What happens when a vision-driven church rolls up its sleeves to fulfill a God-breathed dream?

A few decades ago, In the small, close-knit community of Aberdeen, South Dakota, a remarkable journey was beginning to unfold. Pastor Devin Hebeisen and his wife, Teresa, originally from Minnesota, had moved to Aberdeen in 1999, driven by their calling to full-time ministry. Pastor Devin began his ministry as a youth pastor at Aberdeen Alliance Church, but in 2006, sensed God’s call to plant a new Alliance church in the community. That’s when The Journey Church was born.

The church started small but with a big heart. It launched a daycare to meet the growing needs of the community, ministering to local children and their parents while also generating income for the church’s expanding ministries, which includes Journey Home, a sister ministry that provides assistance to those going through a variety of economic hardships. As the years passed, the church continued to flourish, and about four years ago, realized its need for a new facility to accommodate its growth and better fulfill its mission to love God and love people. The current building was not only too small but also in poor condition.

 

 

Not Deterred

Since building a new facility from scratch was financially out of reach, the church began searching for alternatives. They soon found a large store building just four minutes from their current location. “It was a blank slate, something we could make uniquely ours,” Pastor Devin said. This new building would triple the church’s square footage, allowing it to expand its ministries and better serve its community.

The church applied for several grants to help purchase the building. When they weren’t awarded all they had hoped for, they were not discouraged, trusting the Lord to provide what they needed to acquire the new space.

Through a loan from Orchard Alliance, the church was able to purchase the building. “We started working on the building the day of the closing. We had prayed for this space for so long; we couldn’t wait to jump in!” Pastor Devin exclaimed. The church also set a funding goal above and beyond the congregation’s regular giving to support the new building project. The small congregation rose to the challenge and exceeded that goal just last month.

 

 

Having operated in cramped, aging spaces for so long, The Journey Church has had grand visions for its new, larger space. It will use the space to expand its daycare ministry, host community events, Bible studies, and outreaches, and serve its community in any way God leads. Renovations are progressing well, and the church hopes to complete the work in time for a grand opening in Spring 2025.

 

 

All Hands On Deck

Pastor Devin’s background as a construction worker, a job he hadn’t particularly enjoyed, now proved invaluable. “We are fortunate to have a lot of skilled people in our congregation. We regularly have 15-20 people show up every Saturday to work on the new building. Because of this, 70% of the project is being completed by our own people,” he said. “While I didn’t like being in the construction business, I can see now that God equipped me with those skills for such a time as this. That’s pretty neat to see.” The new facility will enable The Journey Church to embrace its next chapter of service to Christ with faith, hope, and a renewed sense of purpose. It’s amazing to witness what can happen when a vision-driven church decides to roll up its sleeves and partner with God to see a dream fulfilled.

 

 

 

 

“We are so excited to move into the new space and get up and running. This new building will allow us to grow and reach more people for Christ. We are incredibly grateful to Orchard Alliance for giving us the funding we needed to make this dream a reality,” Pastor Devin shared. “The loan process was quick and easy, and I can’t say enough about how phenomenal Sandy and Fiona were to work with. The new space was an answer to prayer, and we can’t wait to see how God will use it for His glory.”