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Who is the target group of your church and what do they value? At their core, these are questions that missional pastors ask. Just as the Apostle Paul understood the values of the Greek leaders in Athens (Acts 17:22-24), and addressed Jewish leaders with an intricate knowledge of...
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Text $50 Harvey to 605.789.5550 to give $50 to aid in the relief efforts. Converge Heartland District is responding to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma in partnership with other Evangelicals, including other Converge Districts and the Southern Baptist Convention. Along with many others, our Converge Southwest District churches in...
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120 at River Market Community Church Grand Opening! If John Wayne were telling this story he might say, “This guy has TRUE GRIT!” Jim Hays’ church planting career started several years back when he was a single adult joining the efforts of a former Kansas City church plant that did not survive. ...
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Register Now! UPCOMING WORKSHOP: TRIAGE FOR THE STUCK CHURCH! The most frustrating thing about being stuck is not knowing why, and then not knowing what to do about it. Even the healthiest of churches can get stuck from time to time! While there are lots of important systems in a local church,...
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Today may be the last day of the official “Pastor Appreciation Month”, but we all need encouragement and appreciation year round. Keep these things in mind throughout the year, and especially during the upcoming busy holiday season! Are you caring for your pastor? A significant part of your pastor’s job description involves...
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CONGRATULATIONS TO CALVARY BAPTIST CHURCH IN CAMBRIDGE, NE! It is a wonderful thing when people love God with all their minds, by planning well for their church’s future! This can truly be said of the Calvary Baptist Church leaders in Cambridge, NE, led by Pastor Nathan and Sarah Witt! The Calvary...
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Perspectives on the World Christian Movement has helped thousands of Christians to align their lives with God’s global purposes. The course introduces students to four different vantage points, or “perspectives,” on what God has been doing throughout history: Biblical, Historical, Cultural and Strategic. Join us and experience God’s heart for all peoples...
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Converge Heartland Celebrates the life and legacy of Pastor Al Nasman Pastor Alan Bruce Nasman, age 72 of Hudson, formerly of South Dakota, died peacefully October 21st at Red Cedar Canyon Assisted Living in Hudson, WI. Alan was born August 17, 1945 in Cambridge, MA to parents Harry and Hazel (Hokanson) Nasman....
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Grace Baptist Church of St. Paul, Nebraska, has a serious problem – they are out of space! Over the past two years, the church has grown over 250% and is now averaging between 120 – 130 every Sunday! Through the Spring and Summer, they have literally had Sunday School classes...
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Bethel Baptist Church of Ord, NE Celebrates their 70th Anniversary! The Converge Heartland District congratulates Bethel Baptist Church of Ord on their 70th anniversary! Founded on October 26, 1947, Bethel Baptist originally met in the basement of the local Masonic Temple and became known as the “basement church”. However, it didn’t...
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Twelve. That is the number of attendees in one Heartland church before it recently leveraged all of its material and volunteer assets towards revitalization. This was not always the case, though. During the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s this church ran near 100, which was very strong for the region. However,...
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Converge Heartland recently held church strengthening workshops in Kearney, Yankton, and Omaha. The name of the workshop was “Triage for the Stuck Church” and it was led by Dr. Bruce Hopler, the National Director of Church Strengthening for Converge Worldwide. Bruce did a fantastic job of addressing issues where churches...
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Whether it is prayer, scripture reading, hospitality or meditation, the Spiritual Disciplines make for fantastic New Year’s Resolutions. I think we all come into the New Year with the unspoken resolution of drawing nearer to God. But it remains unspoken because we’ve had the same resolution countless years before, and...
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I was recently listening to the radio when, unexpectedly, the cult-classic song “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” (Daniels, 1979) began to play. Admittedly, I turned it up! As the famous folk song goes, the Devil went down to Georgia expecting to claim a soul through a fiddle competition…until a...
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Photo: (L to R) Jeff Gauss – Heartland Church Planting Director/Grand City Station, Grand Forks, ND; Jim Hays Jr. – River Market Community Church, Kansas City, MO; Tim Brown – Life Church, Fargo, ND; Carlton Anderson – Ignition Church, Bennington, NE (Not Pictured: Jayson Wittrup – Faith Baptist Fellowship Westridge...
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We may not often recognize it, but there are wrong reasons to read and study the Bible. It may seem obvious when stated blatantly, however we hardly treat Scripture reading as something people can approach with wrong motives. And certainly we have never studied the Bible for the wrong reasons. Often...
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Through the Lens of Relational Accountability by Jim Capaldo My family finished 11 years of Siberian missionary service at the end of 2008. A decade later, I have been exceptionally blessed to pastor in two larger churches, serve many mid-sized and smaller churches, work closely with denominational leaders, and to regularly teach on outreach...
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By Jim Capaldo District Executive Minister The Heartland District is filled with the influence of St. Patrick. Whether we recognize it or not, many, if not most, Roman Catholic churches in the Heartland region originated with some element of Irish involvement. Even though Evangelicals and Catholics have some theological differences, Evangelicals should...
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Reading is a favorite pastime of both my wife and I; a pastime that we have passed down to our daughter. From the time she was born we have read books to her. As she has grown, so too have the books. Currently, I am reading through the Chronicles of...