03-AAEO 2025 - Gaskins Main

A lot of people in my family

they've always lived in Utah.

I have direct ancestry that goes
all the way back to the pioneers

that came over with Brigham Young.

And so, I grew up in a Mormon home;

and when that's all you've known,
it seems normal.

My name is David Gaskins, and I planted
Mosaic Church in Provo, Utah.

Less than 0.5%
of this city are evangelical,

Bible-believing Christians.

So Provo, Utah is the most
unchurched city in North America

because we are the hub
and really the heartbeat

of the Mormon church.

The Mormon system of belief
is essentially legalism on steroids.

It's "you better be perfect
to earn the love of God,"

and that mentality of perfectionism
influences everything.

So this is why,
even when you drive around here,

you'll see these beautifully manicured,
immaculate lawns.

And it's because the external
is the only thing that mattered.

When they come in contact with the
real thing, it stops them in their tracks.

I ended up at Mosaic
because my roommate

was somebody who attended there.

And ever since
that first Sunday that I went,

my eyes were opened to the truth

and it truly did change me.

Josh's story
- he's the first Christian

in his entire family tree.

And we have a whole bunch of stories
that are like Josh's -

this reality of, if you are somebody
who has left the Mormon church,

you are going to lose a lot.

So, one thing
that you'll hear on a Sunday morning

is people singing loudly.

It brings me to tears

because it's people
who have experienced the real Jesus,

and they're never going back.