English
Korean
Spanish
‘A season of equipping’
W
hen John Meador arrived as senior pastor of Cross City Church (then First Baptist Euless) in 2006, he brought something extra: SALT, an intensive discipleship program that he says is “unparalleled” in its preparation of teachers.
SALT—or, Servant Approach to Leadership Training—is the brainchild of Eddie Rasnake, discipleship pastor at Meador’s previous church, Woodland Park Baptist of Chattanooga, Tenn. The SALT Institute remains a vital ministry of that church.
“When I came here, the search team asked me to bring the material,” Meador said, explaining that Rasnake and Woodland Park had developed the course even before Meador had become pastor of the Chattanooga congregation.
“There is a high level of expectation. It is a seminary-level course,” Meador said.
Church member Sharon Smith echoed her pastor’s words. Smith and her husband, Claude, have been members of Cross City for 37 years. She was a Bible study leader at the church when Meador came. As a veteran Precept group leader, Smith had significant experience with inductive Bible study methods and was pleased when Meador recruited her to participate in the pioneer SALT class at Cross City in 2007.
“The purpose is to equip people who are called to be pastors, teachers, [serve] in full-time ministry, or those who have a burden to teach or serve in the local church.”
“I was blessed to be included,” Smith said. “We did SALT for two years. I loved it, absolutely loved it. It began a season of equipping for our church. After the success of the initial launch, we added a morning ladies’ class, which I led. It was a great decision which led to several graduating classes of women.”
Although the church experimented with shorter versions of SALT over the years, the basic course continues to require a two-year commitment. With Rasnake’s permission, Cross City adapted the course somewhat, but essentially, its SALT classes follow his curriculum for four semesters, Smith said.
“The purpose is to equip people who are called to be pastors, teachers, [serve] in full-time ministry, or those who have a burden to teach or serve in the local church,” Smith said. “Pastor John says that Jesus made it clear that leadership in the kingdom is different than leadership in the world.”
A life-changing course
Meador taught SALT in the early years, then stepped away to spearhead the church’s Can We Talk? evangelism outreach based on materials he authored. When the pandemic changed the nature of door-to-door evangelism, and following the death of longtime Cross City SALT teacher David Crome in 2022, Meador stepped back into the SALT teaching role. He shares those duties with Smith—who acts as course coordinator and facilitates the class when Meador is absent.
Cross City members wishing to take the course go through an application process to ensure they have a grasp of basic Christian doctrine and understand the requirements of the two-year commitment.
“There’s homework every week. There’s Greek involved. This is not for those looking for a light Bible study,” Smith said.
Regular attendance is expected, with classes held for two hours on Wednesday evenings each semester. Anticipation rises as each two-year course draws to a close and enrollment begins for the next. Classes run around 10 students, and all must enroll at the beginning. There are no mid-program additions during the two years.
To date, 102 Cross City students have completed SALT. Most are serving as teachers and Bible study leaders at Cross City, at other churches, or in their communities. Some have gone on to seminaries or become full-time pastors or ministry leaders.
The recent 2023 graduating class reflected “the generations and the multiethnic identity of our church,” Smith said, calling the group “a beautiful picture of heaven.”
Matt Tyson, now of Shreveport, La., called the SALT experience “transforming.” Tyson, then a corporate healthcare finance executive in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, took the course a decade ago. Called to ministry, Tyson left his career to become executive director of Meador’s One Conversation evangelism ministry, then became a pastor in Louisiana, and today pastors 3:18 Church serving the homeless in the Bayou State.
“SALT transformed my thinking, transformed how I studied the Word,” said Tyson, who since has earned a master’s degree in theological studies from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.
Smith and Meador say those are the kinds of ways God is using the SALT program.
“SALT transformed my thinking, transformed how I studied the Word.”
SALT by semester
The SALT curriculum, which can be purchased online, is now published in four manuals. Semester one covers a biblical philosophy of ministry, Smith said. Subjects include the ministries of the church, with ministers from the youth, children’s, preschool, and other departments presenting their philosophies of ministry.
Semester two focuses on handling the Word accurately. This features a section of teaching in which students learn to use Greek study tools effectively. Semester three deals with how to handle difficult subjects and includes an in-depth study of the book of Acts.
Semester four features application skills, as students use what they have learned to create a biblically based message to present to the class.
“It’s just astonishing to see what they come up with after all they have learned,” Smith said. “We celebrate big time at each graduation.”
