MBC debuts new magazine
By Allen Palmeri
Staff Writer
April 5, 2005
JEFFERSON CITY – The Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) is coming out with a new magazine called Heartline that is intended to stimulate the heartbeat of Missouri Baptist churches.
The first issue is scheduled to be printed May 20. A print run of 5,000 copies is planned, with the goal of getting the 24-page, four-color glossy magazine into the hands of pastors, church staff members and lay leaders by June 1. Thanks to Missouri Baptist churches who faithfully give through the Cooperative Program, the magazine will be free.
“The key here really is we’re trying to impact the church through the leadership being changed,” said David Waganer, former MBC associate executive director who is serving as Heartline editor. “That’s a heart issue. It’s not just a head thing. I would say what drives this magazine is the church. It’s not (MBC ministry) teams. We need to relate to our churches.”
Waganer and MBC Family Ministries Specialist Joe Ulveling came up with the name for the magazine in January over lunch. The MBC Executive Team promptly approved it, and MBC Print Graphics Specialist Jim Thorne got to work on the masthead, which is pictured with this article.
“It’s like an EKG monitor line where it’s showing the heartbeat in a graphical format,” Thorne said. Added Waganer: “He did a masterful job of creating that image of what we were talking about.”
The magazine includes information on important ministry dates, resources, products and conferences. There are pertinent articles on areas of ministry like evangelism, worship and Sunday School as well as advertisements. Seven MBC staffers helped Waganer come up with all of the necessary elements of production in short order.
“To get from nowhere to the publication of a major document in four months is pretty remarkable,” Waganer said.
Heartline will come out twice a year, with the second issue scheduled for October.
“The pastor can look into one place to find many of the resources that he can use for his church,” Thorne said. “Rather than having to open up 24 different mailing packages, he can look to Heartline and get it all in one place.”