ABOUT
The Gospel
In our culture there is a lot of “gospel” talk that goes around. “Gospel” is a particular American genre of praise music, often with lots of backing vocals. “Gospel truth” often stands in as a synonym for the truth without guile. Churches compete for the reputation as the most “gospel-centered” group in town while rarely explaining what they mean. All such “gospel” talk begs the question...
Our Mission
Concord Church exists to glorify God by loving, serving, equipping, and evangelizing.
Our Vision
Pressing forward for God’s glory.
Our Identity
We are a congregation of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). To learn more about the PCA click here.
Our Values
Love God
Concord is a church that seeks to love God and our community.
Love Others
Concord works to equip believers for faithful living for God’s glory.
Meet the Team
Brian Sandifer
Raised in southern California, Pastor Brian spent 32 years making northern Virginia his home. As a young man, Brian became a Christian when God called him out of a life of selfishness and pride to repent and serve Jesus as Lord. Eventually, he left a career in information technology to pursue ministry as a vocation. In 2021 Concord called Brian to serve as our next lead pastor. He and his family of seven are excited to serve our community, joining all God’s servants who labor in our Monroe County region. Brian has been a pastor since 2011, works hard to present sermons that are true to God’s Word and practical, strives to be a humble servant-leader, and is a down-to-earth guy who shares his God-given spiritual gifts with the church. He loves Jesus, family and friends, being active outdoors, reading, writing, and baseball. His life goal is to prioritize all those in the right order!
Zach Dean
Zach Dean grew up on a small cattle ranch in the Chattanooga, Tennessee area. He attended Covenant College where he graduated with a degree in Biblical and Theological Studies and Covenant Theological Seminary where obtained a Master of Divinity. He is married to Jéssika, who is currently a Ph.D. student in chemistry at Washington University in Saint Louis. Zach enjoys spending his free time hunting, playing hockey, and reading.
Beth Bicklein
Beth Bicklein grew up in southern Illinois and graduated from Southern Illinois University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. She is married to her high school sweetheart, Jim, the mother of three and their spouses and grandmother to a growing group! Free time is often spent swimming, raising chickens, gardening, and having a lot of fun with family and friends. Her prayer is that God’s kingdom will grow and bless many people at Concord and throughout the wider community.
Tom Jones
Tom Jones has fifty-seven years of pastoral experience. He has served churches in Illinois, Tennessee, and Missouri–thirteen of those years as a church planter in southern Illinois. He worked for twenty-five years as a director for Fresh Start Seminars, an international divorce recovery ministry, and served sixteen years as a pastoral counselor at a church in St. Louis. Tom has taught speech and homiletics at the college and seminary levels. He is an author and an amateur songwriter and singer. Tom and his wife, Reidun, live in Columbia, Illinois. They have nine children, fourteen grandchildren, and ten great-grandchildren. They are tired.
Ruling Elders
Carlo Hansen
Ron Jones
Deacons
Our Key Beliefs
For a more complete statement of our faith, please review the Westminster Confession of Faith, or you may wish to attend one of our Church Introduction classes offered periodically throughout the year.
Email Us
concordpresoffice@gmail.com
Call Us
(618) 939-7116
Visit Us
338 Covington Drive
Waterloo, IL 62298