NAMB missionary David Gaskins planted Mosaic Church in Provo, Utah, where several former Mormons, or Latter-day Saints (LDS), have come to faith in Christ. Recently he hosted a group of them in his home so they could share suggestions for how the church can most effectively reach Mormons with the true gospel.
PROVO, Utah — Culturally speaking, David Gaskins is as far removed from the Bible Belt as a North American missionary can be. And yet Gaskins, who planted Mosaic Church in Provo, still knows firsthand this foundational truth of Southern Baptist life: “People,” he said, “always show up for food.”
That’s why, when Gaskins received $100 from the North American Mission Board (NAMB) with a string attached — spend the money in a way that will grow God’s kingdom — he decided on dessert.
“After we prayed about it, we decided to go to a local bakery and buy all the coffee and chocolate ganache cake we could afford,” Gaskins said. “Then we did something we’ve always wanted to do — something I don’t think has ever been done in this city.”
In Provo, where only 0.5% of the population is evangelical Christian, everything revolves around the Mormon, or Latter-day Saint (LDS), church.
“Mormons believe they have to prove they’re worthy of God’s love, and Provo is the hub of the Mormon world,” said Gaskins. “Brigham Young University is here. The Mormon missionary training center is here. And more than 80% of the people in Provo are faithful Latter-day Saints.”
Now almost five years old, Mosaic Church is a congregation filled with Provo residents who made the very costly decision to leave the Mormon church.
“When that happens here, it’s a really big deal,” Gaskins said. “Because in Provo, when you walk away from the Mormon community, you walk away from everything you’ve ever known. That’s why evangelism and discipleship is a really slow process here.”
When the $100 check from NAMB arrived in the mail, Gaskins decided the time was right to try something he’d always wanted to do, but, up until now, never had the people to accomplish.
“We finally have a good pool of former LDS folks at Mosaic who’ve been following Jesus for a few years,” said Gaskins. “So, I said, ‘Let’s get them all together in one room, serve some really good cake, then let them talk.’”
That’s how 14 former LDS church members came to Gaskins’ house one night this spring for cake, coffee and questions.
“I wanted to learn from them,” he said. “And one of the first things that got me when we started talking was hearing them all talk about how scary it was to come to Mosaic for the first time — for those of us who grew up in a Christian church, it’d be like deciding one Sunday morning to skip church and attend a mosque.
“And it’s not that I didn’t already know that, but hearing this collective wisdom from one person saying this, and then every other person in the circle saying, ‘Yes, me too, me too,’ that was huge.”
What followed, as planned, was a conversation that revealed insightful feedback.
Gaskins’ guests told him Mosaic’s website needed a resource page so former LDS church members, who are used to seeing a church’s seal of approval, can know the difference between trustworthy and untrustworthy material. They told him he needed to start posting sermon videos on YouTube for Mormon seekers who, more often than not, research their doubts behind closed doors. And finally, they told him which Mosaic ministry was most effective at reaching Mormons who are questioning their religion.
“It was one-on-one discipleship. Every single person in that group said they connected with someone at Mosaic who patiently walked with them and listened to all their questions,” said Gaskins. “That was huge, because then we were able to turn the conversation around and say, ‘OK, now, that you all have been Christians for a few years, it’s your turn to make an impact.’ And since that evening, some of them have really caught that vision.”
Gaskins settled on his $100 idea with the truism in mind that people always show up for food. He ended it with another: Every gift counts, no matter the size.
“Faithful, consistent giving bears fruit — always,” Gaskins said. “Southern Baptists giving to the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering provided something that seems so simple — coffee and dessert. But it became a night of ultimate gospel importance. It brought Southern Baptist pastors and former LDS believers together to talk about how we can reach Mormons in Provo, Utah.
“That’s a pretty radical thing — all for just $100. Amazing.”
To learn how God is using Annie Armstrong Easter Offering gifts of all sizes to make Jesus known in an unreached place like Provo, go to anniearmstrong.com/gaskins.
