God's not going to force himself on you

Membership: 150

Pastor: Erik Borlaug 

Age: 29

Born: Forrest Lake, MN

Formation: Winona State University, Winona, MN

Years Ordained: 7

San Diego Reader: What’s your main concern as a member of the clergy?

Pastor Erik Borlaug: My biggest concern in my own life and for others is that we all come to understand who God truly is. Sometimes, the more you get to know some people, the less you like them; and sometimes the more you get to know other people, the more you like them. God is the kind of being that the more you understand who he is, the more you fall in love with him.

SDR: Why did you become a minister?

PB: I didn’t grow up in a Christian family, and so I wouldn’t have been supported by my family to do any kind of ministry work. But I did grow up in a family that had dinner together, and when I was thinking of becoming a preacher, I brought it up one night at dinner. It changed the whole atmosphere of the room. My family had a hard time understanding why I might want to do that, but now they’re at a point where they’re not as antagonistic about it, and have accepted that this is what I’m doing. I became a Christian when I was 19, when I was in college. I was already pursuing a degree. When I became a Christian, the guy that helped to ground me and understand the Bible was the one who told me I should think about preaching…. I had a heart to try to help others know God. Today, as part of my ministry work, I like one-on-one studies, meeting at coffee shops and things like that. I’ve been helped by others in those same ways, and I want to pass that forward.

SDR: What’s the mission of your church?

PB: Our mission is to build up the Christians who are here so we can become more mature and more like Christ. Then we try to be inviting and welcoming to anyone who is seeking that same thing, and in that way we help one another in adversity.

SDR: Where do you go when you die?

PB: The short answer is you go to heaven when you die. But there are some nuances to that. I believe when people die, there’s an afterlife and consciousness, whether it’s heaven or hell, and that it’s eternal – it lasts forever—again, whether it’s heaven or hell. An obedient faith in the Lord will lead people to be with him forever; and those who tried to find value and security in other things besides the Lord will ultimately not be with him. God is so loving that he would not force something on someone that person didn’t want. So if someone didn’t want to pursue the Lord on earth, he’s not going to force it on that person in eternity. Hell becomes the full extension of someone’s negligence of God. If you didn’t want him on earth, he’s not going to force himself on you for eternity, while people who go to heaven are seeking the Lord, wanting to honor and please him.