CHRISTY MACCALLUM RUNNING FOR EXTERNAL CO-ORDINATOR

TESTIMONY pursuit |pәrˈsoōt| noun The action of following or pursuing someone or something : the cat crouched in the grass in pursuit of a bird | those whose business is the pursuit of knowledge. In my life, pursuit has been something that I have often been a part of. Pursuit of love, pursuit of achievement, pursuit of acceptance. However, there is a story of pursuit that is more powerful than any other pursuit I have tried to achieve. When I was born, my dad was pastoring at a church in a small rural town in Neilburg, Saskatchewan (we’re talking 500 people … including the town next to it). When I was eight, we moved to Mississauga so my dad could start a church plant. However, before he started the church plant he was the English pastor at a Chinese church (the light bulbs just went off in all your heads…)! The church plant didn’t end up working out the way he had planned, so we started attending a different church when I was in 6th grade. Being a pastor’s kid (PK) shaped a lot of who I was as a person and as a Christ follower. My entire life I’ve always wanted to be accepted and loved and good enough for people – good grades, actions, appearance – to fulfill what I thought they thought I should be (as a PK, or just in general). I need to feel this or I feel like I’m a no-good nothing that should just go curl up in a corner. I cling to anything and anyone who makes me feel accepted or good enough like a *insert extremely deep simile here*. In fact, it got to the point where I was starting to change what I said I thought or believed and would hide what I truly thought because I didn’t want to be the odd one out. But eventually, it stopped fulfilling me. Who cared if I got 100% on something? So did a bunch of other people, and it was no longer amazing, it was normal. And I wanted to have my own opinion, I was tired of being the shadow and always agreeing. At Easter in 10th grade, I had come to a point where I was about ready to abandon my faith. But there came a point where I felt something, I wasn’t sure what it was, but I knew that there was some sort of a God out there, whoever it was. Throughout that summer, I rediscovered my faith, and saw how God was real, and wanted to be in my life … but at home I lacked support in my decision to follow Christ, and quickly began living the legalistic form of Christianity again, focussing on my works, and what I had to do to be good enough for people. Again, God chased after me, and redeemed me, showing me that it was, in fact, not to up me to keep people believing in their faith, that leading

worship every week and the Christian group at school wasn’t going to save me, and that my inability to be perfect didn’t mean I was less worthy – it required me, all of me, and my heart. The successful pursuit of Christ culminated last Good Friday, when I was brought to my knees in front of his divine grace and mercy. It was then that I finally realized that all he wanted was me, and all I needed was him. This story of pursuit has changed who I am more than any other pursuit, and pursuing a relationship with Christ has given me more satisfaction than any other pursuit in my life I’ve done has. Following Christ and surrendering all that I am to his will has been both the best and hardest decision of my life, but I wouldn’t change anything in the way He’s shaped my life, and I look forward to the future journey with Him at the center, leading me all the while. VISION Integration: Integration of new members to a community by working with Women’s and Men’s internal to have community building events (“CCF” nights). Community: Community between fellowships so we know what they’re doing and what God is doing on the campus (realize its bigger than ourselves). Evangelism: Building people up to go out and give themselves away, teaching and equipping them to be able to share their faith with those they come into contact with through actions or words.