Pastor Wendell Wahlin joins Henning Christian Fellowship group as new leader

By Chad Koenen

Publisher

A small church group in Henning is part of Eagle Brook church, a church which is bucking the world wide trend of declining church attendance. 

The Henning Christian Fellowship group began in October 2019 and has seen steady growth over the past 2 1/2 years. 

The church recently hired its first pastor to serve the group in longtime pastor Wendell Wahlin. 

Laura Smith, who is a member of the Henning Christian Fellowship group, said Pastor Wahlin was hired to serve as pastor for a number of reasons, including his ability to help new churches grow. 

“In addition to bringing people to Jesus, an important aspect of church is the care of His people. We wanted someone on staff who would be available, as needs arise, to encourage people in our church and community with a visit, spiritual guidance, scripture, and/or prayer,” said Smith. “Pastor Wendell recognizes the importance of visitation and also has experience with helping new churches grow. We recognized that Pastor Wendell and his wife Marlene would encourage and strengthen our congregation and others.”

Wahlin has served as a pastor for over 40 years and is excited about the opportunity to help guide the Henning Christian Fellowship group moving forward.

“I am coming alongside of them as a coordinator of spiritual care and engagements,” said Wahlin. “I am walking with them as a fellow traveler. We are talking, praying and looking around and saying how can we help people in their lives and just go from there.”

In addition to serving the Henning Christian Fellowship group, Wahlin is preaching at Grace Church in Alexandria. He has 22 years of experience as a pastor in Henning, having previously served at Water’s Edge church in Henning. He left that church in 2011. 

Wahlin said the group is hoping to spread the word of God and is open to people of all denominations.

“We are just trying to be proactive in saying if there is a need out there, we are here,” he said. 

The group is associated with the Eagle Brook Church, which is a church that is part of the Converge North Central (formerly the Minnesota-Iowa Baptist Conference). Anyone of any denomination is welcomed to attend the church activities. 

“We encourage people to visit Henning Christian Fellowship on Sunday mornings at the Senior Center where attendees can experience praise, worship, teaching and fellowship in a way that’s sure to make a positive impact,” said Smith.

The church group meets each Sunday at 8:45 a.m. for fellowship with worship beginning at 9 a.m. The group meets at the Henning Senior Citizens Center. The group also hosts a men’s Bible study on Wednesdays at 6 p.m. and a women’s Bible study on Mondays at 6:30 p.m. Both meetings are held at the senior citizens center. 

In addition to preaching about God, Wahlin has a book he is willing to send to people that puts together the life of Jesus through some small gospels. 

Wahlin is willing to send the book, entitled “The Life and Teachings of Jesus of Nazareth” to anyone free of charge as a way to share Jesus’ journey. For information about the book, contact Wahlin by email at ftplusn@gmail.com.