Mosaic Mennonites

Missional - Intercultural - Formational

Call to Ministry Story

Never Too Young for God

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I remember feeling a calling to the ministry as a young boy growing up in the Catholic Church. In third grade, I was preparing to receive my communion for the first time. I took this very seriously; it was a big deal.  

Leading up to this time, I recall being picked on and teased for my faith. “Kyle is going to be the priest of the family,” I heard.  Even though I was teased, I found a love for God’s church. However, due to unfortunate circumstances, my family stopped going to church before I started high school.  

This was the beginning of some very dark years for me. During my high school years, I was involved with the wrong group of friends, my family relationships were distant, I did not care about my studies, and I had little to no relationship with God.  

In my early college years, I met Alicia, who later became my wife. Alicia told me more about Jesus than I had ever known before. This also led me to have my first interaction at Franconia (PA) Mennonite Church, where I felt a real sense of welcome and community.   

During the Good Friday service in 2015 at Franconia Church, I heard the voice of God. God told me, “This is where I want you; this is where you will raise your family. This is where you belong.” This was the first time I heard the audible voice of God, and I have desired to be obedient to his calling for me to be at Franconia.  

Prior to that, my plan for my life had been one of destruction and sin. Yes, I felt a calling to ministry when I was a boy, but I wanted to ignore that calling. But when I heard God speak, I was open to his guidance and will for my life. I was tired of keeping my back to him. When God spoke, I realized that his plan for my life was better than my own. When God spoke, I was ready to listen. Since then, I have developed a strong desire to share God’s truth and God’s truth alone. 

I have been told that I am too young to be a pastor, too young to be preaching the Word, or too young to be so conservative. In the past, these comments would hurt, and it would cause self-doubt. Maybe I am not ready?  

However, I have taken a new approach to this mindset. I desire for God to use me for the church today and the church of the next generation. Too often I see youth and others feel like they need to take a back seat because they feel too young and inadequate. I want to help them be open for God to use them, whether they are 11 or 43.  

While in my pastoral role at Franconia, I have seen God use the youth in powerful ways, ways that have taught me, and other adults, a thing or two. So, I challenge you: How is God using the children or youth in your life? What can you learn from them? Don’t say they are too young. God can use them just like he can use you!  

Called to Hope

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After 20 years of pastoral service, is it surprising that the Salvatori family is answering the call to serve in the Dominican Republic as missionaries?  Most of our friends have answered emphatically, “No!”  Most people who know us well thought God might use us in intercultural ministry.

The Salvatori family: (L-R) Stacy, Talia, Franco, Micah (in back), and Anna. Photo provided by Stacy Salvatori of Salvatori Photography.

However, our ministry call story begins long before we met each other, as the legacy of serving others for the Gospel of Jesus Christ began in our families of origin.  

For Franco, his story started as a young boy when Jesus radically transformed his family.  His father, an alcoholic and addict, came home one day reporting a new faith in Jesus had changed him.  It would only be a few short years before his parents began working in the local church and eventually became the executive directors of a local mission.  

Stacy’s legacy of ministry runs even deeper.  Her maternal grandfather was a Methodist pastor in rural Kentucky, and her father’s family spent two generations in foreign missionary service in the Democratic Republic of Congo.  As a martyred missionary, her grandfather’s legacy sent all three of his children into full time mission service and Stacy’s parents still serve in the Democratic Republic of Congo as career missionaries. 

As a family, we have often prayed about opportunities to serve interculturally.  For years, God led us to serve in local churches and pastoral roles.  At this time, it is the training, education, and pastoral ministry experience that will be central to our role as missionaries. Bold Hope International has invited us to join their team in the Dominican Republic in three main areas:  Development, Pastoral Training, and Advocacy.  

Trains are used to transport sugarcane from the countryside to the central processing plant in La Romana, Dominican Republic. Photo provided by Stacy Salvatori of Salvatori Photography.

