Kim Menon was an avowed atheist. As a child her parents took her to church but no one could satisfy her with the answers she sought.
“I thought believers just weren’t intelligent enough,” Menon said.
Now a kindergarten teacher in Seattle, Washington, education is a central part of her life. Striving to get involved in her students’ lives and to know their parents, she believes that’s how students best learn and grow. But Menon had no idea this path would lead her into a Christian commitment.
Three years ago Andy Brown moved from Camden, Arkansas, to Seattle to plant churches, aided by Southern Baptists’ Cooperative Program (CP) missions and ministry outreach.
Larry Bailey, missions pastor at Central Baptist Church, Jonesboro, Arkansas, a sponsor church for Brown’s mission, noted, “Together we are able to [impact] places like Seattle because it’s so expensive to live there.”
After arriving in Seattle, Brown registered his son for kindergarten at the local school, where he was placed in Menon’s class. The school building seemed to be in good shape but Brown noticed the grounds needed landscaping and care.
When Brown talked to the principal about his desire to help the school, she was hesitant. Brown agreed to work with no mention of his religious beliefs. Everyone knew he was the pastor of The Landing Church but there would be no pressure from Brown while he was on campus. He was there only to serve. Many teachers were curious why he would do all that work with nothing in return, so it piqued their interest.
Brown noted that in a small church like The Landing in Seattle’s secular environment, “most of the new believers are still not comfortable being bold with their faith.
“So we have to have a lot of outside help to have a constant presence in the community” since The Landing does almost all the landscaping at the school along with some painting and catering several times a year for the teachers and other special events.
Vital missions trip
That’s why missions trips from sponsor churches like Central Baptist are important. Bailey was involved in one of those missions trips as a volunteer in Menon’s class, making copies, grading papers, helping with projects — anything to be of service.
“She was very suspicious,” Bailey said. “She said, ‘I don’t get it. You fly all the way from Arkansas to Seattle to make copies for me. Why?’”
He simply explained, “Because we want to love you and show you that God loves you too.”
As they worked, Menon sat in the back of the classroom and watched with tears streaming down her face.
“I had never met anyone who did things like that without wanting something in return,” Menon said. “I thought Christians were predators who didn’t really care about who I was.”
For more than two years, the Brown family continued to minister to the school and to Menon, among others. At the same time Menon’s marriage was falling apart and she wanted to save it. She knew the Browns were pro-marriage and came to them for help. Menon felt hurt and rejected by her husband, but the Browns showed her they would love her no matter what.
‘I am not alone’
It made Menon wonder if there was something to all the talk about Jesus. So she began to learn about God on her own. If she heard them mention a Christian book, she would secretly buy the book and read it.
It wasn’t long until Menon was ready for the “God talk.” She was alone, listening to Christian music, and a song came on the radio that spoke to her. “I am not alone,” she said. “Even though my husband leaves me, God will never leave me.”
She called the church and Brown wasn’t available, so she spoke with a woman there. “I feel something different inside me,” Menon began to explain. During the conversation, the woman led her in a salvation prayer over the phone.
Menon brought 19 of her unsaved friends to her baptism, and she is now the part-time children’s minister at The Landing Church.
“My life has changed immeasurably,” she said. “I used to omit the words ‘under God’ from the Pledge of Allegiance. I was for gay rights and now I have a different definition of marriage — God’s definition. I didn’t even know what a gospel tract was three years ago and now I’m handing them out.”
EDITOR’S NOTE — This article first appeared in Arkansas Baptist News.
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