We’re stoked to welcome Harbor’s newest elder, Grant Murata. Grant and Tracey have been married for 23 years and have four kids (including two Kamehameha valedictorians so far – they must be doing something right!) Grant has been co-leading the Kaneohe community group and also teaching our Foundations of the Faith class. Tracey has been serving in the keiki ministry.
Here’s a little of Grant’s story, in his own words:
On his journey with Christ:
I told my mom in the summer before my Junior year that I was joining a Bible study to disprove the Bible, and boy was that an epic fail. I asked tons of questions, had all of them answered, and slowly my heart softened. Friends kept hounding me to ʻmake a decisionʻ and staff kept pursuing me but I stubbornly, or selfishly resisted. I wasnʻt going to let anyone pressure me into a decision.
It was the beginning of senior year when a new Bible study leader just asked me, “what was holding me back?” No pressure at all, just pointing me to the truth Iʻd already learned and confronting my pride. I realized there really wasnʻt anything and accepted the grace of Jesus Oct 5, 1988 in the holy Burger King in Kaneohe (theyʻve remodelled so itʻs probably not holy any more).
On family:
My wife is two years younger than me so we met in 1985 (she got involved with the Campus Life as a freshman when I was ʻattempting to disprove the Bibleʻ my junior year). We reconnected after I returned home from college and we started doing more in groups, then dating, then got married. Our engagement was about 8 months and we dated for a little over 2 years before it became abundantly clear she was the one for me.
In the past year the biggest, coolest, awesome-est thing is my kids’ baptism. Hands down, the most awesome thing this past year. Helping them understand Godʻs truth, praying with and for them, believing that they truly understand and accept salvation by His grace alone gave me incredible joy and peace.
On leadership:
Iʻm continually learning how to be a Christian, a husband, a father, and a member of a church. I’m also learning what it means to be a servant leader and teach others. Iʻve always felt a ʻcallingʻ to serve in a leadership role, as I believe God can use me and my experiences to help others.
We agree. Over the past 18 months, Grant has gone through a process of rigorous elder training and assessment, and we know God will use him powerfully in this new role.