Leadership
NJCC has and is blessed with outstanding men and women of God who serve sacrificially, providing the type of leadership which fulfills the guidelines given us by the Lord. Larry Arendas, who served as the senior pastor for the first 29 years, now serves as NJCC’s apostolic covering and serves the church body at large through trans local ministry.
The NJCC Eldership is:
• Sr. Pastor Doug & MaryBeth Linser (serving in eldership since 1987)
In 1976, Doug’s family moved to West Windsor, New Jersey, from Cincinnati, Ohio. Very shortly after that, just prior to his 13th birthday, Doug attended a youth retreat sponsored by NJCC. While at that retreat, he invited Jesus into his heart to be his Lord and Savior. At the same time he immediately received the baptism of the Holy Spirit even though he had no prior knowledge of this incredible gift! While attending West Windsor Plainsboro High School, he had what would best be described as an on-again, off-again relationship with the Lord— at times, feeling very close, and at other times seeking to be like other typical kids. After entering the University of Hartford, he remained loyal to the Lord only a short time before falling to the typical college male lifestyle.
Somewhere, towards the end of his senior year, Doug knew the Lord was pulling on his heart. At the time he was in a serious relationship, and had come close to renouncing the Lord to convert to Judaism, his girlfriend being Jewish. It was here that Doug prayed what he calls a desperate and wimpy prayer: “Lord, I don’t have the guts to break off this relationship, but if this is really you pulling on my heart, I give you the right to mess with my life and do whatever you want with me.” Within a very short time, the relationship ended and Doug moved back to NJ convinced there was only one way to live – for Jesus!
He submitted himself to Pastor Larry Arendas and did whatever he was asked to do. Whenever there was a meeting, service, or work day, Doug was there. Within a year and half, he had met and married his wife, MaryBeth, and was also functioning as an Elder in the church. In 1989, at the age of 25, he was ordained as one of NJCC’s Pastors. Since that time, he has faithfully served NJCC as a Pastor, and for 17 years, also functioned as the worship leader. During this time, the Lord used the business world as a training ground for leadership in the church. He held positions of increasing responsibility for The Alexander Group, Bell Atlantic, BOC, Rhone Poulenc, and lastly Rhodia, a large French chemical company, where he was a director of human resources reporting to a company president. In 2000, he stepped away from secular employment to be set in place as the Senior Pastor of NJCC.
Doug can best be described as a worshiper with a pastor’s heart who uses the gifts of the Holy Spirit in a truly Spirit-led ministry. He has a strong desire to see men rise up and fulfill their Godly destiny. Doug has a passion for Jesus and cries out for the church to share God’s light and compassion, taking New Jersey for the Kingdom of God!
Doug has had the awesome honor of serving the Lord in the same congregation for over two decades, and serving the Lord abroad in France, Guatemala, El Salvador, Peru, and China, along with various places in the US. He is also extremely blessed to serve the Lord with his wife MaryBeth, their five children, and many faithful men and women of God. Pastor Larry and Carole Arendas have faithfully raised him up in the faith and entrusted him to go and do the same with others.
Eldership
- Pastor Larry & Leslie House (since 1991)
- Pastor Wayne & Christina Lebak (since 2005)
- Pastor Steve & Cathy McCrum (since 2005)
Deaconate
- Frank & Phyllis Horner
- Andres & Heather Berrio
- John Fazekas
- Paula Ford
- Tim Harper
- Kevin & Kathryn Hirschfeld
- Clare Lebak
- Barbara Merkin
- John Schimenti
Praise & Worship Leader
- Chris Dickson
Cell Leaders
- Keith & Teresa Axsom
- Eric & Lisa Chasko
- Tim & Karen Harper
- Frank & Chris Sasso
- Hildegard Tamutus
Office Manager
- Dottie Schimenti