Christianity is not a solo act. While we often speak of our "personal" relationship with God, we must not ignore the necessity of our "corporate" relationship with God. Although that phrase may sound strange, the Bible is clear that much of what the Lord longs to give to His people only comes through the avenue of relationship with other believers. God intentionally created us to be interdependent.
That interdependence cannot be fostered in a church service. This is why Heartland has Life Groups. The groups are patterned after the Acts 2 model used by the early church: "The believers devoted themselves to the apostle's teaching, fellowship, the breaking of bread, and prayer." Life Groups consist of 10-15 people who meet in a host home for food, fellowship, teaching, discussion and prayer.
If you call Heartland your home, we want to invite you to join one of our Life Groups - this is your opportunity to go deeper with God by going deeper in relationship with His people.
ARE YOU READY FOR REAL LIFE - TOGETHER?
Life Group Leaders
Jeff & Abby White
Location/Time: Ankeny, 2nd & 4th Sundays 5-7 PM
Children Welcome
We both grew up in a small community in western Iowa, became high school sweethearts, and have been married for 8 years. We have one two year old son, Titus, and a husky named Boo.They both do their best to keep us on our toes and we love every minute of it. Spending time with friends and family is something we deeply value but we also enjoy helping on the White family farm (row crop), all things sports, food, movies, games, hunting, fishing, outdoors, things that go fast (with two or four wheels), and almost anything in between.
Different seasons of life have highs, lows, and times where we feel stagnant. Because we know God, His heart, and that He has a plan for each of us in this life-a good plan, it brings us clarity, peace, and purpose. The reality is, we lose sight of His plans in the busyness of life. Sometimes we get in our own way and need others to tell us to move aside and sometimes we need others to stand in the gap with us. We’re excited for life groups to foster these relationships and can’t wait to see how God moves!
Dan & Monica Robeson
Location/Time: Maxwell, 1st & 3rd Thursdays 6:30-8PM
No Children
We have been married for 29 years and have been blessed with seven children and six grandchildren, and looking forward to many more! The Lord moved us to an acreage in the Maxwell area 27 years ago, where we have enjoyed raising our children. We are newer to Heartland, and we’re grateful to be here. We believe that real-life connections are essential for encouragement as we hear from the Lord daily and apply the teachings we receive each week. We would love to walk with others in making those connections
Jason & Sarah Balk
CURRENTLY FULL
Location/Time: West Des Moines, 2nd & 4th Sundays 4PM
We’ve been married for just over 2 years and have a beautiful baby girl named Katiya. Our love for Heartland stems from the family that we have gained over the last couple years and the ability to grow and be challenged by the conviction of the Holy Spirit. Our hunger for the word is something that we want to share with everyone the Lord brings to us. What you can expect to get from our group is a place to belong, open up, learn, and express everything you are in Christ Jesus. Proverbs 27:17 says, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another”. Gods word has been and and continues to be the biggest encouragement in the life of our family and we want to see it happen in yours also. We love because he first loved us!
Steve & Karinne Miller
Location/Time: West Des Moines, 1st & 3rd Sundays 5-7PM
We have been married over 12 years with a wonderful blended family of 5 adult children, 1 son-in-law, several "pet-grandchildren" and our older cat Angel. Steve has extensive experience in the banking industry and real estate. Karinne has been called a "spiritual nurse and missionary" by her family and friends because of her quick obedience to the Lord for those in times of need. We are thankful for the calling God has placed in our hearts together for ministry and serving in the the Kingdom. We enjoy hunting, fishing, travel, cooking & coffee.
We value the Word of God and the Leadership of the Holy Spirit. We know how important it is for connection and building relationships. Our hearts desire is for people to know the Father and experience Him. We invite you to join our Life-group, so we can share a meal, study the Word of God, pray, and grow closer to the Lord and to one-another in a safe-loving atmosphere.
Jesse & Jade Guilford
CURRENTLY FULL
Location and time: Ankeny, 2nd and 4th Sunday 2-4 PM
No Children
We have been together over 20 years, are a family of 6 and we’re blessed to be a part of the growing community at Heartland. We love God and love people with our whole hearts, and we look forward to making a safe place for others to learn, grow, and be encouraged in their walk with the Lord as we go from glory to glory together. We are passionate for the word of God and his presence. We believe in leading with a holy fear of the Lord, listening to Holy Spirit and pursuing his presence daily.
Larry & Cheryl Schroeder
CURRENTLY FULL
Location/Time: Grimes, 2nd & 4th Sundays 6-8 PM
No Children
We have been married 36 years with two wonderful children and three precious grandchildren. We‘ve taught and coached for 36 years and are currently teaching at Ankeny Christian Academy. We love being outdoors - fishing, hunting, motorcycling, and exercising.
We deeply desire to grow in the gifts of the Spirit, but understand that nothing comes before the Word of God and an intimate relationship with Jesus. We live our lives with the knowledge that through the punishment Jesus took at the whipping post, His sacrifice on the cross, and the fact that He walked out of the tomb, Jesus has given us authority over all the power of the enemy (Luke 10:19). We are passionate about helping others learn who they are in Christ, the authority they have in Christ and how to live in His victory.
