We did it! We hosted our first ever conference, and God absolutely blew our own hopes and expectations out of the water! It is with no hype, exaggeration, or hyperbole when I say that this conference changed my life. I’ll truly never be the same again! What’s wild is that I’m not the only one who changed. Our ministry also changed. And in faith, I believe our region has changed as well. Our team couldn’t help but be moved to tears hearing some of the testimonies from our conference. Here are several of them kept anonymous and left unedited so that it can capture what God did firsthand at #PRSTCON19 … God is good. God is faithful. Hallelujah!
Also check out these highlights from DAY 01, DAY 02, and DAY 03 of Pursuit Conference!
I stumbled into the afternoon service on the second day of the conference because I wanted a place to worship. When Ali was prophesying over people, my heart was stirred and I started to pray to God that He would speak to me too. Right after I prayed that prayer, Ali called me out and he and his team started to speak over me. In that moment, I started to feel God light a fire inside my soul. He was reawakening dreams in me that I haven’t dreamt in a long time. He reminded me that His plans for me were bigger than my wildest dreams. He reminded me that His calling for my life is greater than my current assignment and circumstances. He reminded me that He called me because He’s good, not because I’m worthy. I started to cry because God was reigniting my first love’s fire and yearning for revival. Lord, use me for your glory! #cantstopwontstop
Going into the conference, I just had this feeling that a lot of people prayed over it, and tbh, I was pretty excited to go. Although I had no idea what it was going to be like, I was looking forward to how God would work, especially after what felt like I was in the darkness for so long. And I guess this is what spurred the hunger that I didn’t even know I had. Felt like on the first night I was there, I had this thought that it was up to me to how much I would get out of this conference – like how much do I want to see Him work? If I wanted more of Him, then I had to make less room for myself and the things I was holding onto. And I was really hungry and desperate, and was willing to let go of anything that got in the way so I threw out my Juul LOL. I know I could’ve just easily left this part out of my testimony, but it was a big decision for me, and one done in faith, so I just wanted to be honest. I’ve always felt that my reliance on it was hindering my walk with God, and what He could offer is so much better, but I was just in such an apathetic and worn out state that even after knowing all that, nothing drove me to change my actions. So I had no idea I was going to be doing this – I felt like I didn’t have it in me to quit cold turkey before because it was such a crutch for me to get through the day. So, at this point, I was just leaving it in God’s hands and solely trusting that He’s got me.
Now that I think about it, that was the first step towards surrender I took. I’ve been struggling with the concept of surrender, like how can I take all this pain and sadness and loneliness and just give it to Him? I knew people would say things like “just lay it at His feet”, “lift it up to Him”, but what does that even look like in the practical sense? And I think it clicked when I came to the end of myself, and I experienced His grace. These past few years have been the hardest for me, and I’ve had my ups and downs with God, but for a while before I came to the conference, I wasn’t even running towards Him. If anything, I didn’t even want to bother. I had so many unanswered questions, I was burnt out, lost hope, and thought nobody cared enough to see what I was going through, and didn’t even expect people to anymore.
But He chased me down regardless and it changed me. I was floored that the God of the universe saw me and found me. And it wasn’t through any of my own efforts. I did nothing to deserve or earn it by the way I was living. That was eye-opening to me, this concept of grace. It forced me to take my eyes off of myself and look at Him. To be seen by my Creator transformed my heart. I wanted to live for Him. I wanted to love Him with all my heart, mind, and soul and surrender came so easy when I came face to face with Him. How can I not trust the One who knows and sees me better than anyone else? It’s also crazy how His timing is perfect, because He specifically used this point in my life to show that I couldn’t have done anything to earn this love.
There’s just so much that God showed me through this conference, that I do feel like it changed the trajectory of my life. More than the fire sermons, great worship, and prophetic prayers, I felt like God orchestrated all this somehow and He was present. I don’t know how else to describe it other than everything was for His glory. It was so clear to me that God spoke through this conference. And as much as I had a personal encounter with God, I also saw the bigger picture of how His hands were working for the region.
I also appreciated how it equipped and pointed us forward more than anything. Like it didn’t just end after the conference. I literally could not wait to get home and go to the secret place and build up a fortress there LOL. I’ve actually been doing the 5-step training thing daily with the group of girls I went with, and been trying to live in the Word daily. I went from a girl who used to sleep from anywhere at 5-7am to someone who gets up early to read the Word. it’s not even forced either, like I want to do it hahah it’s crazy. Every day is still a struggle but I’ve found joy in walking with Him.
To be honest, I didn’t have many expectations and thought it’d be the typical conference/retreat, like the ones I’ve attended my whole life. Each session was unique in their own way, but you knew and felt the presence of God was constant. Pastor Sam’s testimony was LIFE CHANGING and this conference was further confirmation that revival is coming to this region SOON. It’s so evident God’s favor is with Pastor Sam and Pursuit NYC and am excited for things to come.
God came and I was healed.
I got Rock Bottomed when the Resting Place team came to minister. There was a call to the altar for those who have been feeling discouraged and I answered. As I was just praying, I got this image of me as a kid carrying a heavy bag and was dirty and bruised up. Then Jesus took off that bag and started washing me. I was like mmm that’s good Jesus, c’mon somebody.
Then Ali said my name – never met the guy – and said something along the lines of God is freeing you. Then I felt a weight, the Presence, just fall on me and I just started to weep, cry, wail, whatever you want to call it. And I couldn’t stop. God was letting me feel what I was carrying and was freeing me from it.
I did not realize how heavy my burdens were. I made a lot of mistakes, hurt a lot of people, so in a way I tried to pay for my sins by accepting this burden as my punishment – something I have to carry and feel for the rest of my life. This was reinforced and spoken over me by other leaders.
