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Our council of elders are responsible for the care, oversight, leadership, and shepherding of the spiritual condition and fiscal well-being of the church. RBC elders are men who have been examined and meet the biblical qualifications as set forth in 1 Timothy 5:17, Titus 1:9, 1 Peter 5:1-3, Acts 20:28, and Mark 10:42-45. Along with our pastors, deacons, staff, and lay-leaders, they serve, lead, pray for, and minister to our congregation in word and in deed.

Two candidates, John Smith and Sujay Philips, have completed a year-long candidacy process. As the final stage of that process, we would love your feedback on both or either of these men. If you have affirmations or concerns, please email the elders at elders@restonbible.org.

Sujay Phillips was born in 1971 in Bellary, India. Raised in a loving home, he grew up with a cultural understanding of Christianity. He graduated with a mechanical engineering degree from Bellary. At 23 yrs., Sujay professed faith in Jesus Christ as his personal Lord and Savior by the grace of God under the loving, caring and faithful mentorship of Mr. Janardhan Rao. By God’s providence, Sujay met his wife Leena through his parents, and they were married in 1996. Sujay and Leena have two children, Sheryll and Samuel.

By God’s providence, Sujay came to the United States in the year 2000 in pursuit of a better future for their family. God has been so faithful in providing for their needs beyond measure. The greatest blessing for Sujay here in the U.S. has been the immense joy of knowing the heart of God more intimately leading to a passionate, faithful walk with God. He has been attending Reston Bible Church since 2011 and loves RBC because RBC is a Bible-believing, Bible-honoring, Bible-centered, Bible-teaching church.

Sujay loves God with all his heart, mind, soul and strength and loves his neighbor as himself. His desire is to serve and care, listen and pray, exhort, encourage and build the body of Christ at RBC. His desire is for RBC to be the beautiful bride of Christ where individuals are rooted in Christ, marriages are strong in Christ and families are united in Christ, for the glory of God resulting in RBC being a shining light in our communities.

John Smith grew up in a military family and attended the base Chapel for Sunday services. While he learned a lot about God, it wasn’t until his junior year in high school, after his dad had retired from the military and his family settled down in Washington state, that John’s faith became real. A neighbor invited him to Sunday school where John heard the Gospel, and a short time later, asked Jesus to be his Savior.

John attended the U.S. Air Force Academy and by God’s grace was invited to be a part of a Bible study where he grew in his faith. Following pilot training, John married his high school sweetheart, Jana. For the next 25 years, they moved around the country, including a tour in the United Kingdom, and raised 8 kids, 4 boys and 4 girls. In the midst of this journey, their third child, and second son, Zane, died from leukemia at the age of two.

He and his family first came to RBC in 1995 when John was on a 4-year tour at the Pentagon. John retired from the Air Force in 2007 and is back supporting the Air Force at the Pentagon as a contractor. He has served in various positions at RBC including AWANA, Helping Hands, the Men’s Ministry, Shepherd Groups, and the Deacons.

John is amazed at what happened at the cross where God, who created the universe, humbled Himself by becoming a man, demonstrated His holiness by judging our sin, and then demonstrated His love for us by paying our death sentence Himself, all that we might have the opportunity by faith to restore our relationship with Him.