Learning fundamentals helped Ross family grow together

“If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.”

Jesus offers himself without reservation to the spiritually thirsty, people like Amie and Damian Ross.

They began to follow Christ as adults. Neither had much Bible exposure in childhood, and after they were converted and baptized in 2014, “thirsty” is how Amie describes their desire for God’s Word. They came to Faith Bible Church because they wanted to learn all of what the Bible says, and they valued Faith’s commitment to expository teaching of all Scripture.

Even their young children, Dawsen and Roslyn, noticed it when they came to Faith’s Sunday School. Dawsen recalls that, rather than just playing with toys until the end of the service, “They actually had you sit down and listen and learn about the Bible.”

Over the past decade, the kids’ Sunday classes and classical Christian school supplied biblical and doctrinal knowledge that their parents were also learning at the same time. But they felt their need to continue to grow in their faith as a family. That’s where Fundamentals of the Faith came in.

Fortifying a foundation

The Ross family illustrates the principle that believers of all ages have room to grow until they are in eternity with Christ and completely like Him: “[Christ] we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ” (Colossians 1:28, emphasis added).

Maturity in Christ must be built on a solid foundation of biblical truth.

Damian has heard many testimonies at Faith that start with “I was raised in a Christian home and taught about Jesus.” He and Amie didn’t have that, so they wanted to build confidence to lead their family spiritually. He wanted to teach the kids by example to ask questions and seek answers from and about God’s Word, testing and proving it to be true. “I want to know things. I don’t want to just guess.”

That’s why Damian suggested that they take the Fundamentals of the Faith class as a family. On top of all the other benefits, the class was taught by Chris and Marty Tornquist, whom they had gotten to know and love in their Growth Group. Amie sums it up: “We wanted the foundation, and it was taught by Chris and Marty. It was a no-brainer.”

The Holy Spirit had also been at work giving Dawsen and Roslyn the desire to know God, not just know about Him. Now 16 and 14, each of them trusted in Christ for salvation in the last few years, and both were baptized at the 2024 Christmas Eve service. So in September 2024 they were primed and ready for the Fundamentals class, which meets during the second service most Sundays during the school year.

The Rosses had to make room in their lives for a yearlong commitment. Dawsen and Roslyn, who both enjoyed serving as helpers with Children’s Ministry and running the lyric and Scripture slides during Sunday services, had to step away from those roles for a while. Damian works a night shift, so it was a sacrifice of sorts to spend nearly all of his day off at church and at their Sunday evening Growth Group. But he knew each of those commitments was giving him something he needed. If he was going to lead his family well, learning from God’s Word was what was truly important.

Putting the pieces together

The Fundamentals of the Faith workbook provides an excellent overview of biblical Christianity in itself, but the Rosses say attending the class weekly enhanced their learning on every level. From sharing homemade snacks to watching relevant videos to discussing theology to learning about archaeological facts that agree with the biblical record, the experience became much more than writing the right answers in a workbook.

That may be why some truths hit home in ways that they hadn’t before. Over and over again in class, Amie leaned over to Damian or the kids and asked, “Did you know that?” One example that stands out in her memory is from reading Hebrews 13:17 and learning that church elders will give an account to God for their congregation. She had never noticed that before.

“They weren’t trying to teach the lesson. They were trying to teach you.” Damian Ross

It made her even more grateful for the men who serve the church as elders. “That is a huge responsibility, and I had no idea,” she says. “I probably read that 100 times, but it stuck. That was eye-opening to me.”

For Dawsen and Roslyn, the class was helpful in solidifying and putting together the pieces they have been learning over the years in school. They both enjoy history, and Chris and Marty both brought interesting historical resources and videos to supplement the subject matter.

Dawsen remembers learning about the Dead Sea Scrolls and the relatively recent discovery of an intact copy of the entire book of Isaiah from before the time of Christ. He realized only God could have preserved it for more than 2,000 years and let it be discovered at exactly the right time so that His Word would be confirmed and preserved.

That was a lesson for him about God’s power, providence, and sovereignty: “It was a really good reminder for me that God has a plan for everything, whether you see it or not.”

Dawsen also recalls a video the Tornquists showed in class called “That’s My King,” taken from a famous sermon about Jesus that lists many of His attributes. Dawsen loved the speech and memorized it; he even ended up being chosen to present it to his whole school. More importantly, those attributes of God are hidden in his heart.

Open for questions

Relationships formed a big part of the Rosses’ class experience, starting with their family dynamic. Taking the class together gave them opportunities to discuss at the dinner table what they were all learning. Sometimes Amie would ask her usual questions: “Did you know that? Did you learn that in school? Did it line up?” It was sweet family time, Damian said, when they would continue conversations that began in class over lunch after church.

They also grew closer to the Tornquists and their classmates. Roslyn appreciated the atmosphere of acceptance for the wide range of people who came to the class to learn, from unbelievers to younger kids to elders and their families: “They’re just so welcoming and accepting, and they’re not saying you need to change who you are. They’re just saying we’re going to grow together.”

For Roslyn, helping Marty with preparing drinks and serving snacks for the class was a chance to befriend a wiser, mature woman of faith. Roslyn also says members were able to offer prayer and other support for each other as some struggled through difficult life situations and questions.

The Ross family also appreciated the teachers’ openness to thoughtfully answer any questions they might have. It wasn’t just at a designated Q+A time; whenever they didn’t understand, they could raise a hand and get answers.

Roslyn says that because of the time spent answering questions, in at least one class they hardly even got to the lesson they were scheduled to cover. But nobody really minded.

“They weren’t trying to teach the lesson. They were trying to teach you,” Damian says.

That was important to Roslyn, who says she likes to test and question everything. “I question it, I poke at it, I try to find a loophole.” But with the Bible, “there was no loophole.” The truth and logic all held together, and the class helped “cement” her belief in it.

Damian expresses their shared gratitude for gifted Bible teachers like the Tornquists, who are “just above and beyond. … If you’ve got questions, they’ll sit there and take time and answer them.”

Lynn Yount

Lynn and her husband, Doug, lead a Growth Group. Lynn serves as a writer and editor for Living Faith magazine and other church communications.

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