It's All About Relationship
It began with a small group of young mothers who meet on Thursday mornings. One of these young women, who had started coming to the group a couple of years ago, made a decision to accept Christ. However, her husband remained distant and unconnected, though he would come to the odd special event.
Then, last summer, he got recruited to play softball on one of our six teams. These teams are led by people from our church, but are made up of members of the community as well as people from the church. Softball was the door through which Shawn entered and from that beginning some strategic relationships began to form.
Last September Shawn participated in our men’s kickoff event, the launch of a new season of small group ministry. He ended up in a study with a group of young, twenty-something dads. As they spent the winter months exploring issues related to being husbands and fathers, and what it means to know Christ and follow Him as men in today’s world, the other members of the group began to connect with him.
This spring, at the end of a four-week study based on the movie, Courageous, Shawn decided that there really wasn’t anything to hold him back and he gave his heart to Christ. This group of young men now continues to provide stability for Shawn in his spiritual growth as one of its members does one-on-one discipleship with him. He is making plans to be baptized this fall, a very special celebration for the whole church. Relationships brought this young man to Christ and it is those same relationships that are now seeing him grounded in the faith.
—Steve Adams is lead pastor at Faith Baptist, Great Village, NS.