Stories of Grace #6 - Steven Larson

Hi, my name is Steven, and I am a pastoral apprentice at Knox. My wife (Liane) and I moved to Calgary to help start Knox Baptist Church, and since then, I have seen God moving mightily in my life, as well as the lives of the members of the church.

I was raised in a Christian household, with a father who is a pastor, and that helped establish a firm foundation with God in my life. I was baptized at the age of 10, and felt a call from around that time to become a pastor and a missionary to spread God’s Word to people who had never heard it before.

However, around that same time, I also felt a strong pull to chase earthly pleasures and fell away from the church, and ignored it for most of my later teens and adult life. It was shortly before I met Liane that I started listening to God’s voice and drawing back to Him. But it wasn’t until I started attending Trails Church (Our sending church) that I really started pursuing God on a deeper level.

Liane and I got married shortly before our move to Calgary. We packed up all our things, loaded our three dogs up, and headed out. Both of us left behind our families (17 siblings between the two of us) and headed out. Initially homeless (God provided for this a few days before the move only) and without jobs. This was at times stressful, but we had faith that God wanted us here, so we listened.

Steven, Liane and Connor

And He has provided above and beyond what we could have expected. I had always “known” the Bible, but since the move, I have learned so much more than what I was expecting. And the more I studied and learned, the more God filled me with His love and an ever-growing passion to spread His Word and live for Him more.

Close to a year and a half after the move, we welcomed our first child, Connor Dennis, into the world. And I have had the privilege of seeing my wife grow into an even more amazing woman. She is a great wife, an amazing mother, and has made constant strides in becoming a godly woman. I couldn’t be more blessed by her and what she does for our family. I have also made such meaningful connections with the people at Knox, and it’s a blessing seeing God’s love flow through each of them and seeing them grow in their faith.

God has continually surprised me with His grace, love, and faithfulness in my journey so far at Knox, and I am excited to see where He will lead this church. I pray that we all can keep trusting in Him and growing in our faithfulness as we grow into the people God wants us to be.