Dear WBC family,
After 20 years of faithful service on our staff, Scott Landon will be retiring on April 17. On behalf of myself and the Elder Board, we want to thank Scott for his work and accomplishments at Wheaton Bible Church—but even more than that, we want to thank God for the gifts and talents He gave Scott to serve our church. As I reflect over these years that I’ve served alongside Scott, I see a man after God’s own heart—a man who puts God first, a man who is wise and prayerful, who has faith and not fear, a man who serves his wife, his family, and his church, a man who has sacrificed for missions and for the purposes of being generous to the church, and a man who has led well and finished well.
Our Elders shared that Scott’s “stewardship fingerprint” is on nearly every facet of our ministry—generosity, finance, missions, human resources, building operations, communications, legal, etc. In the time Scott has been overseeing our finances, we have raised $19 million to build a new church campus, relocated, and paid off $20 million in debt—all while growing our staff and increasing our giving to missions. Scott is leaving us with a unique and strong stewardship legacy and model that will carry us forward in God’s call for Wheaton Bible Church.
When Scott started at WBC, he coordinated the generosity initiative to mobilize staff and lay leaders to raise money, sell existing properties, and finance the new church building. The relocation process required a great deal of prayer for unity in our church family. Scott said it’s been a joy to think about our vision and how God fulfilled that vision. He shared that over the years, we’ve been blessed with incredibly gifted Elders and staff. Especially close to Scott’s heart has been our multi-faceted missions focus which changed and grew over the years—our work with Strategic Indigenous Leaders, our partnerships with Outreach Ministries, Hope Kenya, Parklands Baptist, and World Relief, to name a few. Scott also assisted with the creation of Local Outreach ministries and Puente del Pueblo. In recognition of all of this, Scott signs his communications with “in his grip”—the best place to be.
Scott will be greatly missed on our staff. He has been a leader, an encourager, a confidant, an advisor, a friend, and an example to all of us in how to live a wise and godly life. And through all that he has accomplished here in the last 20 years, he has given God the credit.
We will be recognizing Scott on Sunday, April 7 during all services. Scott and his wife, Sue, will be available to greet people in the Atrium on Sunday, April 14, between services.
-Pastor Hanibal
Scott’s reflections on his time at WBC
“Since being called to serve on the church staff in 2003, it has been a privilege and a blessing to be intimately involved in the day-to-day operations of our church as I served my Senior Pastors – Rob and Hanibal, the church staff, the Board of Elders, and the church family. I am humbled to have had a front row seat to see the Spirit of the living God move in and through His people. This role enabled me to use my talents and abilities as well as sending me to my knees when we encountered opportunities and challenges we had not faced before. I love His church and I am so grateful to have been able to fulfill my missional purpose to glorify God by providing God-honoring, servant leadership that brings others into a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ. Thank you for the honor of serving.”
I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you all have fellowship with me in grace. –Philippians 1:3-7