Way of the Lord Church has stood on the north side of Blaine, Minnesota, since 1961, when Don and Marty Pfotenhauer first gathered a small community of believers in what was then a growing northern suburb of the Twin Cities. Six and a half decades later, the same campus on 131st Avenue NE still anchors the work, now home to a congregation of about 200 members, a K - 12 Christian school, a Bible college, a prayer room that never closes, and a food shelf that opens its doors twice a month to hundreds of local families. Way of the Lord is best known for its elder-led governance, expository preaching through the Bible, vibrant intergenerational worship, life groups that anchor everyday faith, and a hearty openness to the gifts of the Holy Spirit at work in the assembly.
Sundays at Ten and at Seven
The week gathers around two Sunday services. The Sunday morning celebration begins at 10:00 AM and usually runs until noon, followed by coffee and snacks in the Java Gate. After the announcements - around 11:00 AM - children from nursery through sixth grade are checked into their classrooms downstairs, where they work through age-appropriate Bible curriculum designed to help them become "Biblically fluent" through studying God's word. Visitors can expect exuberant singing, hands lifted and bowed knees, teaching verse by verse through Scripture, prayer ministry available at the front altar after the service, and an atmosphere that welcomes children, students, and adults all worshiping together in the same room.
Sunday evening worship is called Gathering Unto Him and meets at 7:00 PM. The evening gathering leans more deliberately into the model in 1 Corinthians 14:26, where every believer is invited to contribute - a psalm, a teaching, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation - with everything done for edification. The elders describe the service as Christ-centered evening worship focused on praise and encountering God through His Word and the power of the Holy Spirit.
Both services are livestreamed on YouTube, with the live chat open for digital prayer requests and prophetic contributions. Sermon archives and sermon notes are posted afterward for catch-up viewing, and a full Come Discover video series walks newcomers through the church's vision and practices.
Midweek Prayer, Youth, and Outreach
The week spreads out from those Sunday poles. Wednesday evenings gather in two streams: at 7:00 PM, Warfare Wednesday Prayer runs in the prayer room through 8:30 PM. The youth ministry meets on Wednesdays as well; the Youth Leadership Team shares the schedule with families who email in. Friday nights at 7:00 PM, the church hosts its longest-running prayer rhythm, Friday Night Intercession, which also extends through 8:30 PM. The Sunday evening gathering at 7:00 PM completes a three-times-a-week cadence of prayer: Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday.
Local outreach gathers on Tuesdays at 6:30 PM, led by missionaries Colin and Mary Akehurst, rotating between service projects in surrounding neighborhoods and the on-campus food shelf. Every other month, on the third Saturday at 9:30 AM, the church holds Gathering For Going - a Saturday morning send-out designed to mobilize members into practical ministry and prayer. Most holidays still keep the Sunday and Friday meetings going; the only exceptions are Easter Sunday, Good Friday, and the weeklong Christmas and New Year's break.
A House of Prayer That Never Sleeps
The Way of the Lord House of Prayer is one of the most distinctive features of the church. Tucked into the main sanctuary building, the prayer room is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, divided into 24 one-hour prayer shifts that anyone can sign up for - either on-site in the prayer room or praying from home. The current leadership team includes John Zupek and Joey Stontz.
Inside the prayer room, a shift steward is free to worship, pray, read the Bible, study a passage, write in a journal, or press into extended intercession. The vision is plain: "A key thrust, mission, and heartbeat of our church community is connection and relationship with God." Mondays are specifically devoted to prayer for Israel. The week of prayer and fasting begins the first full week in January (or shortly thereafter), and the year is brought in with a New Year's Eve prayer gathering. The 24/7 commitment continues uninterrupted even through holiday weeks, with any changes communicated through the church email list.
Family Worship: Freedom, Reverence, and Awe
Worship is not separated by age at Way of the Lord. Children, parents, and grandparents gather in the same room for both Sunday services. The church publishes family worship guidelines describing its three core values for the gathering: freedom of expression, drawn from 2 Corinthians 3:17; intergenerational engagement, drawn from Psalm 148:13; and reverence and awe, drawn from Hebrews 12:28.
