FAQs

One of Heartland’s core values is to be culturally relevant. Our music, teaching and even our building reflect that value. Some churches have a sanctuary with religious architecture, pews, altar, symbols, etc. We have tried to create a more neutral, seeker-friendly environment. Our hope is that this will help remove barriers and allow people to be more receptive to the message of God’s love in Christ and how he relates to their everyday lives. To do that, we have tried to create an “every day” kind of environment rather than a “religious” environment.

From time to time we do have a cross on the platform. For example, it was there for Good Friday, and it was front and center for our baptism service. It is a powerful reminder of Christ’s sacrifice on our behalf. Sometimes when we see something week after week it becomes commonplace and “ordinary.” Because the cross is not up front every week, putting it out occasionally actually adds to the impact.

It is also important to remember that the symbol Jesus gave us to remember him by is The Lord’s Supper, not the cross. The cross is certainly a powerful symbol for believers, but Jesus never told his followers to adorn the walls of their worship places with crosses or to wear crosses as jewelry to show others that we love him. He asked us to eat the bread and drink the cup of communion as the way to honor him and remember his sacrifice.

One last thought—we don’t think we are right about this and other churches have it all wrong. This is just how God has led us to go about doing things. Remember, Heartland is a different way to do church, not a better way to do church.

At Heartland, we worship together on the weekends and instead of a mid-week service, we meet together in Growth Groups throughout the week to discuss the message from the past weekend and how it applies to our lives, and to pray and connect with each other. We have often said that we believe most people don’t need more information or additional teaching in order to become more fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ, but rather, they need to act on the information they already have. Growth Groups give us that opportunity to interact with the information we already have.

In addition, one of our core values is to give people space or margin in life in order to engage in life with their family, neighbors, friends, school, community, etc. We want you to have room in your life to be salt and light in your world as Jesus said we should be. We offer focused ministries that meet mid-week for four- to ten-week sessions like Marriage Matters & Rebuilders, Becoming, Men’s Fraternity, etc., that provide specialized learning but are not in session 52 weeks a year. Celebrate Recovery does meet every Friday evening throughout the year also.

It’s teaching God’s word in a way that you can understand and then apply to your life. And when you do that, you live life differently than before you heard and applied the teaching. It “transforms your mind and then your actions.”

Heartland’s been committed from the beginning to transformational teaching whether that happens in person or on video. We believe with everything in us that it simply does not matter, therefore we will not be answering that question. Beyond that… we won’t make the decision of where our teachers will be in person each week until the very last minute. When Mike is teaching, he will be teaching at all five services that weekend, some on video and some in person.

Hope to see you this weekend!

Yes. Wireless receivers and headsets are available for our guests with hearing difficulties. Please bring those who need assistance to the sound console in the back of the auditorium. The receivers allow them to control their own volume from wherever they sit in the auditorium.