These three points of interest have led us to serve in the Dominican Republic:

  • There are migrant workers (primarily Hatians) who have found asylum in small sugarcane villages (bateys) that allow them to survive, but not thrive.  
  • Approximately 85% of pastors globally have never received any theological training.
  • We believe the good news of Jesus Christ overcomes this lack of resources and we want to be part of the solution.  

In the bateys, our family will work alongside the child sponsorship and educational initiatives to help bring hope in these villages.  We will work to strengthen and develop the pastoral networks to provide the training and resources that pastors and churches need to further the gospel.  And we will help partner individual bateys with churches and organizations in the Dominican Republic and abroad to offer long term investments and impact in these communities.  

Bateys are villages that house sugarcane workers.  This half-court basketball court serves as a central gathering point for the young people in this batey. Photo provided by Stacy Salvatori of Salvatori Photography.

We believe in the hopeful news that God offers humanity through Jesus.  We believe in the work of Bold Hope International.  And we believe God has been preparing us for this for a long time.  

We are excited about the opportunity God is calling our family to and ask you to partner with us in prayer. If you would like to offer financial support or become a partner organization in a batey, please visit our website at The Hopeful Endeavor.

Faith that is Worth Everything

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I would describe my call to ministry as something of a gradual, unfolding process that took place over time rather than anything resembling a one-time event. I became a Christian in 1972, just months before beginning college in a very secular setting in rural New Hampshire. 

Although my family had attended church regularly while I was growing up, I do not recall ever hearing a clear presentation of the gospel during that time. So everything about the faith felt very new to me. I was reading the Bible and was involved in meaningful Christian fellowship for the first time. I simply was trying to learn what it meant to cultivate an actual relationship with God.  

The first conviction I remember dawning on me as a believer was that being a follower of Jesus was the most important thing in life. That was a significant paradigm shift for me. I can recall it occurring to me that if this faith was worth anything, it must be worth everything. I wanted to live consistently with that truth. 

The second conviction was related to the first: while I had very little idea at the time of what it would mean for the future, I became aware that the primary thing I wanted to do with my life was to serve God in some full-time capacity. I probably did not have a very good understanding at that point of the priesthood of all believers and that one could serve God in any vocation; I simply knew that I wanted the focus of my life to be some form of ministry. 

After college graduation, I worked for a year and then got involved with “A Christian Ministry in the National Parks.” I spent six months in Death Valley National Monument (now Park) in California, working during the week and leading church services for visitors on the weekends. That was my first experience preaching regularly and served to confirm the desire of my heart to be involved in full-time ministry. 

In the fall of 1978, I began a masters of divinity program at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Massachusetts. I had numerous opportunities to serve in a local church during those years and received a lot of encouragement from people. I finished seminary in 1982 and have been engaged in pastoral ministry ever since. I was called to serve as Care Pastor at Souderton (PA) Mennonite Church in early 2017. 

Looking back, I resonate with the Lord’s statement to Paul recorded in 2 Corinthians 12:9, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (NIV). It has been a great privilege for me to serve in Christ’s church and to preach “the unsearchable riches of Christ” (Eph. 3:8, KJV).  

I am conscious, however, that any fruit borne has been the result of God’s grace manifested through my own weakness. Scripture and experience have taught me that “we have this treasure [the ministry of the gospel] in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us” (2 Cor. 4:7, NIV). 

As I come down the homestretch of full-time ministry, I hope to keep relying on God’s grace and power so that God will be glorified, the church edified, and many brought to Christ. Beyond that, all I really desire is to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant,” on the last day! 

Provoked by God

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by Melky Tirtasaputra, Whitehall (Allentown, PA) congregation

I grew up with one older brother and two younger sisters, all with various religious beliefs.  My grandmother was a mystic from Banten (Indonesia) and converted to Christianity.  My mom only believed in God and my father was an animist.  My brother attended a Catholic school since kindergarten, while my two other sisters went to a Christian school.  I used to lived in a Buddhist temple, learned mysticism, and went to a Muslim school where I learned how to pray and follow the Muslim lifestyle. I searched for my religious identity.   

