Stories From Our City | The Shop

Paul* burst through The Shop doors, dishevelled. The team hadn’t seen this youth in quite some time and weren’t expecting the first words that came from his mouth.

“You guys offered me a Bible, can I have that now?”

In the time Rob and The Shop team had spent with Paul before this moment, they had come to know the 16-year-old as a friendly guy who enjoyed chats about different worldviews and often tried to disprove the Christian faith. As they sat with him after handing over a Bible, Rob remembers reading God’s Word with him and “seeing it pierce his soul.” As Paul opened up, they learned he had been a practicing member of a satanic temple and while in the middle of a harmful ritual, had begun to wonder about a god who would show love instead of demanding self-harm. After that day, Paul started reconnecting with The Shop on a regular basis and even found his way to a Christian church. And although his return to the program signified God’s transformative power in His life, the reality that followed reveals how this journey isn’t always linear.

“Our hope is that he would experience Jesus and then his life would be transformed,” Rob said. “I think discipleship and growing your faith is really important, and that process never ends.”

As time passed, Paul once again put distance between himself and Rob, and later, the team discovered he was still connected to a satanic temple. It was a hard reality for them to face, especially after how they’d been able to connect with Paul and share with him about Christ. As they processed the situation, The Shop team held fast to certain truths.

“We don’t have to take ownership of the situation. It is God who saves,” Rob said. “The first time he left and wasn’t coming back, God brought Paul back and He might do that again.”

Knowing and accepting that ministry is not always linear requires youth workers like Rob and Erin to surrender the outcome of their work to the Lord.

“I know God is good. I know that He has a perfect plan for this world. God’s ways are higher than mine,” Erin said. “He establishes everyone’s steps.”

When youth complete their time at The Shop they are given a standing invitation to come for lunch whenever they want. Regardless of how God may be working in the life of a youth, The Shop wants to leave the option for a long term relationship open. Although working with youth in this capacity requires releasing control over what happens, there are still many stories of transformation worth
immense celebration in The Shop’s ministry. One youth who worked with Mark, the Director of The Shop, about a decade ago lost touch with the program shortly after he finished. The Shop thought
he had abandoned his faith, yet just a few years ago, the team reencountered him at a local church he was attending with his daughter. As with this case, and with the story of Paul, we don’t ever know how the Lord will transform His children. But, as Erin and Rob shared, there is hope in God, for His ways are higher than ours, and it is He who saves.

*This story first appeared in our 2026 Signs of the Times publication.