Jessie Barta

I grew up in a Christian home. My dad was a youth pastor for multiple Southern Baptist churches throughout my childhood. From an early age, I learned Bible stories and the basics of the gospel message. Growing up in Christianity, I knew about Jesus all my life. It was all I really knew.

God saved me when I was seven. He used the repeated instruction of my parents to teach me the gospel: that Jesus died for my sins so that I might be forgiven. In the fall of 1994, I began asking my parents questions about Jesus and sins and the need to be saved from them. On January 29, 1995, in my family's home, I asked God to forgive and save me. Soon after, I was baptized at Unity Baptist Church in Florence, SC.

In 2006, I moved to North Greenville University (NGU) to study Early Childhood Education. Within three days, I met Daniel Barta whom I eventually married in 2010. We visited multiple churches before joining Forestville Baptist Church. We quickly became highly involved as Daniel served on staff from 2008 - 2019. Our time there brought many challenges and great joys, and it was during this decade that God developed my relationship with him in a new way. He used this season, especially the difficulties and wounds, to teach me how to live in a relationship with Him. He went from being a character in a story to being someone on whom I leaned. I learned to talk to Him, trust Him, and obey Him even when it was really difficult.

God brought Daniel and me to CFNW in March 2019. We arrived truly wounded, hurt, and weary from a long season of difficulty at our last church. We came in need of healing and rest, and God has used this church to provide it through the loving community and faithful preaching of the gospel. I am thankful for the opportunity to serve alongside Daniel as he serves as one of the pastors. We love serving our MC together and hosting people in our home on a weekly basis. I also regularly serve with CF kids. CFNW, like every other church, is not perfect, but I am incredibly grateful that what we have experienced within the church is genuine community and joy. I am grateful for the deep friendships I have found and I pray that God continues to allow me and my husband to serve and minister here for many more years to come.