In August 2025, Dr. Jeremy Kimble invited students to join a church-planting-focused Global Outreach trip to Salt Lake City, Utah. After prayerful contemplation and careful consideration, a group of roughly 30 students committed to spending a week in the heart of Utah bolstering a church planting effort with the Plant for the Gospel family of churches in the Salt Lake City area.
Preparing to Go
We met occasionally before the trip to prepare ourselves to minister to one of the only pre-Christian areas in the United States. Through both doctrinal and cultural training, we prayerfully anticipated engaging a place in desperate need of the Gospel.
Our team landed in Salt Lake City on Saturday, February 28. We were warmly welcomed by plenty of members and pastors of the Plant for the Gospel churches, who brought us to Gospel Grace Church in downtown Salt Lake City. Once there, Pastor Will Galkin informed us of the present state of the Plant for the Gospel family of churches, particularly the upcoming launch of Gospel Fellowship Church in Saratoga Springs, Utah (roughly 45 minutes from Salt Lake City).
After this, Pastor Will walked us through the primary beliefs of the predominant religion in Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS, commonly known as Mormonism). He noted that, in some areas, the LDS make up over 80% of the population, while evangelical Christianity makes up just 1%. This means that many will be born, live their lives, and pass away in this region without ever hearing the true Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Although there may seem to be many similarities between the LDS and evangelicals, there are clear lines of demarcation that revealed that the LDS church is not merely a separate denomination but an entirely different religion. This reality weighed heavily upon our hearts as the true lostness of Salt Lake City began to set in.
Reaching the Lost Through Ordinary Means
Throughout the week, our primary goal was to spread the news about Gospel Fellowship’s upcoming church plant. We travelled around the local neighborhoods to give out door-hangers with information about the first public worship service in a local school auditorium.
When the week was over, we had handed out over 9,000 of those door-hangers in the hope that they could bring many in to hear the Gospel on Easter Sunday.
During this week, we also had the opportunity to interact with many people who did not know the Gospel. Our interactions with members of the LDS church left us burdened by the veil that was over their eyes (2 Corinthians 3:15) but encouraged to know that we had the message of life that could truly save these people.
While it was tragic to see so many who were walking apart from the Lord, we were comforted to know that He who is in us is greater than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4).
This trip was eye-opening for me and the other members of our team. It was the first time I had been in an environment that was considered unreached. It was shocking to travel to an area of the United States where the Christianity was the overwhelming minority. The Lord used this trip in my life and the lives of the other students to open our eyes to the reality of the lostness of Salt Lake City.
Leaving, I felt a weightiness at the thought of the multitudes of people living in darkness without the hope of Christ. Yet, I was also greatly encouraged by the vibrant life of the churches we visited. Most of all, I was overjoyed to be able to see the work that God is doing in an area that seems so overwrought with darkness.
What You Can Do
I would ask that you join us in praying that God would continue to save many through the faithful ministry of the believers in Salt Lake City. Pray that more laborers would be raised up to be sent into the harvest that is the Salt Lake City region (Matthew 9:37–38).
Consider visiting as well; the need is further amplified when you are able to see the ways in which God is working for His glory in unreached places. It’s a glorious privilege to play a small role in God’s plan of redemption.
Posted in: Global Outreach, Religion, Testimony, Uncategorized