Over two thousand years ago, a Galilean carpenter turned preacher, walked along a beach on the Sea of Galilee near Capernaum and called four fishermen to follow Him:
"As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea for they were fishermen. And he said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." Immediately they left their nets and followed him. And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets and he called them."
(Matthew 4:18-21 Revised Standard Version of the Bible)
Because they said "yes," left their boats and nets and walked with Jesus, the world would never be the same. We are their spiritual descendants, who even now, are called to follow our Lord. This is a moment in time, which if we say "yes," will transform us forever. This is how we understand our calling today:
Mission Statement: "To provide a loving fellowship that brings about spiritual transformation through worship, prayer, study, and action in order
To Know Christ and to Make Him Known."
The Bible directs us to be "fishers of men" (people) and our Mission Statement is intended to accomplish just that.
A. What are we going to do?
We are proposing to renovate and expand our current facilities, at our present location, in four steps. Step One will be the most important step with a projected cost of 2.7 million dollars. (There are 4 possible steps in the total plan for renovation and expansion.)
Step One Includes:
An elevator, reaching all three floors in our church
A Ministry Activity Center
New handicap accessible bathrooms
Foyer and obvious entry area
Four new classroom/meeting rooms on the lower level
Renovation of nursery and Sanctuary level bathrooms
New/enlarged Office Space
Additional Storage Space
These improvements will enable current ministries and new ministries to take place, provide enough space for current program and staffing needs, contain and reduce maintenance costs and effectively make an investment in our congregation's ministry.
B. Why are we going to do this?
We decided to remain in our current location as a downtown church at a Church Conference, where all church members had the opportunity to vote (and discern God's will) about where God was calling us to be in ministry. This was a courageous decision. We have discerned that the tradition of this congregation, expressed in our beautiful stained glass windows, classic sanctuary, and the ministry of those who came before us is calling us to remain in this location where we have effectively ministered to this community and world for over 100 years.
We are now at a crossroads and a decision point. If we are to remain an effective force for spreading God's Word, we need all the tools available so that we can succeed. Those tools include not only dedicated lay and pastoral leadership, but a building, which is totally accessible to all, a well maintained facility with enough space for all of our ministries today and tomorrow, and an attractive facility which welcomes all who pass by.
If you think we have enough space to carry out our ministries already, you should see the furniture shuffling and competition for use of rooms because we have so many different ministries now! Our leadership is frustrated because of the space limitation we are facing every week, Sundays through Saturdays.
We need more space for our music ministries. There isn't adequate storage space for our vocal choirs or our hand-bell choirs. Our children's choirs are hemmed in (because we have a LOT of kids right now!). Wouldn't it be wonderful to have the space we need for worship, Bible study, and recreation? Wouldn't it be wonderful to have enough space for dinners and wedding receptions--with no posts in the way? And, wouldn't it be wonderful to have an elevator, which could take someone all the way from the basement up to the balconies?!
Those who came before us in the faith gave sacrificially to help this congregation thrive. Now, it is our turn! We can help make a future which will be exciting for all who are involved, and which will help others meet Jesus, our Savior, Lord, and best Friend.
A tremendous amount of time and study has gone into this. Our Building Committee has gone much, much more than the "extra" mile" to bring us to where we are! It's my prayer that we "take the road less traveled," which is not the easiest, but it will turn our "master plan" into the Master's Plan! If we step out on faith, and trust our Lord, work together in prayer--tremendous blessings will follow--blessings for us, and blessings for others.
C. What will happen if we say "yes" to this plan and God's call?
We will not only be more effective in our mission because our facility has been improved, but we will impact lives for Jesus Christ--lives that we are not impacting now due to space limitations and a limitation on the kinds of ministries we can currently offer. We will be able to improve the lives of our congregation, our children, future generations in the Wabash community, and the world! We will thrive as a downtown church because of God's Spirit at work in us in amazing ways! We will move forward in faith...God has promised blessings to those who believe in Him. "Anything is possible if you have faith!" Mark 9:23
D. What will happen if we say "no" to this plan and God's call?
We will handicap ourselves and hamper our ability to be in ministry. And this will amount to our losing ground as a congregation. It will also probably result in a diminished level of excitement and enthusiasm for our life together and a diminished level of energy for outreach. We will miss the joy and excitement of watching God's Spirit work among us as we strive to carry out our mission: "To Know Christ and to Make Him Known." We will not see the future which God, even now, has in mind for us.
Which path do we want to follow? Will we respond like Simon Peter, Andrew, James and John, and all the others who brought us to this point through faith, or will we choose to ignore God's call?
