In 2024 so far, the Vista Campus has celebrated 135 people making a decision to follow Jesus, whether dedicating their life to Him for the first time or making a commitment to rededicate their life to Him. That’s 135 lives changed, 135 stories of God’s impact, 135 families, workplaces, and neighborhoods that now have a Jesus follower in their midst.
One of those 135 people is a young man named Nick…
Nick was looking for a coffee shop. When he searched online for coffee shops near him, North Coast Coffee House was suggested for him. It happened to be a Sunday morning around 9am, and as he arrived at the location, he quickly realized this wasn’t a normal coffee shop. As he walked on campus and realized it was a church, he felt like that was God getting his attention and drawing him to something more than coffee.
He had grown up in and out of church but felt that church was a place of condemnation, and from his experience, a place that only taught about going to hell. But that Sunday morning, he walked into The Edge during the 9am service, and continued coming back weekly. He eventually began bringing friends with him to church and started attending The Jordan, Vista’s Young Adults Ministry, weekly as well. From there, he joined a Young Adults Life Group, with leaders who are greeters in The Edge on Sunday morning.
Looking back on his time at North Coast “coffee house,” he realized he’d been growing so much through church and Life Group that he wanted to take a step of obedience and get baptized. He was baptized at The Jordan in March and is now looking for a place to serve at North Coast and give back his time and talents to the place that has meant so much to him in his relationship with Jesus.
As he summarizes his time at North Coast over the last few months, he puts it like this:
“I wasn’t looking for God, but God found me.”
One of the most beautiful things about how God can work is that sometimes He searches for us, seeks us out, and finds us whether we’re looking for Him or just for a cup of coffee.