Reaching precious souls with the hope of Jesus’ forgiveness

Our heart and call is to bring the hope of the forgiveness of sins and life in Jesus to the precious human souls in Ankeny, Iowa. Our mission is to reach the lost by establishing a Free Lutheran congregation where God’s Word is preached and the sacraments are rightly administered. This community of faith will be a place where believers live in fellowship and are equipped to live out their faith right where God has placed them in society.

Planting churches is the single most effective way to reach souls with the hope of Jesus.

With the call of Scripture and 120+ million non-churched people in America, it is crucial that we consider how we can best reach the lost. Statistics show that for every 10 people reached by an established church, 1-2 are unchurched. In contrast, for every 10 people reached by a church plant, 6-8 are unchurched. Church plants are uniquely equipped to reach the un-churched and de-churched in the United States. In order to be faithful to God’s heart for the world, it is right to commit ourselves to invest time, energy, resources, and lives to establishing Free and Living congregations.

Because historic Lutheranism and the AFLC beliefs are…

1. Evangelical
Lutheranism speaks in Biblical terms of Christ and the cross as the place where salvation is won for us and delivered as a free gift of grace through faith.

2. Biblical
Lutheranism trusts and follows the Bible in all areas of life and salvation even when it seems to conflict with our natural reason.

3. Sacramental
Lutheranism affirms the mystery of Christ’s presence and gracious work through physical elements especially in Baptism and Holy Communion.

4. Historical
Lutheranism is rooted in the time-tested rhythms, traditions, and teachings of the church so far as they are not in clear contradiction to the Word of God.

5. Vocation
Lutheranism emphasizes the calling and freedom of a believer to love their neighbor without any notion that it contributes to salvation.

Ankeny is a thriving northern suburb of Des Moines, IA with around 70,000 residents. Its population has doubled over the past 15 years placing among the top 10 fastest growing cities in the US and the fastest growing city in the Midwest. With 75-80% not attending an evangelical church, there is a great need to share the message of salvation through Christ alone. God has used personal connections, prayer, and discernment to lay a clear call to Ankeny on our hearts. A new AFLC church in Ankeny would also serve as a center for church planting in places such as, Ames and Des Moines.

Pastor Matthew and Julia Pillman, with their two children, love people and long to tell them about Jesus. Julia grew up attending an AFLC congregation in northern Minnesota. Matthew grew up near Menomonie, WI also primarily attending an AFLC congregation. After three years at the Free Lutheran Seminary, Matthew served 4 years at Christ the King in Pipestone, MN as Intern and Associate Pastor. We are thankful to transition into church planting with our Pipestone church family as our primary sponsor to handle donations and accountability.

Trinity Church together with church planting pastor Matthew Ballmann have welcomed us to a one-year residency in San Antonio, Texas. We value residency as a time to be equipped for the ministry God is calling us into. Its focus is on developing theological clarity and practical church planting philosophy and skills. Residency will also provide us a great environment to formulate a comprehensive plan for the church plant in Ankeny.

The residency has been fully endorsed by AFLC Home Missions.

Partner with us in one of the following areas to make the Ankeny church plant a reality.

ONE TIME

$3,000 Promotional Mailings

$2,000 Signage

$5,000 Moving costs

$15,000 Sound equipment

$5,000 Technology (projector, computer, etc)

$3,000 Hymnals and Bibles

$1,500 Musical instruments

$1,000 Tables and chairs

$1,000 Hospitality equipment (tent, beverage dispensers, etc)

YEARLY

$3,000 Outreach events

$2,000 Local Hospitality

$2,000 Local Ministry travel

$2,500 Conferences / Training