Paul Stiver was an atheist who didn’t see any need for God. When the woman who would one day be his wife urged him to go to church, he said, “Sure. I’ll be the cool atheist who goes to church.” He didn’t think he needed church, and yet, he went anyway.

On his first Sunday at Hope Community Church, an Acts 29 church in Minnesota, the pastor preached on religion versus the gospel. Paul was intrigued; it was unlike anything he had ever heard. He kept coming, and after a sermon on the parable of the lost sheep, Paul gave his life to Christ.

Paul immediately dove into a discipleship program at the church, completing it three times because he was so hungry to learn. During that season, he began to sense a call to vocational ministry and was accepted into the church’s internship program. After his time as an intern, Hope Community brought him on as a staff member, where he learned the ins and outs of pastoral ministry. After completing Acts 29’s assessment process, he received coaching and mentorship from his Acts 29 pastor and, in 2025, launched Hope Community Church North Lakes. Today, he continues to be supported through an Acts 29 cohort specifically for church planters in the early stages of planting. 

“Being a church planter is a unique calling. My cohort has been a great space to be with others who know what I’m going through and understand what I’m talking about. It’s very life-giving,” Paul shares.

Since launching, Hope Community North Lakes has nearly tripled in size, and Paul is hopeful the next planter is already sitting in the congregation. “I was saved in an Acts 29 church. I sat in those pews and slowly realized God was calling me to plant a church. I know he’s calling other guys like me.”