His Sons Taught Him What Love Really Means. God Used The Lesson To Change Thousands Of Lives (+Podcast)

…The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love

Galatians 5:6 NIV

K-LOVE, one of the largest Christian radio stations in the country, recently featured BACC Executive Minister Russ Ewell on its “God Stories” podcast in an episode titled “His Sons Taught Him What Love Really Means. God Used the Lesson to Change Thousands of Lives.“

Russ shares how raising two sons with special needs changed his understanding of love. He and Gail refused to accept that their sons would be left out. What began in 1996 with an inclusive children’s ministry grew into a small soccer program across the street from their home. It has now grown into E-Life: 28 programs and 500 volunteers across the Bay Area.

At BACC, doing good is simply how we do church. It’s our faith expressing itself in love that drives the work. The show’s host, Crystal Thornton, put it this way:

“What you’re doing in the San Francisco Bay Area is incredible… I would love to hear more of this across the country.“

We aim to be a model of faith and inclusion that others can replicate all over the world.

Here are three reasons you need to listen to this episode today:

1. Get inspired by the stories. Spiritual Resource Ministry, E-Soccer, and E-Hoops all started because one family needed them, and then realized other families did too. You’ll hear real stories of the lives that have been changed by these programs and the relationships built from them.
2. Go deeper with God. Russ says he once believed talent was everything. His sons taught him that the real power is “your ability to love a human being… for who they are, not what you think they ought to be.” This is a spiritual lesson we believe God wants each of us to grasp so that we can be a light to the world around us.
3. Hear where the vision is going. E-Life is looking forward to creating an inclusive community where adults with disabilities can live with greater independence, surrounded by lasting relationships.

Read the full article and listen to the interview.