The result is a gathering where visitors can expect to see people of different generations singing together, lifting hands, kneeling, dancing, even crying - all in worship to Jesus. Parents are encouraged to model Biblical worship for their children, and the church extends grace for children's wiggles and small mistakes. The children's ministry exists not to remove kids from worship but to partner with parents in discipling them once the song portion of the service is done. Safety measures include a check-in tag matched to a parent identification number for every child, background checks for every volunteer, and a downstairs classroom wing that opens after announcements.
Children and Youth
Children's ministry is led by Kyle and Ellie Salley and runs every Sunday during the sermon time. Nursery is available for the littlest ones, a Pre-K room serves the next age group, and first through sixth grade meets for Kids' Church with take-home resources for parents - memory verses, Bible reading, and age-level activities to continue the conversation during the week. The team is committed to partnering with parents rather than replacing them, and the church encourages parents to ask their kids on the drive home, "What did God teach you today?"
The youth ministry is led by Sam Mayes, the Director of Discipleship, alongside a Youth Leadership Team that includes Jason Brodin, Brittany Doktor, Talitha Buuck, and Gavin Gillen. Wednesday evenings are the regular youth gathering time; specific dates and activities vary, and families are encouraged to email the youth team for current information. The program joins with the rest of the church in the same discipleship vision - to make disciples of Jesus who make disciples - and routinely draws older students into helping lead worship, prayer, and family events.
Schools on the Campus
Northside Christian School sits at the heart of Way of the Lord's campus and is described by the elders as the largest ministry of the church. The school partners with families to provide Christ-centered learning from preschool through high school, with chapel and classroom life woven into the rhythm of the week. Annual events include Grandparents Day, a Bike-A-Thon, and a fall Gala (in 2026, the "For a Thousand Generations Gala" at the Courtyards of Andover). The school community supports the church's broader family-discipleship vision and shares resources back and forth.
The campus is also home to ACTS International Bible College, a ministry that has sent out many of the missionaries and church-planters now serving overseas. Pastor Lance Wonders of the elder team serves as Dean of ACTS. Students pursue biblical and ministry training in a setting that is itself shaped by the prayer room and the gathered life of the church just steps away.
Life Groups and Marriage Care
Way of the Lord has long held that the Christian life was never meant to be walked alone. Roughly a dozen life groups - the church's name for small groups - meet throughout the area, organized by season of life and focus: all-ages prayer and fellowship, older adults' Bible study and prayer, young families, men's fellowship and accountability, young single women's discipleship, young adults, and mixed adult groups. A separate young-adults group connects singles and recent graduates. Life groups are described as the front line of care and community, where members pray for one another, study the Word, hold one another accountable, and reach out together.
Marriage ministry is a major emphasis of the church, both in preaching and in practical resources. The church recommends an in-person Marriage Retreat hosted by GoFam Ministries at the Wilderness Fellowship in Frederic, Wisconsin, a home-based Love After Marriage eCourse from Nothing Hidden Ministries, a free Love After Marriage Crash Course as an introduction, and Hope Restored intensives from Focus on the Family for couples in deeper crisis. Christian counseling referrals include the Minnesota Renewal Center, Healing Waters Counseling, Steven Wiese Counseling, and Door of Hope Ministries. Marriage is presented in the Statement of Faith as a sacred covenant that mirrors Christ's love for the Church, an image the church says shapes all its family ministry.
The Food Shelf and Local Outreach
Way of the Lord's food shelf is one of its most visible gospel outposts. Housed in a double-door garage on the north end of the property, it operates the second and fourth Tuesday of each month from 2:30 to 5:30 PM, providing food and miscellaneous items at no cost to anyone in need. Hundreds of local families are served each month. The food shelf is open to the congregation on Sundays following the second and fourth Tuesdays, and the church keeps a running list of needed supplies - particularly plastic bags.
