Revolutionary: Suzanne Juro

“Kids are unique. They have the ability to broaden their life experience and tolerance of someone else, even if that person looks different than them. They just need to see someone genuinely interested in who they are; they need to see someone who loves them like Jesus does.”

Suzanne loves teaching. Her first job, however, was a little more than she bargained for. Suzanne began teaching in Keller, Texas, with a class known for its discipline issues. It didn’t take her long to realize that most of the kids in that class came from a low-income background, and many were neglected or abused. She began to realize the key to influencing their lives for Christ wasn’t in the classroom; it was in consistency.

When Suzanne moved to Denton, Texas, in 1999, she began to see that her church, Denton Bible, was strategically located very close to the government housing projects. In 2005, she noticed that some of the kids were coming to the 5th and 6th grade ministry where she was serving. Because those kids were welcomed and loved, they brought their friends. And they brought their friends. That’s when Suzanne started the breakfast “club” at the church. It’s open to anyone who wants to come, regardless of age. Every Sunday is a new adventure, and she never knows who will come through the door or what their lives were like the night before. Suzanne wanted to make sure that the kids got connected to their own age groups, making sure they were included and not singled out in any way.

Today, you can find Suzanne taking those kids twice a week to the pool, the movies, or out for ice cream, depending on the season. She’s a regular at volleyball or basketball games, giving herself in relationships to people who need to see the gospel lived out before their eyes. It’s the living life with others part, rather than just inviting them to Bible study, that has won her lots of friends and even more influence. “Her kids” have become a stable presence in church and Sunday School, many bringing their parents with them.

She is glad to be a part of Denton Bible’s urban church plant, Lifeline Bible Church, where she continues to make friends, bring about unity, and pursue relationships for the glory of Christ.

For more about Lifeline Bible Church, visit lifelinebible.org.

Editor’s Note: The Suzanne’s story, along with the stories of several other revolutionaries, is found in the Threads short-term study Red Revolution: Seeing the World through the Lens of Christ.