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Our History
In 2001 God began speaking to the hearts of several different people, in different churches, in different locations in the area, about the need for a place where Biblical Counseling could be done. Over the next two years, God was working in lives, calling workers, preparing and equipping them to serve. After two years of preparation, on Feb 14, 2003 Articles of Incorporation were filed for New Hope Counseling Center, founded as a faith-based, charitable 501(c)(3) organization.
The New Hope Biblical Counseling materials were written in-house and due to the high success rates, were put into several other ministry forms: A Discipleship Series, Small Group Bible Study Series, and Teen Edition. New Hope Ministry was set up under the umbrella of NHCC for the distribution of the New Hope materials and all proceeds go to NHCC, which provides Biblical Counseling services free of charge as a home mission work.
New Hope’s Original Location in Centerville, Iowa
On Oct 31, 2013, the 24/7 New Hope Prayer Center (a House of Prayer) was opened as another outreach into our community. We have a Prayer Center Kit available free of charge to anyone who wants to set one up in their own community. New Hope Materials and Ministry Kits are being used to help others serve the Lord even more effectively in their own ministries across the country.
Volunteer assembling counseling materials.
Betty was one of our first Volunteers
In 2014, the Lord began planting seeds for starting a local Thrift Store, which would be an outworking of our two greatest callings: To love God and love people. It would have a double purpose: 1) To help provide financial support for New Hope’s mission to advance the Kingdom of God by obeying the Great Commission, to make Jesus known, which brings hope, healing, restoration, and profound blessings. 2) To love people and be a blessing to the community. The Hope Chest Thrift Store became a reality in 2016, providing blessings all the way around.
New Hope Ministry is a non-denominational ministry supported by the generous contributions of individuals, churches, businesses, and organizations. The Lord moved our location a couple different times between our first location and our present one, doing miracle after miracle to provide and sustain us in what He had called us to do.
In 2019, God led us to take a huge step of faith and purchase the old Pete Harkness auto dealership building in order to enlarge our Hope Chest Thrift Store and have New Hope Counsleing Center under the same roof. We are still stunned and amazed by all the Lord did to pull that one off and we give Him all the glory!
...To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen (Heb 13:20-21).
The Upper Room Prayer Group
Testimony from Cindy Farrington, New Hope Founder: When we moved back to the Centerville area and I started working on setting things up to begin New Hope, some people began telling me about a prayer group that had been meeting there for many years. The group was made up of people from several different churches who had been getting together once a week to pray for the pastors and churches in the area, praying for revival, for something that would bring the Body of Christ together. As some people began hearing about what I was working on, each one would say, “That sounds like what they have been praying for.” Then they ended by saying, “They meet in a place they call The Upper Room.”
When the time came that we had all of the materials ready, and our Articles of Incorporation filed, all we needed was a place. I said, “OK Lord, I’ve done everything You’ve asked, and everything is ready. All we need is a place, and You know we have no money to pay for one.” He quickly arranged for me to meet the woman who led that prayer group I had been told about. As it turned out, God actually placed this ministry in the very “Upper Room” building for our first 8 years—totally free! Right where that Upper Room Prayer Group had met for all those years, praying for this before they ever realized the Lord was sending New Hope as an answer!
Isn’t that just like God to put it in the very place where they had prayed for it for so long? He is so incredible! He did one thing after another just like that to establish New Hope and continue to provide for it. And it has continued up to the present as we have made God (Yahweh the Most High) officially the CEO of New Hope with the Board Members unanimously voting on it and putting it into the Board Minutes (a legal document). It’s so amazing to get to work at something that He is so evidently involved in every day…just as He is so intimately involved in every detail of each of our lives individually. It really is bringing the Body of Christ together, just like they prayed! There IS great power when the Body of Christ comes together!
“And what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe,
according to the working of His mighty power” (Ephesians 1:19).
Read the entire amazing story in the Expansion Journal
The Expansion Journal is the story of how God used something to introduce to us the idea of expanding the Hope Chest (which the idea alone caused us to be hit by fear); how He dealt a death blow to that fear, got us “all in,” then introduced the next thing to expand our thinking on the idea; and THEN presented what He had in mind all along. I have to warn you…this is some wild God stuff… We are sharing every detail of this amazing adventure He is taking us on, because it will bring Him so much GLORY…It LIFTS HIM UP…And that’s what we want most—for His Power and His Name to be glorified and displayed to everyone involved, to our community, to our region, and to the world. Through all of this, God challenged and grew our faith AND how much we trust Him… We hope it will also challenge and grow your faith and how much you trust Him. I gave the entries in updates every day or so to the 6 members of our New Hope Board of Directors, and 13 members of our Advisory Board as it was happening for their advice and decisions. We’ve excitedly been awaiting the time when we could begin sharing it with all of you—everyone and anyone! Because we know how much it will inspire people! Here’s a comment that came back from one of our Advisors that described it in such a great way: “Following this experience is akin to reading a new book, each chapter, an exciting, new twist, hanging on to each word, but confidently knowing how it will end. God is enjoying this and is interested in our individual reactions as these ‘chapters’ unfold!”
