Inner City Church Planting Class & Missions Trip 2024

Heartland students had the opportunity to visit New York City over their spring break to attend the Inner City Church Planting Class. Bro. Pete Montoro, NYC church planter for over 30 years, has hosted and taught the class since 2004. We asked two of the students a few questions about their experience.

Ally Evans

Why did you want to go? | “I wanted to go on this trip because I love the Montoro family and wanted to be able to not only spend time with them but also to see their heart for the people of New York. Bro Montoro has planted two churches in New York which is an incredible miracle of God and I wanted to be able to see how God has worked in their church.”

What did you do? | “Throughout the Inner City Missions Trip to New York City, our group was able to gain wisdom from both Bro and Mrs. Montoro during our classes. Mrs. Montoro taught the women, and Bro Montoro taught the men as well as the two groups together for combined sessions. We discussed everything from knowing God’s will to the practical side of planting a new church. Mrs. Montoro specifically spoke about how to be the right wife for a husband who is called to plant a church. We were also able to use the skills they taught us immediately as we went out on the streets and invited people to church. Finally, we were given a tour around New York City to end our trip.”

What was the most valuable thing you learned? | “The most valuable thing I learned was that no matter where God takes you, He will always be with you and that you need to be fully surrendered to do God’s will. No matter where God tells you to go, He will be with you to help you when you need Him, you just need to be fully surrendered to His will. People need the Gospel now more than ever, and if our generation has any hope of spreading the Gospel, we have to be fully surrendered to do God’s will. God’s will is different for all of us, but it is so important that we are completely surrendered.”

Would you recommend this class to fellow Heartland students? If so, why? | “I would recommend this class to everyone who knows they will be going into ministry somewhere. Even if you don’t plan on planting a church somewhere, going and experiencing the people of New York City will truly give you a heart for people. Ministry is all about people, and there are so many needy and desperate people in New York.”

Grant Patrick

Why did you want to go? | “I didn’t initially have any desire to attend the class, but I felt God’s leadership to do so many months after the class was initially proposed. God brought it to my mind and I asked if I could still sign up even though it was already February. There was one slot left for me and I ended up being able to go. It was clear to me the whole way that God wanted me to go, even though I had reservations about going to a large, politically liberal city.”

What did you do? | “During the trip, we got to experience a little taste of what it is like to minister in an inner city. We spent about 30 hours in class being taught by Brother Montoro, passed out tracts in different areas (the response to which was surprisingly different based on the neighborhood we found ourselves in), saw many different sights in NYC, traveled around the city on the subway, and attended services at some “miracle churches” like Open Door Bible Baptist Church and Union Baptist Church that God has planted in the city.”

What was the most valuable thing you learned? | “I think the most valuable thing that I learned during the trip was that you cannot go wrong trusting God. Hearing the testimonies of Brother Montoro about the miraculous purchase of Open Door Bible Baptist Church for 700,000 dollars and no interest, or the salvage of Union Baptist Church and its building from 1863 were examples of what Bro. Montoro called “ridiculous faith.” Learning to trust God and step out in faith according to His will was the best lesson I learned.”

Would you recommend this class to fellow Heartland students? If so, why? | “Absolutely. The class time with Brother Montoro was worth it even if we didn’t get to experience sightseeing and traveling in the city. Just getting to sit under his many years of experience ministering in a very difficult area was so beneficial. I walked away with a completely different perspective on cities and on ministry. To be completely honest, I hated NYC before the trip, but now I want to go back!”

God Has Changed My Point of View

My Life

I was saved at the age of eight and was raised in a Christian home. When every kid is little, they don’t know what they are going to do. Of course, they have ideas; they want to be a firefighter, or they want to be an astronaut. Although, I wasn’t completely sure what I was going to do, I was certain that I was not going to be a pastor. And, I knew for a fact that I wasn’t going to be in the ministry. Four years later, I surrendered my life to Christ and to whatever He wanted me to do. As I got into my teen years, I kind of set that aside inwardly, because I didn’t really want to acknowledge it.

My Plans

I had some plans that I thought I would follow. I enjoy music and politics. So I thought that maybe I would go into politics; you know, those are very similar. But, I knew for sure that I wasn’t going to be in the ministry. I knew, inwardly, that God was calling me to be in the ministry, and over the next three to four years I thought it over for quite some time.

In the summer of 2016, Bro. Park Sutton was preaching at Indian Creek Baptist Camp in Indiana. It was there when I finally surrendered to be in full time ministry. I finally gave it over to God and decided to follow His will. I prayed some more, and I realized that God would have me to come to Heartland Baptist Bible College. After I surrendered, God gave me peace and contentment because I was following His will. Although I had visited the college before, I felt something different this time because I knew that I was in the middle of God’s will.

My Experience at Heartland

God has used Heartland’s structure that is geared towards spiritual growth. The RA’s, have been in my life to teach  and instruct me spiritually. And I can’t forget the teachers and chapel preachers that give their time and effort week in and week out here at the college.

While at Heartland, God has blessed me with opportunities to serve at Southwest Baptist Church. Through the different ministries there, through the choir here at college, and through the visitation ministry and outreach, there has been a blessing far more than I could ever comprehend. God has taken what seemed at one point an inconvenience in my life and a departure from what I wanted to do, and He has blessed me and has used it in a way that I could have never imagined.

My New Home

By following His will, God has changed my point of view. I didn’t see Heartland Baptist Bible College here on 4700 Northwest 10 Street as just a college campus anymore; I see it as a home. I don’t see the training and the classes as just school anymore; I see it as preparation for a future ministry. Finally, I don’t  look at Heartland Baptist Bible College as just a group of college students or as a program that I can be a part of; I see it as God’s perfect will for my life.

Through my time so far at Heartland Baptist Bible College, God has shown me that following His will is always the best way. I would like to finish with these very familiar verses, “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct they paths.”