Tiffany & Nicole Wuertzer
Location and time: Ankeny, 1st and 3rd Sundays 12:30 PM
Children 12 and over welcome
We are sisters in our mid 30’s who have chose to call Heartland our Home Church earlier this year. We moved to the Des Moines area from different locations to help with a Church plant and once that chapter ended, found ourselves looking for a new Church home! We were born and raised by our amazing, Spirit filled, Bible believing parents, along with our older sister who is now married and has our two nieces, and also with our younger brother who is married to our awesome sister-in-law. We are newly relocating to a home in Ankeny and are blessed to be surrounded by this Church community and ready and willing to open our home up to the Church!
We have very different personalities. Nicole is methodical, merciful, and a great listener. Tiffany is outgoing/energetic, talkative, and loves to encourage others. Both bring a unique dynamic to this group, to be used however God wills. We are blessed to be able to provide a space to grow together as a Church community!
Adahm & Kesley Faehn
Location/Time: Pleasant Hill, 1st & 3rd Saturday 11AM-1PM
Children welcome
In our years as husband and wife, we have seen the Lord work in amazing ways in our marriage. From relocating to follow the Lord, through hard times, and the many seasons of raising children, We’ve seen his marvelous hand take so many bad situations and turn them for his glory. We have seen how his love can change a heart to be fully surrendered and completely immersed in his presence. Our desire is to be able to share that love that the Lord has abundantly supplied in our lives into others, as they fervently pursue him and his promises.
Terry & Liz Johnson
CURRENTLY FULL
Location/Time: Ankeny, 2nd & 4th Sundays1 PM
No children
We have 4 grown daughters, 8 grandchildren, and 5 great grandchildren.
Terry loves fishing, hunting, and travel - Liz loves getting together with people - Terry says she has a coffee ministry!
Kingdom life cannot be done alone!
Erick and Becca Karl
Location/Time: Ankeny, 2nd & 4th Saturdays at 9AM
Children welcome
An endless dreamer (Erick) met a spreadsheet superfan (Becca), married freshman year of college, and made babies about a decade later. Those babies are now 12 and 7, and a little one under the age of 1. Erick has a few thousand hobbies. Becca has no hobbies unless you count organizing family photos into folders on her laptop. But where she under achieves in the hobby department, she makes up for in hard work and dedication to her family. Her realistic and practical take on the world makes a strong tether that keeps Erick in reality.
All oddness and lightheartedness aside, these two (and their kids) love Jesus (and their life in Him). Erick and Becca did the “church thing” since they were young, until a few years ago when Holy Spirit broke through in their lives, leading them on a faith journey that brought them to Heartland Church. Now they do the Jesus thing, finding their identity in Him.
Enrique & Holly Peña
CURRENTLY FULL
Location/Time: Winterset, 1st & 3rd Sundays from 5-7 PM
Children Welcome
We live in rural Madison County, near Winterset on an acreage, where we raised our three children for the past 25 years - we are now officially empty nesters.
We can’t wait to be able to connect with others through these Life Groups. I think it’s wonderful to have more time for closer personal relationships with other Heartland people! We look forward to new friends through these groups.
Gary & Marlene Aspenson
CURRENTLY FULL
Location/Time: Pleasant Hill, 1st & 3rd Thursdays at 6:30PM.
Children welcome
We moved down to the metro area 3 1/2 years ago to be closer to family. Gary enjoys golfing and playing with the grandkids, and Marlene love getting together with friends that like to “iron sharpen iron”, (Prov. 27:17) Prov. 3 verse 5 and 6 is a key verse for Gary as we can not fight our battles alone - we need Holy Spirit’s help and direction. Marlene’s focus lately has been on Phinehas in Numbers. ‘Because he was zealous for his God.’
Ben & Hannah Sander
CURRENTLY FULL
Location/Time: Saylor township, 1st and 3rd Monday, 6pm.
Children welcome
Hi, we’re the Sanders! We have 2 little girls, and we’re passionate about worship, family building, and really good bread. We’ve just moved to the area and are so excited to put work into building the family of God. We’re convinced that the healthy church is the people that truly know each other, and know how to show up with love and intention. This is how we do it!
Jan & Steve Haag
CURRENTLY FULL
Co-Leading with Gene & Karen McGrath
Location/Time: Ankeny, every other Sunday after church
We have been married for 42 years, and are blessed with 4 kids and 9 grandchildren. We’re interested in music, gardening and theology! The Kingdom of God is built on family.
Gene & Karen McGrath
Co-Leading with Jan & Steve Haag
We’ve been married 19 years and have one daughter and two grandchildren.
We love tennis, golf, and biking!
Hebrews 10:25 tells us that when we assemble as the body of Christ we are to stir each other up in love and encourage one another in our faith.
Steve & Debi Banderman
CURRENTLY FULL
Location/Time: Ankeny, 1st & 3rd Saturday 5:30-8PM
Children welcome
We have been a part of Heartland since 1997! We have four children - 2 adult biological sons and 2 adopted daughters, one an adult and one still at home. We are also new grandparents to our first granddaughter.
Steve is self-employed in construction and Debi assists him with the administrative side of things as well as volunteering her time with various outreaches to adoptive families. We love trying different coffee shops, getting together over said coffee with friends, walking together in the evenings, and traveling when we can.
Isaiah 33:6 “And He shall be the stability of our times.” With all the changes taking place in the world right now, we look forward to gathering together and encouraging and lifting each other up, as we collectively focus on the One who is our stability through it all.