The Miami Pursuit

The Best News of All!

Blogger: Matt

Last night I blogged about all the first-time guests The Pursuit Christian Church had on our first Celebration Service yesterday. Well, Bob and I just went through the Connection Cards from yesterday and we were startled with what we found.

I hope you are ready for some really great news!

14 people indicated on their Connection Card they want to become followers of Christ!
18 people said they want to become members of The Pursuit!

Now comes the fun part. Bob and I are going to be following up with these individuals today. Please pray God guides us in our conversations. I knew God was working yesterday but I had no idea what He was up to. I hope you will celebrate with us as you read this!

Big News on the Staffing Front!

The Babe to the Yankees.
Roger "The Rocket" Clemens to the Yankees.
ARod to the Yankees.

All of these acquisitions were milestones for the greatest organization in Major League Baseball. Whether through trade or free agency the Bronx Bombers went out and got the very best (no matter what it cost) to better their team.

I remember the excitement I felt when I heard the news Clemens (both times) and ARod were joining the club.

All that said, none of these signings compare with the thrill of announcing our next staff addition. Honestly, I know it's happening but I still can't believe it's happening. God is doing something huge and He's bringing the people needed to South Florida to get it done.

The bad news is I won't be announcing who it is on the blog until Monday.

"Only God..."

If you are a Christ-follower, I am sure you can relate to the times in your own life where God has gone above and beyond what you thought possible. You might even be going through something right now where God is doing exponentially more than you asked...or didn't ask. A guy in the Bible named Paul had his share of moments like these. That's why he wrote, "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine..."

I'm starting a new category on this blog called "Only God..."

Ever since God revealed His vision to me two years ago while visiting Lincoln Road in South Beach I have seen countless events take place where I could only come up with the words, "Only God."

Only God could call a half-Irish, half-Finnish guy from a red state in the midwest to start churches in Miami.

Only God could reveal the same vision to Florida Church Planters and connect us together at the proper time.

"We need an Hispanic pastor who is a gifted musician, artist, and godly leader! Who knows where we will find such a person!" Only God. He ended up being from Venezuela and living in Kentucky. Only God has a sense of humor like that. And only God would provide an amazing Small Groups pastor (Erin) in the very same household as our Creative Arts Pastor.

This week as Alex and I have been spending time together at Willow Creek we have been talking a lot about the new church God is building. Even with all the moments God has shown Himself faithful through this process this is still the scariest thing we've ever done! If a church planter tells you he or she is not scared of failure they're lying.

Alex shared he's a little overwhelmed at moving into a brand new area and creating a band and finding artists. A couple hours later I check my email and there in my inbox is a name I've never heard of before. This is an excerpt from that email:

"I’m writing because I am moving to Miami at the beginning of August (somewhere between the 6th and 15th) for graduate work at the University of Miami. Currently, I’m looking for some sort of a church home, a place to live, somewhere to plug in, maybe lead worship… I noticed that the church plant opens its doors in January. I’d love to hear more about it, know the location, and what it’s all about."

This guy serves at a great church in Indiana and his title is Creative Arts Assistant.

I turned the computer toward Alex and said, "Read." His face lit up and all we could say is, "Only God."