Leandro Nogueira Named Lead Pastor of Elk Grove Baptist Church
"We are so very excited to call Leandro Nogueira as our lead pastor," says Nelsen. "Leandro brings an energy and enthusiasm for serving God that is inspiring. We look forward to the beginning of his ministry here with great anticipation."
Nogueira (pronounced No-gay-da) is a native of Sao Paulo, Brazil, and comes to Elk Grove after serving as associate pastor of Hillside Church in Bloomington, Minnesota. He will begin his ministry at EGBC on September 1st. Leandro and his wife, Isabella, have four children (ages 4 months to 7 years). They anticipate moving Elk Grove Village before the start of the school year.
Nogueira comes from a heritage of Christian ministry. His father and grandfather have served as pastors in Brazil. He came to the United States in 2007, became U.S. citizen in 2010, and has received his ministry degrees in the U.S. at Bethany Global University and Bethel Seminary. He was ordained to the Ministry of the Gospel by Converge North Central in 2016.
Prior to serving on staff at Hillside, Nogueira was Lead Pastor at a multi-ethnic church in the Twin Cities. In addition to pastoring for several years, Nogueira served in full-time missions in the Amazon jungle (Brazil), New Zealand, Ethiopia and Alaska.
Nogueira met his wife during one of his missionary endeavors in Kansas City where he served a local church for three years. Among their attractions were backgrounds in musical worship and economics. He was awarded a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics at the FAAP (Armando Alvares Penteado Foundation) in Sao Paulo, Brazil in 1999.
The Nogueiras come to Elk Grove Baptist Church to continue its mission as a community-minded congregation and to expand its involvement in impacting Elk Grove Village and surrounding communities from its base at 801 Beisner Avenue.
"I believe that the church is the Bride of Christ and is uniquely called by God to advance his Kingdom on earth," he says. During his visits to EGBC in the interview and candidating process, Nogueira cited the church's campus, personnel, personality and history as resources on which to build.
"My greatest joy as a pastor is to train and equip the body of Christ so they will grow in their faith, understand their responsibility as the body, and be conformed to the likeness of Jesus."
Nogueira is expected to begin his preaching season at EGBC on Sunday, Sept. 17. The Service of Worship begins at 10:30 AM.