God’s purpose for my life started in 6th grade.  The way God called me was amazing.  At an early age, I was an independent child who sold goods to make money. I was fascinated by money. A friend invited me to go to church. Every time I walked to church, I found money on the street. God “provoked” me through money. 

On April 24, 1981 (Good Friday), I was baptized.  Since that day, I became more and more interested in serving God and always longed to go to church, until I was almost kicked out of my home. God changed my life not only to be His servant, but also by helping my parents see the changes in my life. Finally, my parents became believers and were baptized. On Pentecost my entire family went to church together. 

When I was 16 years old, I felt a strong calling from God for me to be more engaged in the Bible so I took an online course while I also studied psychology.  For three years, I took Bible classes at night and then started to preach at our church. 

Through the years, earning money came very easily for me. It caused me to almost forget what my calling was, even though I was a high school religion teacher. 

One day I met a girl who has now become my wife.  She saw my potential and God’s calling on me as His servant. This is why she wanted to marry me.  However, I ignored that calling because I wanted to be a businessman who could also serve God. 

In 2001, we moved to the USA and lived in Philadelphia. We started a new life, working at the factory. Every Sunday I attended church services and sometimes served as a singer. 

In 2005, we joined Philadelphia Praise Center (Philadelphia, PA) and served together with Aldo Siahaan as Head Elders. 

In 2007, I pursued an opportunity to start a business with FedEx as an Independent Contractor, while still serving as an Elder at Philadelphia Praise Center.  In 2010, I moved to Nations Worship Center (Philadelphia, PA) to assist Pastor Beny Krisbianto and the congregation, who had just joined Franconia Conference. My duties were to serve as an elder and head of the church construction, while my wife was in charge of the church’s finances. 

In 2015 I began taking pastoral ministry classes at Eastern Mennonite University, graduating in 2018.  In October 2019, I responded to God’s calling as a pastor at Whitehall Mennonite Church (Allentown, PA), joining Pastor Rose Bender.

It turns out I enjoy my calling as a pastor.  I thank God for His faithfulness and love as God waits for my response to His calling. Thanks to my wife who always supports me and never gives up either. Thank you to EMU and to Mosaic Mennonite Conference who helped me fulfill my calling.

Called To Care, Sent To Serve

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by Charlene Smalls, Ripple congregation (Allentown, PA) 

Charlene Smalls, co-pastor of Ripple, preaches during a Sunday worship service.

I was raised by a long line of strong, God-fearing, caring black women who believed that there was power in knowing the name of Jesus. I sense there has always been a call on my life to serve God. As a young girl growing up in the Baptist church, I could strongly sense the presence of God, but had not grown in my understanding of the person of Jesus Christ yet. That understanding actually came with lots of life lessons and a long journey. 

I had two grandmothers that I attended church with: one was Pentecostal, the other was Baptist. I believe I learned to sense the presence of God from my Pentecostal roots, but was drawn to Baptist theology because of its structure. The gift of God, given to me from both these women, helped me get through the loss of a sibling, living with a grieving mother, having a father who returned from the military with a drug addiction, and my own mistakes and failures. The one consistent thing in my life was the presence of God, to which I was always drawn, no matter what. 

In 1989, after a failed marriage, I moved to Pennsylvania and joined the Union Baptist Church where my spiritual growth truly began. I was blessed to remarry, and I have been gracefully married for 30 years to my soulmate. After opening a nail salon that I called Intimate Expressions, my call and ministry unknowingly began. Sitting in that business day after day, as Jesus healed me, He used me to help bring healing to others. 

Life is full of storms, and it was in the midst of a storm that I received my call. I can remember pacing and praying one evening. When God spoke it was not to answer my prayer, but to announce the call on my life. I was thinking, “You have to be kidding! I am broken. How can I minister to others?” 

I have come to realize that I was called to care. I see my call as a sending, God telling me to “Go.” I knew God was sending me, and I knew that wherever He sent me, He would also be with me, as He always has been. 

After being a licensed Baptist minister, receiving my degree in Arts and Religion at Liberty University, and serving as Director of Outreach at Union Baptist Church for 15 years, I now serve as Co-Pastor at Ripple Mennonite Church. This is where Jesus has sent me to care for others. 

