Sioux Falls
Church of Christ
What to Expect
WHO WE ARE
Thanks for checking out the church! A little bit about us: we are followers of Jesus Christ who take seriously all that the Bible says. It is our guide first and foremost because it is from God (2 Tim. 3:16-17). When God says something’s important, we consider it important. Because of that we are a church committed to loving God and loving people (Matt. 22:37-39) and reaching the world for Jesus (Matt. 28:19-20). We strive to do these things through our interactions with the people around us and through giving to mission efforts world wide. Our ultimate desire is to be people who are pleasing to God and to try and connect others to Him as well.
MEET OUR ELDERS & DEACONS
Our elders are Gary Styke and Greg Alexander.
Our deacons are each given a specific area of ministry. Dave Custhall is our deacon of missions. Jason Davis is our deacon of worship. Jim Vander Woude is our deacon over the youth ministry and Jeff Elhoff serves as deacon for visitors and welcome.
MEET OUR EVANGELISTS
Clint Giltner serves as our pulpit minister. He and his wife Sarah have three sons, Caleb, Adam, and Simon and one daughter, Naomi. Clint received his Communication Studies degree from Oklahoma Christian University. After college he worked with the Mannford church of Christ in Mannford, OK for 5 years as the Family and Involvement Minister. Clint has a love for preaching the Word and helping others grow closer to God. If you have any questions about the church or the Bible, don't hesitate to let him know, clintgiltner@yahoo.com.
Zack Opheim serves as an Evangelist with a focus on community outreach. He is joined by his wife, Elizabeth, along with their three boys, Isaac, Levi, and Josiah. Originally from Minnesota, Zack and Elizabeth have ministered in Aberdeen, SD and also in Asia. In his free time you might find Zack out on a lake or digging in the garden, but his heart is with the Lord and with His people doing Kingdom work.
WHAT TO EXPECT
If you have never been to worship with us before, here is what you can expect:
PRAYING: We believe prayer is one of the most important things Christians can do. We are called to pray on a regular basis (1 Thess. 5:17) and we know that our God can do great things in the lives of His people (Rom. 8:28). Because of that we spend part of the assembly time talking with God and sharing the needs of the congregation and the people they know.
SINGING: We love to sing! God is worthy of praise and honor and one way He has called us to express that is through singing (Eph. 5:19 & Col. 3:16). Based on the example we see in the New Testament we sing without instruments. Every member is able to share their praise with God and can lift up their voice with others to bring honor to God. The songs are projected on the wall and you can feel free to join in or just listen.
THE LORD'S SUPPER: When Jesus was finishing up his ministry on earth he instituted something that we call the Lord’s Supper (Matt. 26:26-29). During this time we pass around trays with some small pieces of bread that represent the body of Jesus. After eating those we pass around trays containing a little cup of grape juice representing the blood Jesus shed for us. (For more information see 1 Cor. 11:23-26) We do this every Sunday and remember his sacrifice on a weekly basis. Do not feel like you have to participate in the Lord’s Supper. Just pass the tray to the person sitting next to you. This time is for us to focus on our savior and what he did for us.
GIVING: Christians are called to be generous people (2 Corinthians 9:5-11). Every Sunday we give to further support the work of the church. You are not expected to give. We use this time to give back to God because of how much He has given to us.
TEACHING: Each of our services will also contain a lesson of some kind delivered by our minister or one of the men of the congregation. Our goal is to share something of God’s word with everyone who is there. Sometimes it will be a lesson of encouragement and other times a challenge. Each lesson takes what God says in His word and tries to help us put it into practice in our lives.
FELLOWSHIP: Many of our members live in the surrounding communities and so to allow time for us to be together and encourage each other we have a time of fellowship after our worship. Coffee and donuts are served down in the kitchen and you are more than welcome to share in this time with us and get to know us better. The early church made a point of eating and spending time together (Acts 2:42) and we believe this is still important today.
BIBLE CLASS: after fellowship we have Bible classes for every age from 6 months through adult. Each of our classes is geared to helping us grow in our knowledge of God and His word. There is typically a lot of discussion and interaction. We hope you will plan on staying for this part of our service.
ATTIRE: suits and ties or jeans and t-shirts, all are welcome.