Kara Dawson

Life Story:

I was blessed to be raised in a Christian home and began my relationship with Christ at a young age. My faith journey was simple, until I had my first difficult season when my grandfather became ill. Watching a loved one grow sick and eventually die gave me my first taste of hardship, and my first experience with truly needing the peace and comfort of the Lord. It was in this season that my relationship with Christ was first tested and strengthened. 

Throughout high school and college my faith journey could be described with two major themes. One of pursuing my calling to ministry, and the other of depression. I have felt called into ministry from a young age and have been pursuing ministry for most of my adult life. I moved to Chicago, IL when I was 18 to attend Moody Bible Institute and grow in my understanding of what it means to serve in ministry. Throughout my season in Chicago I gained amazing experiences with missions and ministry and continued to pursue the calling the Lord has placed on my life.

At the same time that I was learning more about my calling, I was struggling greatly with chronic depression and chronic pain. I found treatment for my mental health in counseling, medication and support groups, and eventually found a solution to my chronic pain through physical therapy and surgery. In this season I experienced extreme valleys and eventually had to take a semester off of college to work on my mental and physical health. This struggle with my health taught me just as much, if not more, about my faith as my experiences with missions and ministry. It was through this struggle that I found a beautiful community, made life-long friends and experienced God in life saving ways, all while walking through deep, dark valleys. As I continue to grow, my depression is not currently a part of my daily life, but will always be a part of my story.

After college I joined a youth ministry master’s program called CYMT. This program partnered me with a church in the DFW area that I served at while working on my master’s degree. It was through this ministry placement that I met my wonderful husband Tyler. Once we finished our time with CYMT, Tyler and I began attending Restoration Church and have loved being a part of this community. 

Hopes for our church: 

My hope for Restoration Church is that it would always be a church defined by love and truth. I pray that in all things that we do, we would love people as Christ has loved us, and point people to a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. 

I pray that each person who comes to Restoration would feel welcomed, seen and loved, and would leave with a deeper understanding of the truth of God.