About EFL
How We Started
EFL started when Alex Vantarakis and Simon Villarreal, who were living very selfish, sinful lives found themselves both at an establishment of ill repute and realized how far they had fallen and that they need a dramatic life change. They decided to meet for lunch to figure out how to change their lives and decided to start hanging out with “happy Christians” and to start a bible study. The anchor to this newly formed trio was Dr Bob Rausch who was Alex’s life coach. Dr. Bob, being a psychologist, ex-pastor and solid man of God, knew exactly what EFL needed. Everything Dr. Bob taught them seemed like a revelation. Yet, the most important point was that it was all grounded in scripture and behind it was the person of Christ.
When Simon and Alex started this bible study we offered a place with cigars, wine and being open and honest. This was not a “normal” bible study and never will be. Alogn with our beloved Dr. Bob leading us through scripture it was the beginning of Equipped for Life.
Meet Dr. Robert Rausch
Dr. Robert Rausch, lovingly known as Dr. Bob was born on February 18th, 1946 in Greenville, South Carolina. He spent his younger years in Baltimore, MD where he graduated from Southern High School. He was ordained as a Baptist minister at Summer Grove Baptist Church in Shreveport, Louisiana. His Master’s degree in counseling was earned at Louisiana Tech in Ruston, Louisiana. He later trained in family systems at Georgetown University. He then earned a PHD in clinical psychology at the Fielding Institute in Santa Barbara, CA.
Meet Alex Vantarakis
Their Ingenuity And Passion To Rally Around The Cross Of Christ Attracted Men That Wanted The Same.
The studies started with cigars, wine and being open and honest. This was not a normal bible study and never has been.
At the passing of Dr. Bob, Alex decided with a small group of other men that this study had to continue. So, with a lot of help from the Holy Spirit and some rough patches, the study carried on. It continued to grow and multiply. Men from all over the DFW metroplex were coming to see this strange spectacle of honesty, integrity and cigar smoking.
This passion for authenticity and real conversation has led, over these years, to lives being changed by Christ. The teachings of Christ are alive and they move through a man’s heart. That teaching is what changes these men’s lives when they can be authentic and honest about where they are in their life.
That is the power of this study.
The Heartbeat Of Efl Is A Passion For Genuine And Authentic Connection.
The fundamental principles of EFL are rooted in helping men discover their identity and purpose in Christ. EFL men are committed to serving others through love, good works and by the transferrance of God’s wealth throughout our communities.
The Purpose of Equipped For Life Is To Build Up Disciples
We exist to equip the men of DFW (and beyond) with the original, applicable and powerful teachings of Jesus Christ to create an authentic community. That community orients itself around genuine emotional, financial and spiritual support that carries ZERO judgment towards those that need it.
EFL Members Guidelines
Equipped For Life succeeds due to a basic understanding of its members. We are men of principle and we value sound statues. Although we don’t have many rules, the guidelines that we do have in place help to maintain the integrity of the study environment so that the teaching of the authentic Gospel can thrive. For more information on our member guidelines
Tired Of The Same Old Church Routine?
So Are We! Discover The Power Of Authentic Discipleship. Come To An EFL Study And Break Away From The Norm.
The Story Of EFL
Check out this brief message from the founder of EFL, Alex Vantarakis that reveals more about Equipped For Life.
EFL Statement of Faith
We Believe…
- …in the verbal inspiration of the Scriptures as authoritative, sufficient, and without error in the original manuscripts with the need of the teaching of the Holy Spirit for a true and spiritual understanding of the whole. (Mark 12:26, 36; 13:11; Luke 24:27, 44; John 5:39; Acts 1:16; 17:2‚ 3; 18:28; 26:22‚ 23; 28:23; Romans 15:4; 1 Corinthians 2:13; 10:11; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:21)
- …that God eternally exists in three co-equal persons‚ the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and that these three are one God. (Matthew 28:18‚ 19; Mark 12:29; John 1:14; Acts 5:3‚ 4; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Hebrews 1:1‚ 3; Revelation 1:4‚ 6).
- …in the deity of Jesus Christ; His perfect humanity; His virgin birth; the authority and infallibility of His teaching; His work of atonement for the sin of the human race by His vicarious suffering and death; His bodily resurrection, and His ascension into Heaven; His present high-priestly intercession for His people; His lordship over His Church as its Head; and His Personal return in power and glory. (John 8:58; John 10:30; Isaiah 7:14; Luke 1:27-35; 1 Peter 2:22; John 20:30, 31; Hebrews 2:17; Romans 5:8; John 20:27-29; Luke 24: 50-51; Revelation 9:11-16)
- …God the Holy Spirit is a person who restrains evil in the world and convicts people of sin, righteousness, and judgment. He dwells in all who believe in Jesus. From the moment of belief in the Son, the Spirit baptizes believers into the body, seals them for salvation, regenerates them to new life, bestows spiritual gifts on each one, and is fully present to continually fill (control and guide) His own. (John 16:7-11; John 3:8; 1 Corinthians 12:4-11; 13; John 14:16-17; Ephesians 4:30; 5:18; 1 Thessalonians 5:19)
- …salvation is a gift of God and no one can enter the kingdom of God unless born again. We believe man is justified by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone apart from works. We believe that Jesus Christ is the only means of salvation and that our redemption has been accomplished solely by the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. Repentance is a vital part of believing, and is in no way, in itself, a separate and independent condition of salvation; nor are any other acts, such as confession of sin, baptism, prayer, or faithful service, to be added to believing as a condition of salvation. (John 14:6; Acts 4:12; Romans 10:9-10; Romans 8:1; 29-30; 38-39; John 10:27-30; Acts 13:38-39; Romans 6:23; Ephesians 1:4-5; 2:8-10; John 1:12; 3:16, 18, 36; 5:24; 6:29; 16:31; Romans 1:16‚ 17; 3:23, 26; 4:5; 10:4; Gal. 3:22)
- …man was created innocent and in the image and likeness of God, but that man sinned, bringing both physical and spiritual death to himself and his posterity. Man can do nothing to merit God’s favor, and as such, is in need of salvation. We believe that mankind’s sinful nature is rebellious toward God and His good design for life and worship. Mankind’s rebellion causes confusion about good and evil, and harm to people, ultimately ending in judgment, despair and death. (Genesis 1:27; 2:17; 3:19; Isaiah 59:1-2; Romans 6:23; Isaiah 59:1-2; Romans 6:23; Romans 1:20-24; Ephesians 2:1-3; Genesis 1:31; Galatians 5:16-21; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; James 1:13-15)
- …all who are united to the risen and ascended Son of God are members of Christ’s invisible and universal church. We believe that the local expressions of the church, as the Body of Christ, are essential in the plan and purpose of God. (Matthew 16:16-18; Acts 2:42-47; Romans 12:5; 1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Ephesians 1:19b-23; 2:19-21, 4:3-6; Colossians 3:14-15; Acts 14:23; Ephesians 2:15b-16; Ephesians 4:15-16; Colossians 1:6; 1 Timothy)