The wider outreach ministry follows a simple B.L.E.S.S. framework - a model many evangelical churches use to mobilize believers to bless their neighbors through prayer, listening, eating, serving, and sharing their story. Colin and Mary Akehurst, who serve as missionary evangelists through All Things to All, lead the outreach. Volunteers are regularly encouraged to lend a hand in local service projects and on food shelf days. The church participates in a number of wider Twin Cities initiatives, including the Go Movement, Merge Twin Cities, Revive Minnesota, Love Twin Cities, the Unity Revival Movement, and Bless Every Home.
Health Ministry and the Life Mandate
The Health Ministry, led by Chris Resch, exists to extend the church's care to physical and mental health needs. It is built around listening to people's stories, addressing isolation and loneliness (especially among seniors), maintaining first-aid readiness, and acting as a resource and advocate as members navigate health systems. Its stated desire is to integrate faith into every practical response - what the team calls being the hands and feet of Jesus in a moment when many are dealing with sickness, anxiety, fear, and unemployment.
Adjacent to the Health Ministry, the Life Mandate gathers the church's work for the dignity of life from conception to natural death. The team curates a list of pro-life resources (New Life Family Services, Elevate Life Resource Centers, Live Action, Students for Life, March for Life), encourages fostering and adoption, and partners with a foster-care and adoption ministry led by Linnea Martens and Ellie McCabe. Quick facts cited in the ministry materials include that, in Minnesota, around 10,000 kids are in foster care at any given time, with roughly 185 going into care each week and 2,000 teenagers aging out of the system each year.
Missions to the Nations
Missionaries and ministry partners stand at the center of Way of the Lord's identity. The Apostolic International Missions Team - the AIM Team - is led by James and Diane Weber, with team members including Nathaniel and Esther Buck, Brian Buuck, Hans Martens, and Joey Stontz. The AIM Team partners in prayer, encouragement, and financial support with about seventeen missionary families and individuals serving across the world.
Active partners include Colin and Mary Akehurst (evangelism and discipleship across the USA and abroad), Rachel Anderson (YWAM Grimerud in Norway), Jenny and Sven-Axel Conrad (leadership and reconciliation in Tanzania and Denmark), Nick and Bekah Dimalanta (discipleship and prayer in the Philippines), Irene Farfan (disciple-making movements in Bolivia, Tajikistan, and Central Asia), Tim and Chris Gilmore (Wycliffe Bible Translators in Tanzania and Kenya), Tom and Kate Hess (Jerusalem House of Prayer for All Nations), Chaim Malespin (Aliyah Return Center in Israel), Shad and Stephanie Markuson (pastoral work on the White Earth Reservation in Minnesota), Leighton Nelson (YWAM Impact Philippines), Michelle Owodunni (Source MN in Minneapolis), Tal and Tigi Shefraw (pastoral work among Ethiopian Jews in Jerusalem), Jay and Peg Snyder (Casa de Mana in Somoto, Nicaragua), John and Becky Stontz (YWAM Awake in Blaine, focused on unreached peoples), Diane Williams (YWAM Member Care), and Dena Ziemer (English outreach and church ministry in Japan). Each missionary page invites the church family to pray by name.
Israel and the All Nations Convocation
Way of the Lord carries a deep love for Israel, the Jewish people, and the biblical feasts. Mondays are set aside for prayer focused on Israel, the nation, and the land. The church participates in the All Nations Convocation Jerusalem each fall - in 2026, the gathering is hosted by Tom and Kate Hess through the Jerusalem House of Prayer for All Nations, bringing together worshipers from more than 150 nations for 24/7 Harp and Bowl worship, prayer touring throughout Israel, teaching, prophetic ministry, and prayer for the peace of Jerusalem.
The church also partners with For His Name's Sake (Key of David International) for worship arts and Feast of the Lord celebrations, and supports Beit El Israel, the Ethiopian Jewish believers' church in Jerusalem pastored by Tal and Tigi Shefraw. Teaching in the church has included an extended video series by Joey Stontz on Israel, the Abrahamic covenant, and end-times prophecy.
