Sep 9, 2025
Thank you for your faithful support and ongoing partnership with our ministry!
Because of you, Love INC Heartland is able to unite local churches to meet real needs and share Christ’s love with our neighbors. As the warmth of summer gives way to the cooler, cozier days of autumn, we’re reminded of the natural rhythm of change and new beginnings. Just as the seasons shift, we have opportunities to step into fresh ways of serving and growing together. This fall, we invite you to fall into action with Love INC Heartland by joining us in practical and meaningful ways—whether through prayer, volunteering, financial giving, or simply spreading the word about our mission in your community.
Pray For Love In the Name of Christ National Gathering
At this year’s Gathering, we’ll explore how God’s grace shows up at these intersections of life—through the cross, our calling, everyday encounters, and in life’s challenges. Together, we’ll turn to Scripture, reflection, and testimony to see how Christ meets us where we are, invites us into deeper relationship, and calls us to be present in the lives of others right where our paths meet. Because these moments are where the Church shines brightest: leaning in, walking alongside, and reflecting the love of Christ in tangible ways.
Love INC affiliates will unite together on September 23-25, 2025, to worship, be inspired by insightful keynote speakers, explore dozens of in-depth workshops, and experience meaningful connections with others in the Movement. Please pray for the Love INC Heartland team as we get ready to attend.
Gratitude For Back To School Bash Gap Ministry
Through partnership with WestPointe Church, over 50 students are beginning their school year with new backpacks and supplies—special thanks to everyone who donated financially to support this community effort.
Would you like to partner with us as a church, individual, or local business? Let us know at info@loveincheartland.org or call our main office 763-972-6547
Meaningful Meals At Fresh Start Program
Over 35 adults and 15 children are part of our Fresh Start Program! Mealtime offers a meaningful way to connect and grow together as a community. Will you support this growing community? You can serve a meal or pray for the Fresh Start Program today: bit.ly/fsmealtrain
Shop Weekly Sales In Our Love INC Heartland Thrift Stores
We have two Love INC Heartland Thrift Stores! One is located in Delano, Minnesota, and one is located in Howard Lake, Minnesota. Sales from our thrift stores support our mission and ministry and allow us to provide services, programs, and resources (like clothing or furniture vouchers) to those in need.
Invest In Hope
Volunteer
Shop Our Stores
Aug 11, 2025
Swing Into Action—be part of something truly meaningful at the Golf For Love fundraising tournament!
Golfers of all skill levels are welcome to enjoy a scenic round, contests, prize drawings, and a delicious boxed lunch. All proceeds benefit Love In the Name of Christ Heartland (Love INC) supporting its mission to offer a hand up—not a handout—to those in need. We have FORE different opportunities that you can get involved in this event– you can be an event sponsor, register a team, spread the word about this event, and pray.
🏌️ Fore Ways You Can Support Golf For Love
Event Sponsor
Sponsors are a key component to making our Golf For Love fundraising tournament a success. A variety of sponsor packages are available! View All Sponsor Packages Here P.S. Some of our sponsor packages include a team registration!
Sponsor Packages
Register A Team
Golfers of all skill levels are welcome to enjoy a scenic round, contests, and prize drawings. Registered teams receive boxed lunch, bucket of balls, and one swag bag per person.
Team Registration $450.00 | Individual Registration $112.50
Team Registration
Share With Friends
Do you have friends, family, or coworkers that enjoy golfing and are passionate about giving back to the community? Please share this event with them.
Like Our Facebook Page
Pray For The Event
Prayer is one of our core values and is so, so powerful. Please add this event to your prayers.
Golf For Love 2025 – Event Details
- Date: Monday, September 15, 2025
- Time: 10am Check In | 11am Tee Off
- Location: Albion Ridges Golf Course, 7771 20th St NW, Annandale, MN 55302
- Format: Four-Person Scramble with a Shotgun Start
Sponsor or Register A Team Today!
Feb 20, 2025
In November 2024, Love In the Name of Christ Heartland welcomed Sabrina (Sam) Gustafson as the Family Advocate. This staff role is not only vital to our organization but also essential to the operation of our Connection Center (helpline).
As the first point of contact for neighbors in need, the Family Advocate plays a crucial role in listening to their stories, understanding their challenges, and building meaningful relationships. These initial conversations lay the foundation for providing support and guiding individuals toward life transformation opportunities, including the courses available in our Fresh Start Program.
In addition to leading the Connection Center, the Family Advocate collaborates closely with our Church Partners and supports the year-round Gap Ministries that serve neighbors active with Love INC Heartland. Sam has already demonstrated a remarkable ability to connect with others and make a difference in this role.
Welcome to the Love INC Heartland family, Sam!
Tell us a little bit about yourself and/or hobbies you enjoy:
I love to be outside all weather can be nice. I enjoy bicycle riding and reading. Time with grandkids, super fun!
Do you have a favorite Bible verse or worship song? Take a moment to share:
I do not have a particular favorite verse the Bible is so full. One that is hanging by my desk is Psalm 127:1 Unless the Lord builds the house, it’s builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stand guard in vain.
What is your favorite part about your job and why?
I like variety so choosing a particular part of my job as top is difficult. Opportunity to encourage others. I believe everyone needs encouragement along their life path. Pray it is encouragement In the Name of Christ.
It’s show-and-tell day! What’s in your work lunchbox or a special item on your desk?
I love children’s artwork. above my desk is this drawing by my 6 year old granddaughter.
How has God transformed you through the work you have been doing?
