“New York City is a global, vibrant, ever-changing city,” notes Timothy Bourman, pastor at Sure Foundation, Woodside, Queens, N.Y. The same words could be used to describe Sure Foundation.

“I regularly describe our ministry as a holy mess,” says Bourman. “It is often messy, chaotic, and fast-moving, but God is in it. God meets us in our mess, in our sins, and in our death in NYC. He is so, so good. Rarely does our ministry look beautiful, but it always is powerful. I do love it this way. When people worship, wow, do they worship. The singing is so good, and the Word just resonates in our hearts.”

Mark Gabb, administrator of WELS Home Missions, worshiped at Sure Foundation as the congregation celebrated its 25th anniversary on Oct. 5. “When you look over the congregation at Sure Foundation on a Sunday morning,” says Gabb, “you see a small glimpse of heaven where people will be gathered from every nation, tribe, people, and language. For me, it’s always a reminder that the gospel is for all people, including those who may look and live very differently from many of us.”

Sure Foundation is currently made up of 191 members, but the membership is always changing. “The city receives immigrants from all over the world and people from all over the United States. One in seven people in the US live in NYC at some point,” says Bourman. “We regularly baptize and confirm adults only to transfer them to other WELS congregations as they move.”

Daniel Olson, who served as pastor at Sure Foundation from 2006–2016, describes ministry at Sure Foundation like this: “When you take God’s Word into a certain area, you never know how God is going to bless it. Are people going to reject it? Is the Holy Spirit going to work faith in people’s hearts through the message that I share? It was an amazing privilege to be able to see the Holy Spirit work in the hearts of so many people over the years there. I always felt like there was this wave of God’s blessings going through that church.”

“We are always stunned at the grace of God,” says Bourman. “He always does more than we ask or imagine. When I began my work and joined Sure Foundation, WELS was wondering if our message could resonate in a place like New York City. The fact that we are not only surviving but thriving at 25 years, I hope, encourages WELS that we have an answer to that question.”

Featured image at top shows Pastor David Salinas preaching at Sure Foundation’s 25th anniversary worship service. Salinas previously served as a pastor at Sure Foundation.