is responsible to God alone in matters of faith (Rom. 14:12), and that this church is autonomous and free from interference by any ecclesiastical or political authority; that church and state must be kept separate as having different functions, each fulfilling its duties free from the dictation of the other. (Matt. 22:21; Acts 4:19, Acts 5:29; Rom. 13:1-7). We believe in the independence of the local church and also our interdependence in the body of Christ.

 

OUR ASSOCIATION

Ponderosa is associated with CBAmerica through Southwest Church Connection. Southwest Church Connection is a network of over 100 churches of all sizes throughout the southwest. We are connected by our shared values and beliefs which are Gospel focused, mission driven, grace infused, Bible centered, relationally committed, and culturally inclusive. 

Our Staff Team

Our leadership team recognizes the authority of God, and realizes that we are shepherds who serve under the Chief Shepherd, Jesus Christ. We desire to devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the Word. Our passion and goal is to equip the believers for the work of the ministry until we all attain maturity in the fullness of Christ.
 

Dr. Joe Falkner, Senior Pastor

How long have you been a part of PBC?

– Sharon & I have been with the PBC family since January 2005

What is your favorite part about your ministry position at PBC?

– My favorite part of the ministry is still teaching preparation.

What is one book you think everyone should read (besides the Bible)?    

– The Applause of Heaven by Max Lucado, or any of his books really.

What do you enjoy doing outside of work/ministry?

– Outside of my ministry at church I also believe I have a responsibility to my family and especially to my grandchildren. I try to purposefully insert myself into their lives to encourage them in godliness. In addition, I love gardening!

 

Jamil Calero: Spanish Ministry Pastor

How long have you been a part of PBC?
– Since September 2017

What is your favorite part about your ministry position at PBC?

– Every person from PBC, because they are a loving and caring community.  We are an imperfect people with an amazing God.

 What is one book you think everyone should read (besides the Bible)?

– First Things First by Steven Covey. The book starts with the question,
What are the three things that really matters? It’s a great book with a business approach which I highly recommend.

What do you enjoy doing outside of work/ministry?

– I am happily married to Malissa, a native from Utah. We both enjoy working out, hiking, traveling, racing and trying international foods. I love adventure with her.
– I like coffee, graphic design, and photography. I love being a pastor/shepherd/teacher here at PBC and the Hispanic community and I am humbled by getting to witness God do amazing things in peoples’ lives. Our motto this year is, “Earn, Learn and Return”.

 

Seth & Bethany Cooper 

Seth is our intern for youth ministries and his wife Bethany will be working with him. 
 

How long have you been a part of PBC?

-Partially since July 2018 when I helped my parents move to Payson, and I had been helping with worship every now and then while I lived in Flagstaff during the 2018-19 school year attending Northern Arizona University.

-Fully since May 2019; Staff since November 2019.

What is your favorite part about your ministry?

-I love helping out with the youth! I have a calling to help our youth because they are our future, and I want to make sure they learn about God and how to live in a broken world that only tries to make it worse. By helping raise our future generations, I hope to help them be able to overcome anything with knowledge and will, as well as be strong in the Lord so that they know what is wrong with the world and fight against those who seek to make it worse. 

What is your favorite band(s) and kind of music?

-I love rock music, and I love contemporary worship. With rock, I love bands such as Skillet and Flyleaf/Lacey Sturm; both consisting of strong Christian leaders who inspired me to use music for the glory of God and reach out to the lost and broken. With contemporary worship, this is how I truly worship with all my heart! I was truly saved and finally committed myself to the Lord because of worship (specifically the song “How He Loves”). Growing up with the Vineyard, I learned the power of the Spirit in worship and how He can just bring us to our knees and bring us to the majesty that is our God. Because of this, I seek to lead worship in any way I can so that I can bring the Holy Spirit down into the hearts of all who worship with me, just so maybe one person can find God or maybe find God again for those who once believed and lost their way. Worship is meant for us to open our hearts to let the Spirit in and let us dig deep; for us to let God work and move in us; to break us and shape us anew in the glory of God. All glory and honor to God!

What do you enjoy doing out of work/ministry?

-I enjoy helping others, as well as teaching and leading others. Like Moses, I struggle with public speaking but I rely on God and embrace His calling for me and do it anyways knowing God has my back and will help me learn and grow. And in my introverted-ness and passiveness, my passion for music and worship leads me to trust in God to help me lead with authority and wisdom. As I said in the last question, it is my hope that just one person will find God or find God again through worship, so I must provide the best Spirit-filled worship environment that I can for them to be able to truly open up their hearts for God to work in their lives. At the same time, to worship for myself even if no one else does because as a worship leader, I worship even if it is just an audience of one: God. And as a worship leader, I try to raise others who aspire to and have a passion in leading worship to worship with all their hearts even if God is the only one listening, and even if only one person is saved. God loves it when we worship, and if just one person can be saved, then it was worth it no matter how long it took and no matter how hard it was to do.

But despite what I do or what anybody does, may all glory and honor go to the one true God above all, and creator of all! And let God’s will be done.

 

Gwendolyn Kruppenbacher: Administrative Assistant

How long have you been a part of PBC?

– Since September of 2016

What is your favorite part about your ministry position at PBC?

– Having the opportunity to meet and help people, making real connections

What is one book you think everyone should read (besides the Bible)?

“Pilgrims Progress”

What do you enjoy doing outside of work/ministry?

– Play musical instruments, go hiking, or play games

 
 
Bernice York: Church Office Secretary

  How long have you been a part of PBC?

  – Since 5/2017; involved in Children’s Ministry since 10/2017 in office part time since 2/2019

 What is your favorite part about your ministry?

 – Getting to know more of our church family here has been such a blessing to me.

What is one book you think everyone should read besides the Bible?

– One of my favorites is Billy Graham’s autobiography.  Godly advice on living, something everyone can learn from.

What do you enjoy doing out of work/ministry?

– I love decorating, I enjoy gardening but haven’t been able to much of that in the few years.  I enjoy riding the Harley with my husband and look forward to more time exploring areas nearby Payson with my husband in the jeep.  

 
 

Michael Hughes – Church Administrator

How long have you been a part of PBC?

– Since 2009

What is your favorite part about your ministry position at PBC?

– Working with the people here and seeing all the wonderful ways that God works in all our lives. 

What is one book you think everyone should read (besides the Bible)?

– For working together in church ministry, it would be Sticky Teams by Larry Osborne.

What do you enjoy doing outside of work/ministry?

– Gardening in the yard with my wife Deborah and taking care of our pets.