The Apostle Paul was called to preach to the Gentiles, that is, those that didn't grow up knowing the God of the Bible. I always said that I wanted to pastor like Paul. I was speaking of his passion, his devotion and his willingness to give up what was due him. But it just clicked in me that I am more like him than I thought. I feel called to make sure that no matter what someone's religious background is, that they would be able to connect to the word of God while I am preaching. I dreamed that this would be the case when we started The Pursuit. On July 19, 2003, I wrote, "What if seasoned believers could be challenged to grow and seekers could discover who God is in the same sermon?" This was one week after we had visited Boise for the first time!
I think God is allowing that vision to become a reality. I don't think any follower of Christ who was there yesterday would say that they were not challenged by the word. I know I was. I know that is my responsibility as a preacher—to preach the word clearly to those who follow Jesus. But I also know that I am called to preach to the Gentiles, those who are far from God. To my knowledge, The Pursuit has never held a service where there wasn't someone in attendance who hadn't yet crossed the line of faith. The first Sunday we had 10 adults and only 7 of those were followers of Jesus!
I pray that God continues to trust us with the people He is pursuing. The Pursuit really is a church for anyone. Keep on investing in the lives of unchurched people and inviting them to attend. We'll be ready. You never know what God is going to do!
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