A Church Home That Builds Leaders

At the start of 2022, Juan Gutierrez needed a church home. A 20-something immigrant from Colombia, Juan grew up in a Christian home, but he admitted his faith was shallow. Now a new resident to Omaha, Nebraska, he wanted to find a place to plug in, but since he primarily spoke Spanish, he struggled to find a church.  

When he discovered Brookside Church (EFCA) offered a bilingual service, he couldn’t believe it. He had no idea this open door would be his first step into deeper, transformative relationship with Jesus. 

Brookside Church at the Millard Campus, formerly Faith Evangelical Free Church, is nestled against Highway 275 and Interstate 80. It’s one of the larger churches in the Omaha area with a second campus (Elkhorn), bilingual service and virtual service inside Douglas County Correctional Center.  

In 2007, church leadership saw clear signs God was deepening the congregation’s heart to serve their surrounding community. Through a partnership with a local intake center, they saw the growing number of children being removed from their homes due to neglect and abuse, and they were heartbroken. They knew they needed to do something to help.  

They started by launching a clothing center for foster families. Along with the intake center, they partnered with nearby schools and a refugee resettlement agency for referrals.  

By the time Juan arrived at Brookside, the clothing center had been operating for several years. He’d plugged into Brookside in other ways first—playing bass guitar for the worship team and helping mix audio—but when friends in his small group asked him if he’d be interested in volunteering at the clothing center, he agreed. He figured it would be easy.  

“I can do laundry,” he said. 

When he arrived on the first day, Juan discovered the job was more than just laundry. He spent most of his time serving kids and their parents. His fluency in Spanish proved especially helpful given the influx of Spanish speakers on that first day. At the end of the night, he had the opportunity to invite a Spanish-speaking family to the bilingual service. 

“Some of them are still coming every Sunday,” Juan said. “That’s the best part.” 

Stepping into leadership 

In 2024, after several team leaders moved, the Brookside Care Center leaders asked Juan to consider becoming a team leader at the clothing center. At first, he was scared, but eventually he came around to the idea, hoping to grow in his leadership skills. Soon after, he joined Brookside’s 4D Leadership Program. 

The 4D program (“Disciple, Discover, Develop, Deploy”) is a practical and comprehensive training program that offers two primary paths: residency (full-time) and internship (part-time). Residents and interns pick an area of focus and receive hands-on experience, mentorship, and biblical and theological training at Brookside Institute, the church’s in-house Bible and theology school in partnership with Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (TEDS).  

Brookside had long valued theological training, and when Tim Wiebe came on staff, they deepened their investment. Tim grew up at Brookside. He didn’t like going to church initially, but his life took a positive turn in high school when a youth leader intentionally discipled him. 

“He poured into me in my sophomore year of high school, and God's gracious activity took shape in my own life and heart,” Tim said. “The gospel became living, real and fresh to me.”  

This influence prompted him to pursue ministry. He received his undergraduate degree in Omaha and then went to TEDS for his graduate studies (Tim has since also completed a DMin from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary). After graduating from TEDS, Brookside offered Tim a short-term internship to build their adult education ministry. That opportunity turned into a full-time job.  

Tim's first task was rethinking the Sunday school programs. He found they were relationally strong but lacked biblical substance. As the church focused more on small groups for biblical community, he wanted the Sunday school classes to focus on biblical education. 

Over several years, Tim wrote and developed curriculum and then restructured Sunday school classes around core Bible and theology topics (e.g., systematic theology, spiritual disciplines, church history, hermeneutics, apologetics, etc.). The classes were a big success, drawing many people who were hungry to learn.  

When two local Christian colleges closed their doors, Tim and other Brookside leaders saw an opportunity to step into the gap and develop Christian leaders in their community. In 2019, Brookside launched 4D.  

As part of the 4D program, Juan started taking theological training classes at the Brookside Institute, and initially he struggled. The language barrier made it difficult to understand what he heard and read. When he did understand the material, it often felt too intellectual.  

Despite that, Juan maintained a positive attitude. “If God knows who I am, why would I not take the time to get to know Him better?” Juan said. “Getting to know Jesus has been one of the best parts of my life.” 

The 4D program taught Juan how to study the Bible, take notes in a journal and spend time in prayer. It also gave him solid ground in core theological doctrines.  

Juan was not alone. Among the 37 participants in the program to date, many have shared how the program has impacted them spiritually and given them tools to pursue different areas of service in the local church and parachurch ministries.  

Initially, when the 4D program immersed Juan in learning about worship and production, he hoped he could play a background role and not interact with many people. He often struggled to know what to say, how to say it and how to motivate people. But the more Juan's responsibilities at the clothing center required of him, the more he realized God was calling him into something deeper, to those often-uncomfortable areas of leadership.  

Rather than run away from it, Juan found ways to improve and learn. One-on-one mentorship proved helpful as several Brookside leaders walked alongside him, offering techniques to better communicate with his team, provide encouragement and establish trust.  

"I’m grateful to serve with my team,” Juan said. “They’re great people who love Jesus and look to help people.” 

Continuing the mission 

As Juan nears the end of his internship, he’s planning to re-apply for a second year. He’s still determining how God might use him for future ministry and keeping an open heart and mind.  

“I’m going to continue serving Him every Sunday,” Juan said. “That’s what I love. I’m going to worship God with everything I have because this is who I am now.” 

As for Brookside, they continue to develop, train and send leaders into ministry opportunities through the 4D Leadership Program, Brookside Institute and the Brookside Care Center. After learning of two other pervasive issues affecting the Omaha community—food insecurity and lack of affordable auto care—the Care Center expanded their offerings to include a food center and auto repair center. 

In everything they do, Brookside’s mission is simple: to help people, like Juan, find and follow Jesus, so they can live the transformed lives God designed for them.