November 6, 2026
I remember the first time a mechanic talked to me about the importan5:ce of my car’s alignment. I had an idea of what it meant for a car to be aligned, but what I didn’t quite understand was the implications for a car when it is out of alignment. He explained it to me by showing me the tires. When a car is aligned all the tires are pointing perfectly straight as the car moves down the road. However, when a car is out of alignment the front tires are ever-so-slightly turned. Over time, the tires wear unevenly and your gas mileage suffers. The car is still moving in the direction you want it to, but you’re hampered in your progress.
A couple of weeks ago I shared with you the vision statement for White Oak’s five-year strategic plan. Our vision for the overall future of White Oak is still this: Everyone is on the path to full life by discovering their identity in Jesus, being equipped to love, and deployed on mission. This five-year plan focuses our vision and our resources to accomplish our mission in specific ways. The outcome of our plan is simple: White Oak will be…
A multi-site New Testament church fueled by volunteer teams that facilitate formation, transform families, and multiply impact in our communities and around the world.
I’d like to take some time to share with you why being “A multi-site New Testament church” is an important part of our vision.
First, we desire to be a church who is aligned with Scripture. The Bible is the foundation and driving force behind all that White Oak is and all that we want to accomplish.
Matthew 25:14-21 says,14 “Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them. 15 To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. 16 The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more. 17 So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more. 18 But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.
19 “After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. 20 The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.’
21 “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’
God has given WOCC much to steward. Buildings. Budgets. And, most importantly, People. This is why we are working on our governance documents and revision of our bylaws so that the way in which we operate more fully reflects a New Testament model of church leadership. We want to be sure that every aspect of our ministry is set up to steward God’s resources in the most biblical way we know how so that we can obediently accomplish his mission of bringing people to full life in Jesus.
Second, not only is biblical alignment a priority but so is organizational alignment. We take Jesus’s message in the parable in Matthew 25 very seriously. Jesus cares about stewardship toward the goal of multiplying ministry impact. White Oak believes one of the vehicles God has called us to steward to do that is by utilizing the strategy of multi-site. This means we are one church operating in multiple locations.
One of the challenges of a multi-site church is staying aligned. Because we are in two locations with a large staff, it’s sometimes easy to fall into operational and organizational drift. That is, we can be doing ministry for the same mission but not operating with efficiency and effectiveness toward the vision. Over time, misalignment causes drag. My goal over this past year has been and for the next five is to work diligently to bring both our Ross and Colerain campuses (including staff, our congregations, the ministry vision, philosophy, and execution) into full alignment. This reflects good stewardship of our resources pointing White Oak in one aligned direction and by so doing we’ll be set up to multiply our impact in our city and around the world in the name of Jesus!
What can you do to help? I’m asking you to pray for WOCC’s vision. Pray that unity and wisdom prevail. Pray that our congregation embraces the challenges, changes, and excitement for God’s future plans for White Oak. Where you see a need, jump in! Where you have questions, contact me any time. My prayer is that we enthusiastically and obediently step into Jesus’s call for our church to be multipliers of his love, grace, and salvation for the sake of others and for his glory.
Stewarding for God,
Nathan
Nathan Hinkle
Lead Pastor
