Robb, you've got a big job on your plate as chair of the Capital Campaign (not that it's up to you alone, we're all in this together). Ideas may be powerful tools in this work, so I think we should share ideas with you. Before Christmas, I was disturbed by the slow pace of progress with the land and the new building plans and also by some of the comments from the congregation I heard directly or through the grapevine. This and ALL the sermons week after week and the lessons in youth group and sudden insights that seemed to come directly from God all piled up to the point where I was compelled to get them out of my head and onto paper. This was an outside-the-box experience for me; I'm not a writer, I don't keep journals, this is my first blog activity. Once it was written, I felt released. My vision at the time was to make it part of the building committee presentation of the new design concept. Between the time of writing and now, though, the atmosphere has changed and, so far, the opposition I was expecting is not happening. God is at work here. It seems unnecessary to beat people about the head now. There may be some ideas you can use in it, though, so I'll add the text at the bottom of this post. Read it, forget it, use it, whatever. It's all yours.
For some years, now, we’ve been looking toward expanding the capacity of our church, whether through renovation or new construction. Setbacks and delays seem to have dampened the spirit of enthusiasm we once had, and this is bothering me. Lately I’ve been hit with a number of convictions about the way we’re approaching the project. I’ve also felt the need to share these convictions, so here we go.
I want to start by telling you about my first car. It was a 1977 Mustang, 2.8 litre, V6, 4-speed. It was blue. My dad discovered it and thought of me. He even bankrolled me until I found a job to pay for it. Although it wasn’t new, this was the car I’d always wanted. I’ve never since been closer to loving a car. It was peppy enough to suit me. The wheels would chirp in second gear just from putting my foot down and it sounded like a V8, not noisy and irritating, but throaty, like it had intentions. I looked good in it and it felt good on me.
The job I got required me to travel over most of the province carrying lots of gear. Cargo space was not a strong point in my Mustang, but I managed, by making more frequent trips to the office and spreading into the back seat when the trunk was full. Lots of business miles on an already old car led to a breakdown now and then, and eventually my boss told me I needed a more dependable vehicle with more cargo space. What was I to do? I loved my car, but my work required that I let it go. I traded it in on a new Capri hatchback that had much more cargo space and better reliability. I soon wore the Capri out and upgraded again, this time to a Mazda truck with a cap. It wasn’t long before the box was loaded to capacity. This need for change was driven by the requirements of the job.
Let’s look further back in history. The Baptists in and around this town purchased “The Lord’s Barn” in 1849. After five years and a lot of hard work, the “Baptist Meeting House” was opened. Over the years, through times of struggle and victory, the congregation grew. Improvements were made to the building; a new baptistery was added, the pulpit was lowered from its elevated position to be nearer to the people, a 12’ X 15’ extension was built behind the pulpit to allow the choir to leave the elevated gallery behind the assembly and face the people from the front, new pews were installed, a 28’ X 35’ vestry was built at the back of the church, new windows were installed. In the early 1900’s, the church body was thriving and they had outgrown the previously expanded ‘Baptist Meeting House’. Take a moment right now and imagine we are there wrestling with many of the same problems we have right now… You, your family and your friends have been saved, baptized, nurtured, married and buried in the Baptist Meeting House. There is a great deal of sentiment, nostalgia, intrigue and history attached to this old town landmark. Do we find a way to continue to renovate? Do we need a new structure? What will we do…? What did they do? Well, sometime between 1912 and the start of WW1, a building fund was established. At the annual meeting in January of 1920, the building committee was authorized to proceed with the erection of a new church; this building we’re in now. Work began that year and the grand opening was held on Jan 30, ’21.
This structure has harboured us for almost 90 years, but now, I believe, our boss is telling us our Mustang doesn’t have enough cargo space and we need something more reliable, metaphorically speaking. Why doesn’t this structure meet our requirements any more?
We don’t have enough room for the people we have attending now. At times, people have had to leave because there was no place to sit. We have a full house even when many regulars are away. The ‘overflow’ seating has become regular and even preferred seating.
Stairs are everywhere we need to go. This causes difficulties for some seniors and others with mobility difficulties.
The aisles are narrow and crooked creating difficulties for weddings and funerals.
We don’t have adequate or convenient parking.
There are three old buildings, each with high maintenance and heating costs.
There is no A/C.
Platform and front floor space are too small.
We have to prohibit jumping in the sanctuary because there is not enough structural integrity in the floor to support it.
Poor sight lines from overflow and choir.
The lighting is insufficient to allow us to air our services on local cable.
Inadequate, poorly positioned washroom facilities.
Offices and annex meeting room are far removed from main building.
There is no reliable Internet access in the main building.
The gym is small, noisy, and inadequate.
There is a woeful lack of storage space.
I suspect each of you can add to this list.
Through surveys, interviews and discussions, church workers have told two building committees what was needed to support our present and expected future needs. The solutions are in the new plan, which addresses and fulfills all the identified needs.
Many reasons are given to argue that we stay here.
We can’t afford our current bills. How can we build a new church?
It’s such a nice old building.
I grew up here. It holds a lot of meaning for me.
What about the organ and the stained glass windows; we don’t want to lose those, do we?
These are all nuts-and-bolts issues; important to consider, but, I believe, not of paramount significance in the matter. Let me talk about them for just a bit. In the end, though, it’s important to remember that we must be obedient to God’s call and leading.
