Pastor Jim Heethuis

Growing up in the Church and in Christian schools, I was given a tremendous education about God and the Bible. Later in life, God led me to daily Bible reading so that I could actually know him — actually have a conversational relationship with The Author, not just knowing “about” him.

This thrilling relationship with God has made me a passionate advocate for daily Bible reading and prayer, seeing these disciplines as “core” to the Christian life and allowing other “electives” to take a back seat. Very much a “people person,” doing daily reading with others has demonstrated to me the importance of The Body of Christ. Involving other believers in my conversations with God keeps me from going off in arrogantly narrow or extra-biblical directions. God’s relationships with the other people in my life keep me humble and inter-dependant.

As an Art Teacher in both Public and Private schools, through my studies and interest in language, literature, and history, and through a variety of multi-cultural travels and experiences (especially 5 years working for an international ministry in Chicago) my spirit has caught the vision of Revelation 7:9. This has given me a heart for building relationships with people who represent a broader Kingdom Perspective than just the small homogenous group in which I was raised. This passion and vision have led to my work in initiating large scale campus-wide, church-wide, and community-wide Bible reading programs and campaigns. It has also led my family and I to Byron Center where we could work to implement this vision as part of a specific body of believers here at Pathway Church and the specific community of the Byron Center area.