The Race for Hope: Another Way to Support God’s Mission in Lafayette and Around the World!

Lately, we as a church have spent a fair amount of time asking questions about how we best accomplish our mission. God has a great story that He’s been playing out since the beginning of time–a story of His glory played out in the arena of man’s sinfulness and God’s holiness. The story tells of God’s redemption of sinful man through the work of His Son, Jesus Christ.  Now, all of Christ’s followers strive to bring Him praise and share this story with the world.

One of the ways Faith as a church has set out to meet these needs and accomplish the mission is through ministries like Vision of Hope and Faith Bible Seminary. Vision of Hope is a residential treatment center helping young women as they battle addictions, eating disorders, self-harm, depression, and a whole host of difficulties. This group shows that Christ is the only one who can heal the broken and change us, from the inside out. Faith Bible Seminary seeks to train pastors and leaders to minister to the hurting.

The Race for Hope

The Race for Hope is an 8k run/5 k walk created to help both of these ministries further their mission. Both of these ministries are in the process of becoming self-sufficient, and this race is a step toward that goal of financial sustainability.

Undoubtedly, we as a church have benefitted from these two ministries, but these ministries have also moved outward to the world.  Alumni of Faith Bible Seminary are serving as pastors and lay leaders in countries across the globe, as well as pastors in church planting here in the states. In addition, our counselors, both on staff at Vision of Hope and trained through the Master of Arts in Biblical Counseling program at the seminary have been able to help many hurting people who have now sought refuge in the cross.

How Can You Help?

There are a few ways you can be involved in supporting this endeavor:

  • Run or Walk: We need participants for the event. To run the 8k (5 miles) or walk the 5k (3 miles), it costs $20. You can run/walk as part of a team that has already chosen a ministry to support, or you can run/walk on your own and select the ministry you want to benefit.
  • Donate: Donations also help us toward our goal; you can sponsor a runner and/or donate directly to one or both ministries. You can also drop off a gift at the church office.
  • Volunteer: Even if you don’t have money to donate or the ability to participate in the race, you can still volunteer your time and help us run the event. We are still in need of people to help direct the runners as they come by. Comment on this post or contact Joe Mieden to help out!

Contributions by Brent Aucoin

Joe Mieden
Joe is a pastoral intern at Faith Church serving in various ministries. He is studying toward an M.Div. at Faith Bible Seminary.