Our History

Experience Church began as two separate congregations in the 1930's Bethel Tabernacle Open Bible Church and Calvary Open Bible Church. After many years as successful congregations, both having been served by several different pastors, it was decided in 1990 to merge the two congregations and Calvary and Bethel became Victory Praise Center.

After the merge the two congregations remodeled the Bethel Church and moved the combined congregation to the Ovid address. Another change of Pastors and the name was changed to Eastwood Church. With the coming to Eastwood of our present Pastors Charles and Deanna Cole the church was again moved through God's miraculous work at 3800 E. Douglas, Des Moines, Iowa (formerly known as Douglas Elementary School) and named EXPERIENCE CHURCH. Then in 2021 we moved into our current location (formerly known as Slumberland) at 2559 E Euclid Ave, Des Moines, IA 50317.

In 2023 Open Bible Fellowship from Ankeny also merged with Experience Church. Open Bible Fellowship was established in 1987 by Pastors Wally and Lana Shea who join the staff as Associate Pastors at Experience Church.

We are very proud to have the heritage that these three strong and committed congregations have provided. Only through God's people and their faithfulness to His direction and provision are we here in this place now.

Our Organization

Open Bible Standard Churches originated from two revival movements: Bible Standard Conference, founded in Eugene, Oregon, under the leadership of Fred Hornshuh in 1919, and Open Bible Evangelistic Association, founded in Des Moines, Iowa, under the leadership of John R. Richey in 1932. Similar in doctrine and government, the two groups amalgamated in 1935, as "Open Bible Standard Churches" with headquarters in Des Moines, Iowa.

Historical roots of the parent groups reach back to the outpourings of the Holy Spirit in 1906 at the Azusa Street Mission in Los Angeles and to the full gospel movement in the Midwest. Both groups were organized under the impetus of Pentecostal revival. Simple faith, freedom from fanaticism, emphasis on evangelism and missions and free fellowship with other groups were characteristics of the growing organizations.

There are over 17,280 members in 233 Open Bible congregations with 788 licensed or ordained ministers in the United States. Additionally, there are approximately 252,093 members in 1772 international congregations with 2,709 ministers.

For more information please visit our denomination's national website.

Our Values

We Believe that every person, Christian and non-Christian alike, is valuable to God and to His Kingdom. Because people are eternally valuable to God, they are to us as well. Responsible evangelism will always be our cause and ongoing discipleship will always be the core of the ministry. (Matthew 18:14; Matthew 25:45; 2 Peter 3:9)

We Believe that "doing church as a team" is God's design for effective ministry. A Spirit-empowered serving with the willing hearted involvement of every person is vital to God's plan being accomplished. (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12; Psalm 133:1; Ephesians 4:11-16; 1Peter 2:4-9)

We Believe that a simple presentation of Jesus Christ in creative ways will impact and transform lives. Relating to our culture through redeeming the arts while remaining true to the Scriptures is a balance we will always keep. This allows us to present the Gospel in such a way that reaches the heart. (1Corinthians 9:22, 23; Acts 17:22-34)

In Keeping with the Great Commandment, we believe every member should commit to a lifestyle of consistent spiritual growth with honest accountability. A genuine love for God is always the first priority. Every Christian should yearn for continual spiritual growth. Therefore, discipleship through small groups, accountability, and open honesty is critical to maturing in our faith. (Mark 12:29-31; Acts 2:44-47; 1 Peter 2:2; 1Timothy 4:7, 8; Proverbs 27:17)

We Believe that every member is a minister who has been given gifts to be discovered, developed, and deployed. We are a gift-based, volunteer driven church. Each believer will find his greatest joy and fulfillment when serving in his spiritual gifts and passion. Every believer is created for ministry, gifted for ministry, authorized for ministry, and needed for ministry. (Mark 10:45; Ephesians 2:10; Romans 12; 1Corinthians 12:14-20)

We Believe that God is worthy of our very best. Therefore, a growing spirit of excellence should permeate every activity. Not perfection but excellence with consistent evaluation and a willingness to improve for the sake of the Kingdom of God are distinctive of growing ministries. (Psalm 78:72; Daniel 5:12; Colossians 3:17; Ecclesiastes 10:10)

We Believe that genuine love and caring relationships are key to the life of every endeavor. Refusing to give audience to a spirit of complaining, we will instead be courageous in solving every problem in a way that honors God and builds biblical character. We value healthy relationships by protecting the unity of the Spirit in our church. (James 1:2, 3; 1 Peter 3:8, 9; 1Corinthians 13:8; Romans 16:17; Ephesians 4:3)

We Believe that the most effective evangelism happens through people inviting people. We believe that a life will reach a life. Each believer develops genuine relationships with friends and family and extends an invitation to them. Evangelism gets to be a normal, natural lifestyle of winning others to Christ, one by one. (Proverbs 11:30; John 1:43-45; John 4:28-30)

We Believe in identifying and training emerging leaders who are fully committed to Christ and who will reach their generation with the Gospel. God is raising up men and women who will take the baton of godly character, authentic faith, and servant-hearted leadership into the next generation. (2 Timothy 2:2; 1 Timothy 3:1; Titus 1:5-9; Psalm 78:6, 7)