It’s not unexpected that people would develop attachments to this place. They’ve laboured long and hard to build this body of believers into the family we are today. That work must be respected and honoured, but the honour and respect must come from the rest of us who follow their example, not from the structure. The building housed us, but it was the communion of believers within the walls that created those fond memories and the comfortable feelings of security and peace. It was not the pews and organ and pulpit and stained glass. This is a building where we have come together to worship God. It must not be that which we worship. I don’t know of any place in Scripture where we are commanded to maintain buildings because of their historical or architectural significance or character. The building we use is a tool in the work, but the tool itself sends a message. I think we should want that message to speak to today’s, and tomorrow’s, cultures with relevance and authority. Today’s culture is one of media bombardment, using steadily evolving technology in more ways every day. How long can we expect constantly changing culture to find post WW1 form and function appealing and compelling?
The issue of finances is always a thorny one. I’m not going to take the time to preach to you about how you should use the money God has placed in your hands. I will, though, quickly relate the high points of a Bible study I recently led for the senior youth. It was part of a series on social justice and our responsibility in the fight against oppression. The lesson was called “God’s Vision Brings God’s Provision.” The scripture text was the story of Jesus feeding the 5000 with five loaves and two fish. The theme was, “If YOU show up, GOD will show up.” Jesus asked Phillip, “Where can we buy enough food to feed these people?” They were in an unpopulated countryside with no grocery stores and even if there had been stores, eight month’s wages couldn’t have fed the crowd, according to Phillip. He saw the problem as one of economics. Another disciple saw the problem as an opportunity. He had found the only food there, a boy’s lunch, and brought it to Jesus. This was a ridiculously small amount of food compared to the number of hungry mouths, but the boy gave it willingly, without holding anything back for himself, without telling Jesus that he was nuts for thinking it would be enough. You know what happened. Jesus blessed it and started passing it out. Everyone ate until they were full and there were 12 baskets full of leftovers. The message is this; if YOU show up at the picnic with your lunch and whatever meager resources you have and bring a willing, obedient heart, GOD will show up with his limitless resources, use your lunch to feed 5000 people and have leftovers for the food bank. That same Jesus is the one who is telling us our Mustang is too small.
Please take a moment, right now, to think back to the time of your conversion, or another significant time that you and God had together… In every case I’m sure you had the realization that God was there to meet you exactly where you were. He was totally relevant to your situation in that moment. To have a continuing, effective outreach to the people of this community, which is our primary goal and an element of the Great Commission, we must be prepared to meet them where they are so they can know that God wants to meet them there, too. Our society is constantly morphing, being shaped and reshaped faster than most of us can keep up, but it’s our job to show that God remains relevant in all this change, that he’s not an old-fashioned concept that is no longer of any use or interest in our present society. We must make our message current. The building we use is one tool that gets used in our presentation of the good news and that tool becomes part of our message. It needs to be as current as our message for the message to have teeth.
Steven Curtis Chapman sings a song that I think could be our anthem throughout this process.
Burn the Ships
In the spring of 1519, a Spanish fleet set sail
Cortez told his sailors, ‘This mission must not fail.’
On the eastern shore of Mexico they landed with great dreams
But the hardships of the new world made them restless and weak
Quietly they whispered, ‘Let’s sail back to the life we knew.’
But the one who led them there was saying,
‘Burn the ships; we’re here to stay
There’s no way we could go back
now that we’ve come this far by faith.
Burn the ships; we’ve passed the point of no return.
Our life is here
so let the ships burn.’
In the spring of new beginnings a searching heart set sail
Looking for a new life and a love that will not fail
On the shores of grace and mercy we landed with great joy
But an enemy was waiting to steal, kill and destroy
Quietly he whispers, ‘Go back to the life you know.’
But the one who led us here is saying,
‘Burn the ships; we’re here to stay
There’s no way we could go back
now that we’ve come this far by faith.
Burn the ships; we’ve passed the point of no return.
Our life is here
so let the ships burn.’
Nobody said it would be easy
But the one who brought us here
Is never gonna leave us alone
Burn the ships; we’re here to stay
There’s no way we could go back
now that we’ve come this far by faith.
Burn the ships; we’ve passed the point of no return.
Our life is here
so let the ships burn.
I want you to know that I’m not suggesting that we set fire to our buildings. That would be dangerous and irresponsible, but I think it would be more dangerous to place our affection for this present location ahead the opportunity for growth that God has presented to us. Do we dare to limit God’s work through us in this town to the size of the four walls of this old tool that he’s already filled? I don’t. This building has been in use for close to 90 years. Do you dare tell the people of the next 90 years that their vision of God’s work for them in this town has to fit in this building? I don’t. Are you prepared to deny future generations the joy of seeing God fill a larger, more functional, socially relevant, albeit unfamiliar structure? I’m not. Where in scripture are we told to get comfortable and bask in the glory of previous spiritual victories? Can we say, “I’m sorry God, but I don’t believe you have the skills and resources to be able to afford a project this big?”
I can see three responses to the challenge God has placed before us;
God, we can’t afford to grow any more. Could you please stop working through us and, instead, use some of the other churches around us that still have room to grow?
God, thank you for using us to grow this body to the capacity of the building. Please keep bring us new people, but just a few at a time, so we can get them started in a new life with you. Then we’ll pass them on to another nearby church that still has empty pews.
God, thank you for blessing us with each other and using us to create a body that cares for each of its members and the lost of the community around us. What You’re doing here shows, and people are coming to see what it’s all about. We prayed that you would increase your flock and you answered with a ‘Yes.’ Now we’re full and we ask that you give us a new prayer. Lord, please make it possible for us to pay for what we need to continue your work. And give us the faith to start now with the assurance that you’ll do it.
To me, the proper response is clear. Our work in this mission field isn’t ended just because we’ve filled this vessel. Thank you faithful Mustang. It’s been a sweet ride, but now it’s time to burn the ships!
Well Robb, there it is. At this point in time, some of it sounds a bit like a rant, considering the change in mood. I still think that there are some important points, though.
