Running After Jesus
For Bruce Faltynski ’05, running has always been a part of his life story. As an active child, he would run or bike away from neighborhood bullies. As he grew up, running cross country and track kept him out of trouble and allowed him to graduate from high school. He was so good, it even led to a college scholarship.
“My parents dropped out of high school. With college never being talked about or even thought of [at home], it was my high school teammates’ parents who encouraged me to pursue college,” he explains.
Faltynski came to Bethel as a freshman on a cross country scholarship. Running was such a part of his identity that it became his life. He chose to study criminal justice, which would set him up well for his future career in law enforcement, but coming in as a nonbeliever meant success and recognition defined his values.
“When I think back to my college years, I wish I had known that my worth and purpose come from Christ alone, not from what I achieve,” he says.
His sophomore year, teammate and friend Andy Hendricks ’03 (pictured) prayed continually for his salvation and led him to Christ. Teammates Peter Ryan ’06, Andy Holderread ’07 and Mike Stefaniuk ’05 challenged him daily to know and grow in his relationship with Jesus.
“God placed people and circumstances in my life to accept Jesus into my heart,” Faltynski says.
It was also at Bethel that he met his wife, Shelby (Morrow) Faltynski ’10, who has been a constant source of encouragement, even through life’s toughest trials.
After graduation, Faltynski continued to mature in his faith. He kept running, though less competitively, and graduated from the police academy with honors. He joined a special team unit and even received recognition for catching armed robbery suspects. But when he didn’t get a specialty position he applied for, he began to ask God, “Why?” He says it was through his wife and other believers that he began to realize that God’s purpose is bigger than our own.
“Instead of asking God, ‘Why?’ I began to ask, ‘What is God teaching me through this?’”
As God transformed his heart, mind and motivation, new opportunities opened up in his career and life. When he and Shelby were wrestling with infertility, God prompted them to become foster parents and love the children in their care. They adopted their first daughter, Kaia, when she was 8. Soon after, they adopted their daughter Myah, lovingly surrendered through a Safe Haven baby box. Then in February 2025, they had their daughter Eliana through IVF.
“If we had tried to do things our way, we would have missed the blessings of His way,” Faltynski says.
Today, Faltynski serves as a Lieutenant in the Mishawaka Police Department where he runs the Community Relations Unit. He organizes neighborhood watch programs, National Night Out events and countless outreach initiatives that build trust and connection between law enforcement and residents. Because of his work, Faltynski was honored as the 2024 Officer of the Year for the City of Mishawaka and received the Timothy Award for Outstanding Service from Bethel University in 2025. But he is quick to point the glory back to God.
More than 20 years after he graduated from Bethel, Faltynski is still running, but instead of chasing success, he’s running after Jesus.
“Since dedicating my life to Christ, I now see how God used running throughout my life to draw me closer to Him. I used to believe I was running away from something, but I was always meant to run to God and bring glory to Him.”
