Students from Crosspointe Church in Bryant prepare for Sunday morning worship at Clarkridge Baptist Church.
Fifteen years ago, a small group of Arkansas Baptist students and their adult leaders joined together at First Baptist Church in Pine Bluff for a brand-new missions event called CONNECT. A ministry of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention, CONNECT was started as a way to equip and empower participants to live a missions lifestyle by teaching mission skills and providing opportunities to be actively involved in hands on missions and ministry. Sixty-seven people from four churches completed five ministry projects and learned to share the Gospel during that first weekend event.
Since then, because of CONNECT over 6,000 participants have been trained to share the Gospel and have learned how to identify needs around them and work with others to meet those needs and share the love of Christ. In 15 years, participants have completed over 500 ministry projects, and shared the Gospel thousands of times, resulting in over 100 professions of faith and hundreds of students responding to a call to full-time ministry and/or missions.
The second CONNECT event of 2024 took place during the weekend of Oct. 11-13 in Mountain Home in partnership with the White River Baptist Association under the leadership of Associational Missionary Stace Cupples. East Side Baptist Church (ESBC) of Mountain Home served as the host church and provided over 70 adult volunteers who served in various ways during the weekend. ESBC Missions Director David Small was instrumental in bringing CONNECT to the area and worked alongside Pastor Scott Speer to enlist volunteers and organize the local projects.
A total of 290 participants from 21 churches completed 35 ministry projects, provided food and showers for participants or served as ministry site coordinators. The Gospel was shared 100 times with God providing multiple opportunities for meaningful and life changing conversations and relationship building. Participants were led in worship by ESBC worship leader Jackson Speer and the student worship band. Jared Farley, young adult pastor at FBC Fort Smith brought a challenge each night from God’s Word.
Anyone interested in knowing more about CONNECT and how you can get your group involved is encouraged to contact Travis McCormick at [email protected]. Or visit the website at www.absc.org/connect for information about next year’s camps as it becomes available.