My experience with the Pentecostal faith taught me to sit in the presence of God and be open to the voice of the Holy Spirit. That same voice has now led me to this place and an understanding that Jesus is the center of my faith, community is truly the center of my life, and reconciliation is the purpose of those who are called to care.

A Village Boy was Chosen

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by Pastor Joshua Daichor So, San Francisco (CA) Chinese Mennonite Church

I am very thankful to have the opportunity to write my call to ministry story again after 55 years.  It sounds like I should already be retired by now but God still gives me the grace to be part of His story.  I also appreciate the Conference giving me this chance to share.  It was 1965 when I was first asked to write my call to ministry story as part of my entry application to study at The Hong Kong Alliance Bible Seminary.  How can I not be thankful?

I was born in a remote village in Mainland China and was raised in an idol worshiping family.  As the Bible said, “God knits me together in my mother’s womb and I am chosen!”  God had a plan for me!

Our family moved to Hong Kong when I was around 11 years old.  We lived very close to a church and with my curiosity, I stopped in and attended their Sunday school class with my neighbors’ kids for the first time.  From that time on, I became a regular Sunday school attender.  Listening to the Bible stories was always the highlight of each Sunday.  But most of all, receiving awards from the teachers was powerfully motivating to me. 

I accepted Jesus during Sunday school one week and gradually joined a small group.  With my diligent and optimistic character, I was selected to be on the staff of the small group and also serve as a Sunday school teacher.  I was amazed to find blessings and joy from serving the Lord in those roles. Besides attending the small group and Sunday school, I also attended the worship service regularly. The senior pastor, the minister, Sunday school teachers, and brothers and sisters were very proud of me and set me as a role model to other worshippers.  I was also blessed with ample opportunities to serve the Lord at church.

As I remember, I was asked to be the moderator of the Sunday worship when I was only a middle schooler.  I accepted that offer without hesitation.  I strongly believed that serving the Lord is what is pleasing to the Lord and a blessing! I was also in charge of a Sunday evening outreach.

My youth group leader encouraged me to pursue seminary after high school in my last year of middle school.  Even though I was quiet at that time, the Holy Spirit already began to mold me.  Our senior pastor couldn’t be at church regularly and our minister left to further his studies in the US. This left no one in charge of the church.  In my heart, I sensed the urge from the Holy Spirit.  

One day at a school worship service, the preacher invited the audience to accept Jesus’s invitation by using Isaiah 6:8, “Whom shall I send and who will go for us?”  I replied, “Here am I, send me!”  After I finished my high school in 1966, I attended Hong Kong Alliance Bible Seminary and graduated in 1970.  This year marks 50 years since I first graduated. 

God called me from Hong Kong to Los Angeles in 1975 and a year later to San Francisco. There I completed a BA in Sociology, an M.Div (Sociology major) at Golden Gate Baptist Seminary, and finished a D. Min (Cross Cultural Study major) at San Francisco Theological Seminary, with God’s grace. I will continue to serve the Chinese in the San Francisco area with my wife (Anita) and daughter (Sharon).  Praise the Lord!

Water the Seed

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by Jordan Luther, Zion congregation

I was told that I would become a pastor. Not by any one person. Just by everyone. In the tight-knit, southern community of my upbringing, it is not uncommon for adults to forecast the vocations of children.

Grade school teachers would send notes home to my parents with remarks like, “He’ll make a good pastor someday.” The babysitter often mentioned to my parents how the way I played with the other kids reminded her of a pastor. My aunts and uncles, several of whom are pastors themselves, would defer to me to say grace before family meals.

No matter where I went, the comparison followed. My recollections of childhood are fundamentally linked to friends, family, neighbors, and strangers telling me that I will become a pastor.

Though many noticed pastoral gifts in me in my early childhood, I did not interpret these gifts as a call. I insisted to everyone that my call was more likely to the Major Leagues as a professional baseball player or in the rodeo as a bull rider. Those seemed like more attractive options to me. However, unbeknownst to me, a small seed had been planted in my heart.

