He was accepted to Bellevue College in Bellevue, Nebraska, enrolling in the fall of 1892 and graduating in 1897. In 1893 the 20-year old Lunn was approached by the congregation of a small church in La Platte, Nebraska, located five miles south of Bellevue, and was asked to become their pastor. Although he had never preached before, church parishioners were not aware of this fact and Lunn accepted the position. He would retain the position for several years, paid out of the church's weekly collections.