About The Garden

We are cultivating Jesus-centered community that bears the fruit of the Spirit for the glory of God and the life of His world.

Our Church

The Garden is a church in San Antonio’s Medical Center that has come together to pursue Christ’s calling to be his body and to testify in the unique communities here to Christ’s life and love.

Our church holds tightly to the foundations of Christian belief, affirming the triune nature of God, the atoning work of Christ to save and secure his people, the indwelling power of the Spirit to form and send the Church, and the living Word of God in Scripture that continues to speak to us. We are a church that practices confessional baptism while maintaining a spirit of ecumenical openness, both in missional partnership with neighboring churches of different denominations and within the unique structure of our liturgies. We aspire to be a multi-ethnic and multi-generational fellowship of believers pursuing authentic relational intimacy and growing deeply in our love for Christ and desire to follow him.

Discipleship at The Garden

When Jesus tells us how to make disciples – through baptism and instruction – he’s telling us about how we are created and how we are connected. We are a story-shaped people, and we find our greatest joy in the narrative of Christ’s redemptive work. Disciples are those who accept by faith Jesus’ invitation to make the Gospel story their own. They are integrated into this story through baptism and learn every day what it means to live this story out.

Becoming a member of The Garden means embracing this adventure of discipleship with us, stepping into a lifelong process of following Jesus together toward growth and maturity.

This process is both personal and corporate, as disciples continue to deepen their faith through practices of devotion and a commitment to equip and edify others in the Garden family. With a growing faith comes a greater willingness to minister to those in need of the Gospel, both in the Medical Center district that The Garden serves and in the unique contexts God has placed each of us. The circles of our homes and our tables open up to welcome new friends and introduce them to the transformative power of following Jesus.

At The Garden, we seek to foster a culture of healthy and fruitful discipleship through three transformative pathways to receiving and sharing the love of Jesus.

  • Practice the Faith

    Faith is more than a feeling or a one-time decision. It is something we receive, something that is strengthened, through consistent expressions of devotion. Followers of Christ aspire to not only have his life but to display it, and indeed, to truly know Jesus’ love is to share it. We learn and participate in the life of faith together to walk in a manner worthy of our calling, as Paul says in Ephesians. Practices of faith help us put away the former way of life and renew our minds in the righteousness and holiness of a good God.

  • Build the Family

    Faith is not a solo performance; it’s a group project. We see Jesus all throughout Scripture gather people to his table, and in Acts, we see the early church commissioned to do the same, serving others as a family and welcoming outsiders to become family. If discipleship is a lifetime of looking more and more like Jesus, then we see that has to mean being a part of his body, the Church. So we bring our gifts, our testimonies, our worship, and our needs together in a spirit of deference, believing that in working properly together, the body is growing up in love.

  • Till the Field

    Paul says in Ephesians that once we were in darkness, but now in the Lord we are light. Our calling is not just to be in light but to be transformed into the light of Jesus. Each of us was artfully made by a careful craftsman to be a beacon in a darkened world. This is why Paul speaks of faith like family. “Walk as children of light, for the fruit of the light is found in all that is good, right, and true.” We are sent out to be fruitful not from the Church but as the Church, in our homes, neighborhoods, workplaces, and rest spaces. We go out to bring in.

For more information on our calling, location, values, individual ministries, pre-launch strategies, and more, check out our Pre-Launch Playbook and Prospectus below:

Our Team

Our pastors are passionate about the Gospel and sharing the life of Jesus and the community of The Garden. They love people and are always eager to meet over coffee and conversation.


  • Lead Pastor

    Caleb is a lifelong San Antonian who has served in vocational ministry for over ten years. He started in worship during his college years, leading with his wife Jennifer, and together they experienced the power and the promise of believers praising, praying, and partnering together to grow and deepen their faith. It’s clear that this heart for worship is central to the ministry God has called him to steward. Caleb continues to learn from the faithful examples of his mother and his father, an immigrant from Mexico whose story has shaped Caleb’s perspective and purpose. With his wife and two children – Abbey and Leland – Caleb is excited to cultivate The Garden. His passion for poetry, his vinyl collection, and street photography will inevitably be a fixture of his ministry.

    You can reach Caleb today at caleb@thegardensa.org


  • Associate Pastor

    Jordan has served in vocational ministry throughout San Antonio, most often in the ministry of worship. A gifted songwriter and musician, Jordan has grown and led with the passion for dynamics and connection. His prayerful approach to faith and life has marked his ministry, his writing, and his music with a profound patience, deep wisdom, and consistent compassion. He and his wife Jen have a deep heart for people, and that will continue to shine through as they build and grow The Garden. While not immediately applicable to his work as a pastor, Jordan’s membership in the Michael McDonald fan club was considered a major plus during the exploratory phase of his hiring.

    You can reach Jordan today at jordan@thegardensa.org.

Partnerships & Affiliations

Church Partners

We are deeply appreciative of the continued support of our sending body, Alamo Community Church, and know that pursuing the vision God has given us for The Garden is a product of their vision, encouragement, and partnership.

We have also been blessed through the church plant support mission of First Presbyterian Church of San Antonio. The partnership they have extended in friendship, development, and financial support has been invaluable to us.

Denominational Affiliations

We receive support and oversight as a member of local and state denominational organizations, the San Antonio Baptist Association and the
Baptist General Convention of Texas.

Missional & Developmental Affiliations

The Garden is a member of the San Antonio Church Planting Network, receiving ongoing developmental help and contributing to its cohorts, events, and resources.

Stadia Church Planting received and affirmed The Garden’s initial church planting assessment and has provided critical pre-launch training and resources. The Garden maintains partnership with Stadia for coaching, project management, and bookkeeping, and has assisted in the development of training resources for prospective planters.

GlocalNet has provided mission training and financial support and continues to help The Garden with ministry development and pastoral support.

Pastoral Affiliations

Pastor Caleb Saenz is a member of one of the HEB Foundation’s Know Your Neighbor Narrative Change Cohorts, a two-year gathering of local clergy toward the study of long-term community renewal in San Antonio. He is also a member of the current Searock Sessions cohort, a six-month learning program for pastors and leaders of new and emerging churches.