Building a Community of Grace

Our congregation is in the heart of a building campaign/campus design. We were given 9.5 acres of land a few years ago and have the commitments and the financial banking to go for it starting this spring.

Everything is in place. But the question is, what is the best use of our resources in serving the Kingdom of God? In serving the city we're in? In serving people who need Jesus?

I talked about our mission on Sunday (You either listen to the podcast or hit the listen link. Look for A Year of Living Christ-ianly, part 2.)

Here is a summary of what we are thinking and praying through which I sent to our congregation today:

Hey, Gracer's,

The following, in bullet points, is a quick update on the building project:

The planning process continues to be energizing and exciting. We are moving through the city for approvals and the planning is now moving to detailed drawings.

At this point, it looks like the budget will allow for the building of the worship center which includes 4 classrooms and a 1000 square foot lobby area. It will be the same size as what we have in Zuni, only better.

The schedule is getting clearer. It looks like we can pencil in a ground-breaking date of Palm Sunday, April 5, 2009. That will be our 4-year anniversary and the 25th anniversary of my ordination into vocational ministry.
If all goes as planned we could be in the new worship space for Easter of 2010.

If we can find a way, we will also build an office complex but that remains a money issue.

The cost is $6.4 million-including infrastructure, landscaping, the building and full furnishings. That would mean a loan of about $6 million as we will pay about $500,000 in cash. That comes to about $43,000 per month!

How will we pay for it?

Thrivent Financial Services has agreed to be our lending institution. They have provided us an extraordinary rate.
We are currently 48% of the way through our first 3-year building fund commitments and have received 51% of the commitments! If that trend continues we will be able to handle the monthly payments.

By the time we move in, we will have a large cushion from the first campaign. We will have launched and completed the second 3-year campaign that we would hope would raise another $1.5 million ensuring we continue to make our payments.
With the free land, the Thrivent loan, and the fantastic giving to the campaign, this is doable!

As I said in worship a few weeks ago, even though all the pieces are in place to make it happen, before we put a shovel in the ground we will have a "come to Jesus" meeting to make sure we really want to commit to this. Once you commit to a $6 million loan there is no turning back.

So I'd like us to begin the process now. We began Sunday by reviewing our mission, our call to move from a Come and See Church to a Go and Show Church. For a come and see church the building is crucial. For a go and show church, investing resources in getting out and demonstrating God's love is crucial. Which leads congregations like ours, who are passionate about doing mission, to ask tough questions about the best use of resources.

Now that we have all the facts-we know exactly what it takes to be a church in Zuni and what it would take to build a facility-now is the time to ask the resource questions; questions about what is the best use of the resources we have, not for building a church, but for serving the city.

In terms of building, I offer the following questions with an assignment at the end (and remember, all the resources are in place to build. So this is not a financial issue. This is a mission issue. Is building the best way we can serve the city?)

Questions:
Is building this new campus the best use of our resources for serving the city?

What will the new campus allow us to do in serving the city at an investment of $10,000 per week plus upkeep, etc
Vs. $600 per week in this place?

Will a permanent facility better enable us to serve the city?

On Saturdays, when we're setting up, and dragging 350 chairs across a hot parking lot, setting up communion tables, nursery, Sunday School, sound systems, I can't wait for the building to be done. On Sunday after worship, when we're tearing down everything we set up on Saturday, and mopping floors and cleaning bathrooms, I can't wait until the new building is done

But... when I sit in worship and experience the power of our worship together
And I see the people gathering in clusters
And I see our youth on retreat
And I see us out on Make a Difference Days
And it's only costing us $600 a weekend for the building vs $10,000 plus if we build
I wonder what advantage at $6.5 million dollar building gives us in serving the city?

What if, rather than having to raise $500,000 per year to pay a mortgage
We raise money for special missions projects?
$100,000 in a year to start a new church?
$100,000 in a year to build a medical clinic in Rwanda?
$100,000 to help build some new homes for the homeless?
$100,000 a year to support missions locally and around the world?

Are there other options that enable us to do the same thing
But with less financial resources?
Lease a mall?
Land swap for something with lower infrastructure costs?
Work with Zuni and upgrade this place/get some better classrooms for kids?

What if we wait a few years?
While the costs will go up, what if we wait until we can grow into our identity for awhile?
We're still making the shift from come and see to go and show
Still sifting: Some of us are still trying to figure out if this will be the congregation we commit to
Do we need more time to grow into our identity as a congregation before we build?

Is God calling us to build right now?
After all, he's provided the land free and clear.
We have a company willing to make us the loan at fantastic rates..
We have the commitments to make the payments
Is God saying that this sacrificial investment will help us best serve the city for generations to come?
Will this new facility give us a stability, a base of operation out of which to send disciples back into the world to bring God's grace for years and years to come?
When I sit in the building meetings and imagine the kind of equipping and worship that can take place there
I can hardly wait to get into it

What is the best use of our resources?
What is the best use of them in terms of letting our lights shine?
What sacrifice are we being called to make?
A financial one of raising $1,500,000 or more every three years?
A comfort one of being nomads in Zuni for awhile longer or an extended period of time?

Between now and December let's pray about this together.
Let's set aside some time on Friday to pray through these questions; to ask God what he wants.
Fast something-a meal, a dessert, a cup of coffee and use that as a reminder to pray.
Let's Trust in the Lord with all our hearts and lean not on our own understanding, in all our ways acknowledging him, and he will direct our paths.

In January we'll begin to talk about what we're hearing from God
And by the end of that month
We'll either go for it and build
Put the project on hold
Or look at other alternatives.

During that time we'll continue to pursue the project and make sure everything is in place to build so that we stay on schedule. So it will be important to keep on giving to the project. If we decide to wait or do something else we can decide how to deal with the money we have given.

God has provided the land. God has provided the financing. God has provided the commitments to cover the financing. The assumption is that we should build-and perhaps that's exactly what God has in mind. But let's spend some serious time in prayer to make sure we're going where Jesus is leading and that we're willing to follow him wherever he might lead us.

Let your light so shine before others that they may see your good works and give glory to our Father in Heaven!

Thanks for your willingness to be a missional congregation-willing to lay aside our own needs for the sake of bringing grace to the world, whatever that might mean. I believe this process is one of the ways that God is going to use to shape us to live Christ-ianly as a congregation.
Tim