What the Church Believes
The Statement of Faith is rooted in a high view of Scripture as the inspired and inerrant Word of God, the standard not only for matters of faith and practice but also for questions of science, history, and government. The church confesses one triune God - eternally manifested as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - who is Creator, Redeemer, and Sovereign Ruler.
The Statement also teaches that man is a triune person (spirit, soul, and body) created in God's image; that salvation is offered to all through faith in Jesus Christ and is evidenced by confession, water baptism, and the gift of the Holy Spirit; that God is a covenant-keeping God whose people live in covenant loyalty with one another; that every believer is a priest with free access to the Father through Jesus; and that the Church universal is one body under Jesus' Lordship, while the local church is governed by a plurality of elders.
Other central articles include the priesthood of the believer, the family as foundational to church life, the conviction that marriage is a sacred covenant (with the church standing against divorce except in cases of infidelity or abandonment), an opposition to abortion on demand and to homosexuality, and an affirmation of the Christian/Hebraic worldview that gentiles are grafted into the covenant people of God. The Statement further teaches that the gifts of the Holy Spirit remain valid in the Church (including prophecy, tongues, and healings, operated in love under 1 Corinthians 14:26); the reality of spiritual warfare; the personal return of Jesus Christ; a final judgment; and the three spheres of God-ordained authority: the family, the Church, and civil government. The closing paragraph of the Statement emphasizes that the document is intended as a door, not a wall, inviting conversation with brothers and sisters across the wider body of Christ.
Elders, Deacons, and the Founders' Story
Way of the Lord is led by an elder team, a structure the church has taught on extensively in its vision series. The lead elder is Larry Alberts (with his wife Kathy), working alongside Jake Givand, who serves as administrative elder, and the rest of the team: Hans and Vicki Martens, Joseph and Cindy Stokes, Lance and Vee Wonders (with Lance serving as Dean of ACTS Bible College), Andrew and Britta Anderson, Sam and Jamie Mayes (with Sam serving as Director of Discipleship and leading the youth ministry), and Joey and Nicole Stontz (with Joey leading the worship and music ministry). Deacons include Steve Ackerman, Barb Starr, Doug Weikert, Audrey Halverson, Dominique "Niki" Inoue, and Kyle Salley.
The congregation was planted in 1961 by Don and Marty Pfotenhauer, originally under the name Way of the Cross. The Pfotenhauers later wrote a book, Jesus, Where Are You Taking Us?, sharing the story and history of the church. The elders teach that an elder-led structure is Biblical, wise, and practical, pointing to the team ministry described in the New Testament. Office hours run Monday through Friday from 7:30 AM to 3:00 PM, with phone and email lines open to newcomers throughout the work week.
Honoring the Past, Embracing the Future
Under the banner "Honoring the Past and Embracing the Future," the church is moving forward with the most ambitious building project in its history: a new gymnasium on the campus that would serve both Way of the Lord and Northside Christian School. Elders describe the project as more than a building program - an investment in people - and point to a sanctuary and classroom spaces that are stretched, with more than 160 children and students on campus every week. The new space would be a year-round hub for PE and recess, youth ministry, mid-week outreach, large worship gatherings, conferences, community events, and concerts.
The church has raised more than $1.1 million toward an initial $2.5 million goal; the next milestone, $2 million, will allow the project to break ground. Members are being asked to pray, ask the Holy Spirit how to invest, and prepare to respond as elders share more widely in the months ahead. Gifts are pledged over 24 to 36 months, with online giving available through Tithe.ly, one-time and recurring options, and giving by check, stock, in-kind contributions, and bequests also welcomed.
Whether a family comes for the Sunday morning worship service, joins a Tuesday night outreach, signs up for a prayer shift, drops a child at Kids' Church, or sits down with a cup of coffee in the Java Gate, the rhythms on this Blaine campus are unmistakable: the Word of God taught faithfully, the Spirit welcomed, the family of God formed across generations, and the love of Jesus carried out to neighbors and to the nations.