A Sea Of Red

From the Richmond fishwrap ...

A body, not a building
Church has grown rapidly under leading of young preacher

Saturday, Aug 02, 2008 - 12:08 AM

By LINDSAY MACHAK
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER


Greg Pulling (foreground), pastor of Hopewell Baptist Church in New Kent County, sings with the congregation before Bible study. Photo By: MARK GORMUS/TIMES-DISPATCH

The church is growing rapidly ...

They joined the church in mid-February and are part of the revival of a congregation that had 37 members in January and now averages about 200 at Sunday services.

Church members attribute the growth to the new pastor, 29-year-old Greg Pulling, and his wife, Sarah.

And here is the great estimony of what is happening at the church ...

After the previous pastor left in October 2006, church members went through the Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia to find guest ministers. Pulling preached at the church as a guest in May 2007.

He graduated from Liberty University in December and was hired in January after he shared his vision of reaching all the residents in New Kent.

His goal of inviting every family in the county to church is being carried out by knocking on doors. Pulling and eight church members have visited more than 200 New Kent homes and invited the households to Sunday services.

"We've got the concept now that church is not a building, it's a body," he said. "And we take church to them, the people of New Kent."

Pulling has baptized 56 people since his arrival. Church members come from all parts of the area, including Richmond.

"We want to show the love ofJesus through the gospel message to as many people in New Kent and beyond," he said.

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His goal of inviting every family in the county to church is being carried out by knocking on doors.

Sounds like he took a page from ol Dr Falwell.