Running The Race With Joy by Pastor Grant Dufresne
Hello Congregation,
I want to start out this letter by saying thank you from the bottom of my heart for making this season at World Harvest Church one of the best and most exciting times! Your quickness to embrace and move with the plan of God has made this transition so easy and, most importantly, joyful! I can’t thank y’all enough for bringing your faith and prayers to the church; it has been evident. Being your pastor is the greatest honor of my life.
But more than anything, I’m excited for you all, God’s people. Because at the end of the day, the church is for you – for you to grow spiritually, to find protection over your life, to find where you really belong, and to run this race God has for us with people going in the same direction as you. Anything God is involved in is going to come with increase! Without the local church in my life, I would not be able to do anything God has called me to do, but because of those who have come before me that have shepherded me, corrected me, given me a place to grow, and most importantly, loved me, I’ve been able to stay on God’s path for my life, and it’s been so fulfilling!
The moment I wake up in the morning, I’m thinking of my church family. I’m praying for you all. I see the faces of you all in my mind all the time, and I think to myself, “What more can I do to bless them? How can I show them how much I love them?” Sometimes I weep with joy just thinking of how incredibly blessed I am to be called to such an awesome church family. But that love I have for the church is more than just me and my human love; it’s the love that Jesus has for you, His people. I know Jesus put that love inside me to show you how much He loves you. So when you hear a sermon, when you attend an event, when we worship together, when you sense the Presence of God, just know that Jesus is in it all. He will talk to you through a sermon, He will encourage you through the love of a friend in the church, and He will strengthen you with like precious faith as you fellowship. His Word preached here will transform your life as you act on what you hear. This is Jesus’ church, and He is in all the details of this place.
In Acts 20:24 (KJV), it says “…so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.”
Just like a runner in a race will fuel themselves by drinking water or hearing the cheers of bystanders, joy is the fuel which we need to keep running this race together to the very end – the joy of the Lord, supernatural joy! So let’s run this race with joy together, ALL IN, because God has so much in store for you and this church. Let’s go after all He has for us aggressively and not slow down for anything! God has given us many plans and visions for this place, and we’re excited to roll out those plans on God’s timing. But just know this, they’re exciting things, and you’re all invited to be a part of it!
Love, Pastor Grant Dufresne