But God spoke a better Word. Love keeps no record of wrong. He paid it all and covered me with His love. He is not done with me. He did not forget me. He came and freed me. Jesus is the one who can’t stop, won’t stop. And He is doing something new, something special, and my prayer is, “Don’t do it without me!”
I experienced and encountered God’s glory in a very unique and specific way at Pursuit Conference. I witnessed a unity in the place that felt real and sacred. I truly believe the atmosphere of a place shifts when hearts are aligned and there is complete oneness in purpose and vision. Besides my church group, most of the people at the conference were strangers to me but I felt such a huge sense of belonging and freedom in our worship. I felt so united in our desire and hunger for God. I was able to see a bird’s eye view of how God is moving not only in our respective communities and lives, but how He’s moving entire regions to move together as one Body. A conviction I had at the conference was that we are not only called to function as parts of the Body, but to remember the ones who have fallen and are not strong enough to stand on their own. I was deeply moved to pray for those still in need of healing, so that when we are all restored, we can all function healthily as One Body.
Throughout the past year, I sought out daily resources to nurture my faith, all which included the ministries of PSam, PWill Chung and Pastor Faith. To see them all in one room finally and to hear their messages felt like a gift and I was inspired by the humility, friendship and honor they carried for each other’s ministries. This also showed me how God is working with a grand purpose and we are all welcome and invited to be in that process with Him. There was a moment during Pastor Faith’s sermon when she talked about the guarantees that come with walking with Christ. She talked about the misunderstanding, judgment and loneliness we may face in the world and I felt an overwhelming peace that Jesus understands our deepest pains and burdens. I felt that all lift up as a fragrant offering to Him. I felt like a worn soldier after battle looking for a place to rest and Pursuit felt like a sanctuary where we were able to take off our equipment for a moment and freely worship without any other agenda.
There were also many deeply personal moments for me at the conference. I’ve been walking in a season where I’ve been praying for healing in different areas of my own life. I was fighting and contending for revival in my own heart. I wanted to be renewed and see with new eyes again. I wanted to throw away religiosity and have new affections for God. I was seeking Him in secrecy, fighting my flesh and running to the Word. I didn’t want to do any of these things for the eyes of man. I was craving God’s affirmation and voice that He sees me pursuing after Him. I was so encouraged that my prayer card had Matthew 25:23 written for me. I felt so seen and known by God. The other prayers on my card were also applicable and relevant to my current season.
There were so many other answered prayers that I didn’t touch upon, testimonies that were birthed among my friends and seeds that were planted and are already bearing fruit at my own church.
Ultimately, the conference opened my eyes up to what 2 Cor. 3:18 talks about— to see God from glory to glory. There’s nothing better than to see God magnified and to have more of His glory revealed. I’m weak and broken but it’s such a privilege to know and be known by God. I’m so stirred and thankful to the leaders and staff that came together to make this space possible. I’m excited to keep pursuing after God with others running alongside me.
I came to the Pursuit Conference without much expectation. I knew it would be good and prayed for all the people coming, but I wasn’t personally sure why I was going. I came as a volunteer to help out a good friend of mine without much other thought. I couldn’t even come the first couple of sessions due to work, but on the night that I came, God was truly moving at this conference and was starting to move in me. There was a moment during that night, a moment of silent and quietness. And in that moment, I started to see a vision of man dressed in strange clothing. He was walking around encouraging and putting his arm around people. I didn’t think much of it until PSam went up and shared his vision of a train and telling everyone all aboard for revival. I realized when he shared that that the man I saw was dressed as a conductor. After that night, I really started to realize that I was placed there for a reason and that God was starting a revival not only in this area, but in me. After the next few sessions, I realized that even though I serve in various ministries, I was losing passion and motivation due to a lack of intimacy with God. When that was revealed to me, I went back to why I do everything I do, which was because of Jesus. And I knew that I “can’t stop” and that I “won’t stop”. So I made a commitment to deepen my spirituality with prayer and reading the Word more, especially when no one is looking.
Fast forward after the conference, revival has truly begun in my heart and I really see that in different aspects of my life: how I serve, how I worship, how I prayed, how I read, how I interact with my family, friends, and coworkers. Very thankful for this conference and really believe more revival is coming and Pursuit is a major part of that
Pursuit changed my life. I really doubted my faith and in God and my faith does fall sometimes, but through Pursuit, I was able to experience a space filled with the presence of the Holy Spirit. I was in awe of the others; others who were willing to be there and those who yearned to meet God. Pursuit is truly the start of me getting back into my faith and reconnecting with God. Although it will be a slow and a hard process, I know I have my friends and family supporting me and that God will always be there.
Pursuit was a real game changer for me HAHA I went into the conference carrying so much sadness and burden in my heart. I was going through many changes and transitions, which led me to a great deal of fear. I didn’t know where my future was heading, I kept comparing myself to others, and I just felt so lost. I always thought I was taking 50 million steps backwards while everyone else was 50 million steps ahead of me. I once envisioned God-sized things to happen in my life, but I felt like all the things I dreamed of were being belittled by fear. I was so scared of rejection, disappointment, and failure. It was to the point where it was hard to believe that God had a plan for me. But I think Pursuit was God’s invitation to step into this fear with faith and hope again instead of just succumbing to it. And it was in the place of longing, weakness, and humility that God restored my faith again. I know what happened at Pursuit was genuine and life-changing because my life at home is so different. My circumstances might be the same but my mind is now focused on Kingdom perspectives! Now, I understand why P.Sam is crazy about #CantStopWontStop because this has also become my season HAHA. #CantStopWontStop because God has called me to live and hope for greater things!