BISMARCK – Making connections and disciples is the focus of the ministries at First Baptist Church (FBC), Bismarck. The church builds connections with the community and equips mature Christians to disciple younger Christians.
“Our missions committee had funds that we wanted to use to bless the community,” Eddie Wakefield, co-chair of the missions committee, said. “We made up 8-10 groups of a mix of youth with older adults, gave them funds and told them to find people in the community that they could serve.”
BISMARCK – Members at First Baptist Church here do service projects in their community to share the love of Jesus. (Photo courtesy of FBC Bismarck)
“Our goal was to form groups with a mix of people,” he continued, “to encourage discipleship and mentoring during the serving.”
Pastor Matt Sheckles said the pairing built great connections in the congregation and the community. “So many stories came out of the mission effort,” he said. “We worked in conjunction with the city and found people who really needed help. As we came together and connected with each other, we were able to love on people as the body of Christ.”
“We even made some ongoing connections,” Sheckles continued, “with a tree removal company. One of the ladies was fearful that a tree in her yard was going to come down, so we worked with a tree removal business.”
“People are hurting,” Sheckles explained, “and when we love and care for them, they are open to hearing about Jesus. This has been so beneficial to our congregation because they got up out of the pews to meet basic need and it fostered a relationship bond between the generations.”
Another connection FBC Bismarck made involved Prevention Consultants of Missouri out of Rolla. “We planned a Saturday workshop to discuss ‘Youth Mental Health First Aid,’” Sheckles said. “This is for parents, teachers, youth leaders and any adult who works with youth.”
“This is a different world,” Sheckles continued. “Prevention is the key to knowing what is going on with kids. Our ministry staff will take part. We want to be able to identify the flags of bullying, suicide and any other issues facing youth today and to know how to respond.”
Another new initiative of FBC Bismarck is the formation of a life group for the 19-to-30-year-old range. “We have a couple in our church interested in reaching out to this group,” Sheckles said. “I have 20-year-old twins, and I think this will be a great opportunity to connect with this group.”
Adam Cato and his wife, Tori, are the couple beginning this ministry. “We feel called to this ministry,” Cato said. “We want to do life with these young people. We will start with a Bible Study and help them get plugged into the ministry of the church.”
“Many times, this age group feels like they are hiding in the church,” Cato said. “They are blending into the background and feel glossed over. They are too young for one group, but too old for another. We want them to understand that they are important to the growth of the church.”
Cato said the name of the ministry is Cultivate and that it will use social media and apps for communication.