Matt Maestas, Church Planter In De Soto, Kansas
By Eva Wilson
A quick glance at De Soto could lead to the assumption it is a typical small Kansas town.
But De Soto is located on Kansas Highway 10, tucked between Kansas City and Lawrence. With a population of 5,700, De Soto is growing 10 percent annually.
Residents can drive to the University of Kansas in Lawrence in 20 minutes. The trek to downtown Kansas City takes only 30 minutes.
For Southern Baptists, the area offers wide-open opportunities to reach people for Jesus Christ. De Soto Community Church, which began in 2008, is an effort to share Christ in the town which previously did not have a Southern Baptist church. Church planter Matt Maestas and his wife, Jessica, lead the congregation.
A variety of people groups are found in the area. Maestas explains:
“There are sprawling subdivisions to the east and the west with $200,000-$300,000 homes, occupied by those who work in technology-related fields in Johnson County and Lawrence.”
However, “the core of De Soto is much older.” Workers are “much more blue collar working in the various industries located in and around De Soto.” Among these industries are: a paper company; Intervet, which manufactures animal-health supplies; and Mr. Goodcents research- and-development facility.
Plus, the Hispanic population of De Soto is estimated at 10 percent.
So there is a need for a multi-faceted approach to ministry.
“One shoe—and one church—does not fit all, even in a community of our size,” Matt says.
De Soto Community Church began in spring 2008. It officially launched in August 2008. It meets on Sunday mornings at The Crossing in downtown De Soto. A parachurch organization owns this 1910 house that has a small gymnasium attached.
The summer of 2009 was filled with outreach activities led by mission teams from Arkansas. Katie Wynn, a summer missionary from Arkansas, played a key role.
Along with starting a new church, Matt and Jessica are writing a new chapter in their lives as a couple. They are eagerly awaiting the birth of their first child (a girl) on Sept. 1.
The big event will bring changes in their lives. They ask Kansas-Nebraska to pray for them as they make some major decisions. One of these issues is working out the details of family health insurance.
Another decision that Matt and Jessica face is whether or not she will continue working at the local school district administrative office after the baby is born.
Other prayer needs are:
- For needs in the families in the church’s core group, such as finding new jobs after layoffs.
- ”A big prayer request is for people to come and help us,” Jessica says. “It’s a lot for us to take on the things we are doing. ”
Starting a new church while starting a family can be hectic, the young couple admits.
But Matt says, “We know we’re exactly where God wants us to be.”