{"id":27362,"date":"2025-03-25T09:58:19","date_gmt":"2025-03-25T13:58:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.namb.net\/send-network\/?post_type=resource&p=27362"},"modified":"2025-05-01T10:10:53","modified_gmt":"2025-05-01T14:10:53","slug":"church-planting-port-arthur","status":"publish","type":"resource","link":"https:\/\/www.namb.net\/send-network\/resource\/church-planting-port-arthur\/","title":{"rendered":"Church planting in Port Arthur Reaches the marginalized"},"content":{"rendered":"

(PORT ARTHUR, Texas) — K<\/span><\/span>indness and acceptance were not things David usually experienced in his interactions with other people.<\/p>\n

Despite being described as covered in tattoos and looking \u201cscary,\u201d that\u2019s what was shown to him when he attended Port Arthur City Church<\/a> on the first day it launched as a church plant last year.<\/p>\n

Julian Mart\u00ednez, the church\u2019s pastor, remembers it well: David showed up with his mother, and after the service ended that morning, he approached Mart\u00ednez in an aggressive manner.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe seemed to be high,\u201d Mart\u00ednez recalled.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Church members (top left) work hard to connect with the community and share the gospel.<\/em> (Photo submitted to The Texan)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Nevertheless, David returned to the church, visiting every week and eventually giving his life to Jesus Christ. Yes, that David\u2014the drug-selling, drug-addicted, \u201cscary\u201d man\u2014had been transformed and made new. That David, who had hardly set foot in a church, was now serving hand in hand with his pastor and pointing others to Christ alongside church members who welcomed him and loved him from day one.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I arrived at this church, I found the peace I needed,\u201d David said. \u201c[This is] a congregation of people who did not judge me, but who accepted me and prayed for me and my family.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt has been an incredible story to see him raise his hands in worship and see his passion for the Lord and how God has literally changed who he is in just one year,\u201d Mart\u00ednez said.<\/p>\n

People like David are why Mart\u00ednez and his family answered God\u2019s call to plant Port Arthur City Church\u2014to bring hope to the lost ones, those who find comfort in the dark corners of culture where many dare not tread.<\/p>\n

Mart\u00ednez knows those corners all too well.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The old made new\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

Mart\u00ednez got mixed up with a bad crowd by age 12. He began taking drugs and living a reckless life. By age 15, his girlfriend, Melissa\u2014who is now his wife\u2014became pregnant. In his quest to provide for his family, he made yet another bad choice, becoming a \u201ccoyote,\u201d a person who helps smuggle other people into the country illegally. At age 17, the father of two nearly got caught, leading him to try to change his life. He moved to San Angelo, but before long, he was once again immersed in the culture of partying and drug use.<\/p>\n

After living that lifestyle for several years, Mart\u00ednez said he began to sense God drawing him toward Him. Something changed after he and Melissa attended church on Easter in 2001. The sin that once dominated his life no longer left him feeling satisfied.<\/p>\n

Sensing the Lord at work during a visit, an aunt began sharing the message of Christ with Julian and Melissa. Eventually, both gave their lives to Jesus and, before long, Mart\u00ednez said he began feeling called by God to preach.<\/p>\n

Mart\u00ednez spent the next season of life studying theology and apologetics, and later, the Lord opened the door for him to serve first as a worship pastor and then leading young married couples at a church in Nederland, a Southeast Texas town located about 10 miles north of Port Arthur. The church in Nederland afforded him the opportunity to eventually serve as a pastoral intern and then as an associate pastor. He remained there for eight years, until the Lord called him to plant Port Arthur City Church.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was one day when I was eating tacos in a small town nearby on the other side of the tracks called Port Arthur that the Lord called me to plant a church,\u201d Mart\u00ednez said.<\/p>\n

Though it\u2019s nestled among a cluster of smaller rural towns, Port Arthur is very urban and culturally diverse, Mart\u00ednez said. Once God called Mart\u00ednez to plant, he said he was immediately aware of the great need for the gospel there. The city of nearly 60,000 people has only a handful of Southern Baptist churches.<\/p>\n

\u2018People like me\u2019\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

\"\"
Julian Mart\u00ednez uses his past to propel his heart for ministry at Port Arthur City Church.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Port Arthur City Church opened its doors on Easter Sunday 2024. Its mission is clear: to reach the community with the gospel of Jesus Christ and to make disciples. The church accomplishes this through intentional efforts to connect with people, handing out food or T-shirts alongside schools and businesses at community events. The church also has a strong presence on social media\u2014which is how David and his family found out about the church. Mart\u00ednez said he is constantly answering messages on social media from people asking for prayer.<\/p>\n

Mart\u00ednez said he has not done it alone. He shares how his own pastor, Daniel Ward, wanted to support him from the beginning in planting a church. Ward put Mart\u00ednez in touch with Julio Arriola, director of Send Network SBTC<\/a>, which works with the North American Mission Board to plant churches across Texas. Once connected with Send Network SBTC, Mart\u00ednez went through a formal process of assessment and training before launching the church.<\/p>\n

Located on one of the busiest streets in Port Arthur, City Church welcomes around 75 people every Sunday, with new visitors every week, Mart\u00ednez said, noting, \u201cPeople know who we are.\u201d He recalls one occasion when a homeless man came up to him and told him, \u201cI\u2019ve heard about you and we\u2019re glad you are here. I heard that you are trying to reach out to people like me who need hope and encouragement.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat,\u201d Martinez told the man, \u201cis exactly why we have come.\u201d<\/p>\n

Editor’s Note: This story first appeared here<\/a> in <\/em>The Southern Baptist Texan.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(PORT ARTHUR, Texas) — Kindness and acceptance were not things David usually experienced in his interactions …<\/p>\n

Church planting in Port Arthur Reaches the marginalized<\/span> Read More »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":27382,"template":"","meta":{"_oasis_is_in_workflow":0,"_oasis_original":0,"content-type":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}}},"tags":[],"channels":[],"topics":[],"languages":[],"class_list":["post-27362","resource","type-resource","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nChurch planting in Port Arthur Reaches the marginalized - 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