“If you wear a pair of shoes out here, you’ll never want to leave.” Those were the words of my predecessor as I began ministering in the Oklahoma panhandle. There is not much to endear the Oklahoma panhandle to anyone. Few trees, no water, lots of wind, hot summers and cold winters. However, there are great people and a small college campus filled with students, faculty, coaches, staff, and administration. All made in the image of God for His glory and Jared is one of those people.
Meeting Jared
At the request of the head baseball coach, I was leading a weekly devotional with the team. This allowed me to be at practice, meet students and build relationships with everyone involved with the program.
I met Jared, the assistant baseball coach at Oklahoma Panhandle State University (OPSU), in the spring of 2023. Jared had moved from southern California as a college student, to play ball at OPSU. After graduation, he continued with the team as a coach. Jared and I talked regularly at practice and our conversations ranged from baseball to The Lord of the Rings from music to the Bible. Jared was a great guy, but not a Christian.
In the fall of 2023, I received a text message from Jared asking if we could talk about his faith. He had not grown up in a Christian home and was unfamiliar with many of the basics of Christianity and the Bible. After a one hour walk through the Bible and a basic gospel presentation, we wrapped up our meeting and agreed to start reading the Bible together.
Bible Reading
Our conversations look something like this,
Genesis 3 – “Matt, the snake is talking! You believe that?”
“Yes I do Jared. It’s crazy, right? Let’s keep reading!”
Genesis 6 – “Matt, all the animals got on the boat?”
“Yeah, I know it seems crazy doesn’t it? Let’s keep reading.”
Now, Jared is a great reader, and he doesn’t have problems understanding what he is reading. But he is unfamiliar with the meta narrative of the Bible and doesn’t always see the connections to the big picture. So, we read the Bible and met together regularly for the next two years!
Fast forward to the Spring of 2025, Jared is now the head baseball coach at OPSU. He is building a coaching staff, a team, a relationship with a Christian friend, and a knowledge of God through the Bible.
During breakfast and Bible reading at The Sol Restaurant in Guymon, Oklahoma, Jared asks me, “What is the prerequisite for baptism?”
“That’s easy, there’s just one. You must believe. You must put your faith in Christ and His work alone for your salvation. Jared, are you ready to trust Christ as your only hope in life and death? As the only way for you to be right with God?” (At this point, I’m so excited!)
“No. I want to really understand what I am committing to before I do. Let’s keep reading.”
September 11, 2025
Breakfast and our regular Bible reading discussion. I am excited because we are going to talk about Isaiah 53, but we never make it to Isaiah 53 that day. God has other plans.
As we are waiting for our food Jared says, “Before we get to our reading, I want to talk about prayer.” Now Jared had begun regularly praying on his own earlier in the year. He wanted to “get it right and not offend God”.
We discussed prayer as our dependence upon God and that it wasn’t just a ritual we performed. Then Jared said to me, “I have realized I can trust God with my problems. He can take care of whatever I am dealing with.” (I could see a confident trust in God as he talks.)
“Jared, do you remember that conversation we had about baptism? Are you ready to trust God…with…your…salvation? Are you ready to repent of your sin and trust Jesus as your only hope in life and death?”
“Yes, yes I am!”
“Well, (stumbling over myself) we can pray right here in the restaurant, or we can go out to the car.” (The restaurant was noisy.)
That morning, God blessed me with the opportunity to see my friend, Jared Mayeda, become my brother in Christ! Right there in the parking lot of The Sol Restaurant, Jared plainly prayed for forgiveness of his sin and disobedience and trusted in Christ and His work alone to save him. We called friends and told them the news, we celebrated, and a few months later Jared was baptized at Sunset Lane Baptist Church having met the prerequisite for baptism.
We are not all entrusted with the same number of talents (Matthew 25:14-30) but we are all called to be faithful with what we are given. Our campuses are full of people like Jared. Some are students, some are coaches, some are support staff, but all are in need of a Savior.
Matthew Townsend is the BCM Director at Oklahoma Panhandle State University. You can follow the ministry on Instagram @opsubcm.