Colossians 3:17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
My job includes planting seeds of HOPE, VALUE, and WORTH. God is helping me to see the hope, value and worth of those he brings along my path.
Nov 18, 2024
“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead, they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14-16, NIV)
Imagine gathering with thousands of people on a hillside, captivated by a man named Jesus. He speaks with authority, sharing a message unlike anything you’ve ever heard—a message of love, forgiveness, and relationship with God. This Jesus reveals a God who desires your heart rather than your sacrifice.
“You are the light of the world,” He says. (Matthew 5:14, NIV) This light isn’t meant to be hidden; it’s meant to shine brightly for others to see.
Did you know that Love In the Name of Christ Heartland embodies this light in your community? We serve families, seniors, and single parents facing financial challenges. Like Jesus, we aim to bring hope and transformation.
We connect local churches to community needs, working alongside those we serve. Our mission is to transform lives, not just meet immediate needs. We partner with churches to provide a hand-up, fostering relationships and guiding neighbors to resources that promote lasting change.
Will you help us make hope and transformation possible for those in need?
Give Hope
Love INC Heartland needs your support to continue investing in our community. In the beginning of 2023 we were serving 93 households and in 2024 it grew to 104. Now, as of September 2024, we serve over 110 households that live in Delano, Howard Lake, and several other surrounding communities.
We need your support to continue to serve our current and future families. Will you support our cause?
Consider giving a gift of $250, $500, $1,000, $2,500, or more to help us shine brightly as a city on a hill, transforming lives In the Name of Christ (INC).
Our goal is to alleviate poverty without creating dependency. We walk alongside our neighbors, practicing developmental compassion. Jesus calls us to change our hearts, improving our relationships with Him and others. We are called to share this new light with the world.
Support Love INC
When we look into the eyes of our neighbors and tell them, “You are a creation of God. You have inherent value,” we ignite change in their hearts. Join us in being that city on the hill. Help us be the shining light of Jesus in our community. Consider making a financial gift or volunteering your time. Your support can make a significant difference.
P.S. Would you like to learn more about vision and partnering with Love INC Heartland? Contact Jim Holmlund, Executive Director, at 763-999-7630 or director@loveincheartland.org
Aug 14, 2024
Matthew 25:23 NIV His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’
When writing this, 86 families have contacted Love In the Name of Christ Heartland for assistance this year (2024). People are referred to us by friends, churches, county offices, and other agencies. Sometimes people find us online and will email, text, call, or submit requests for help through our website.
At Love INC Heartland we practice Redemptive Compassion®, which is a Biblical philosophy on how we can offer wholistic help to those we serve. The first of the Six Core Principles is, “Everyone has value.” Which implores us to contact and speak to everyone who reaches out to us. Even in situations where we know we will not be able to help them, we still listen to their story, refer them to another agency, and ask to pray with them. Often, staff and volunteers see the softness of people come through when saying a short prayer for them. Just as Jesus has called us to be relational with others (not only in spirit but in a personal way), our Connection Center takes time to see the person not just the need.
Similar to the parable of the Talents Jesus tells in Matthew 25, if there is just one thing we can do for one person, we will do it. We will not bury even the smallest opportunity to connect with someone. We will be Jesus to that person, striving to be good and faithful servants.
For those reaching out to us for assistance or, as we say at Love INC, a neighbor in need (a client), there is much work to do. It begins with an initial contact where basic information is gathered and a brief description of the neighbor’s situation is clarified and held with confidence. Verifications (specific documents) are requested from each neighbor. Around the same time, an intake is scheduled to build the relationship and to have a deeper, detailed conversation about their life story.
Along the way whether Love INC staff or caring volunteers, we have the opportunity (and duty) to use all six core principles of the Redemptive Compassion® philosophy:
- Everyone has value.
- We are called to invest relationally in each other.
- Everyone has capacity and potential.
- Mutual participation is important.
- We must use wisdom and discernment.
- How we help should offer opportunities for transformation.
Once initial contact, verifications, and phone intake have all been completed, the Connection Center works to connect our neighbors to our Church Partners leading Gap Ministries that can help support them through the challenges they are facing.
Our role as Love INC Heartland is to provide the scaffolding, or the latticework so that our Church Partners to know they are helping people that have gone through a verification process and genuinely desire to move forward in their lives. Volunteers of the churches who run the Gap Ministries get the opportunity to be Jesus to our Neighbors.
Lastly, but most importantly, a critical piece of the Connection Center is to lead people to participate in our transformational ministry called the Fresh Start Program. In Fresh Start, our neighbors have the opportunity for Christ-centered fellowship every week. They have the opportunity to engage in biblically based life-skill teaching and coaching. They engage with volunteers on staff who can pray, listen, and assist them on their journey. I firmly believe each neighbor who participates in Fresh Start has the opportunity to use the talents God has given them.
This is truly the call of the Connection Center to connect people to the Love of Jesus. To connect our Neighbors to people who desire to be Jesus to them.
Be Jesus today in a small way with huge impact by supporting Watertown Evangelical Free’s gas card gap ministry! Many of our neighbors are facing financial hardship and having enough funds for gas is difficult. When you support this gap ministry, $25 gas cards are given to neighbors actively participating in our Fresh Start Program. A $25 gas card may not seem like much but it makes a huge impact for our neighbors to have designated funds for gas. Will you support this gap ministry? Give a gift of $25 (1 family) $50 (2 families) or $100 (4 families) today.
Give A Gas Card