The adults in my life did not plant the seed. Rather, I believe God had planted it there and entrusted my community to water it and give it a chance to grow. Every time someone affirmed pastoral gifts in me, this seed received life-altering rain.

Eventually, this seed emerged from the depths of my heart into the forefront of my consciousness. It was time for me, and the rest of the world, to see what God had planted in me.

I remember I was in church the first time I truly felt God calling me into a life of ministry. Our children’s minister was teaching a lesson on the different gifts Christ left the church. He began by reading, “The gifts he gave were that some would be…” (Ephesians 4:11, NRSV). When the phrase, “pastors and teachers,” was read aloud, I felt a warm sensation start in my chest and consume my entire body. It was as if hearing those words awakened the seed that was buried deep within me.

I remember sharing with our children’s minister what I felt; I remember explaining that I believe God is calling me to become a pastor. He agreed. So did my parents and our pastor when I shared the same experience with them later that same day.

This is the moment when I felt called to ministry.

The rest of my story of call is best summarized as watering the seed. I am grateful that my church, family, and community did not stop watering the seed after I expressed my initial sense of call. The church in particular has been there for me as I continue to grow into my calling, giving me space to learn and fail through the support of encouraging relationships.

If I can recommend any advice from my call story, it is this: water the seed. Water the seed in yourself and others. For who knows what God has planted in our hearts until we give it a chance to grow.

Finding the God of Justice: My Spiritual Journey

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by Lindy Backues, Philadelphia Praise Center

My spiritual story begins just outside of St. Louis, Missouri, on the Illinois side of the Mississippi River.

I grew up in a predominantly white, midwestern town of 40,000, where most everyone looked like me.  I did not grow up in a Christian home. My parents espoused what was, at that time, “typical” midwestern values, however, so they were not completely antagonistic to religion.  We simply were not religious.

As a teenager, I applied to the YMCA as a bus counselor in a neighboring city, East St. Louis, Illinois.  This was a historically black, urban area, deeply scarred by decades of systemic and cultural racism. My experiences there drastically altered my perspective on life. I later served as a swim instructor.  I worked almost exclusively with African American kids. By and large, these young children, who wanted little more than to play and to learn to swim, were delightful in their glee as they participated in these programs.  I became quite attached to them and also got to know their families.

The undeniable racism they experienced became obvious to me.  Most young white boys in my area would not have been aware such racism even existed.  My still deeply rooted sense of justice first took shape at that YMCA in East St. Louis.

A side-effect of this was that I developed disdain for local churches in my area, since the racism there was palpable. As a teenager, I was becoming increasingly convinced (primarily by way of my father) that religion was unnecessary and something smart people discarded.  I went through my high school years and onto college with these attitudes.

In 1982, toward the end of my time at the University of Missouri, I experienced an unexpected spiritual conversion.  I attended a church service with my mother (who had recently rediscovered religion and I went along to appease her).  In a miraculous encounter, I became aware that the God of justice – the God of the biblical story – also did not like racism (nor did God like sexism, nor depletion of earth’s resources).  I did not plan for this to happen; it simply did. At the tender age of 22, I found myself ushered into a version of the gospel I still find appealing.

Being given such a radical but limited epiphany of God’s kingdom, I headed off to seminary to deepen my theological understanding.  In 1988, I graduated from Asbury Theological Seminary, receiving a Master of Divinity degree, with a focus on biblical studies and anthropology.

After seminary (and getting married in 1985), my wife and I moved to Indonesia. We lived there for the next 18 years (our daughter and son were born there).  We became deeply involved in economic and community development in a predominantly Muslim area, located in the province of West Java. Along the way, I added a Master’s degree in Economic Development and a PhD in Theology and Development Studies.

In 2008 we relocated to South Philadelphia and I began teaching at Eastern University.  We joined Philadelphia Praise Center (PPC) at that time. A few years later, I felt myself nudged by God to receive official licensure as Outreach Minister for Philadelphia Praise Center, something that has brought my official credentials into line with this long march God had led me on.