|
| The church preaches against debt... yet we will do it in a big way. Why? |
| Are we going to have a commercial kitchen? |
| How much will the new facility on Lovers Lane cost? |
| Why Move Now? |
|
It is always better to be able to pay cash for a purchase. Let's pray that God will prompt our hearts to that level of generosity. The Bible says clearly that personal debt is to be avoided. ""Owe no man any thing" (Romans 13:8). The Scripture is silent on the subject of when we can owe money. However, Howard Dayton in "Your Money Counts" states that debt is permissible when these criteria are met:
- The item purchased is an asset with the potential to appreciate or to produce an income.
- The value of the item equals or exceeds the amount owed against it.
- The debt is not so large that repayment put undue strain on the budget.
Your Money Counts: The Biblical Guide to Earning, Spending, Saving, Investing,
Giving and Staying out of Debt by Howard Dayton, p. 38.
The Bible does not speak to a church going into debt to accomplish her God-given mandate to reach, teach and minister but the principles listed above for "possible debt" have implications to our situation:
- The property on Lover's Lane was purchased at an average cost of $32,000 per acre. Adjacent properties are now going for $75,000- $100,000 per acre. Also, the more people we can reach through the ministries related to the new facility, the more people will become devoted followers of Christ, thus expanding the ministry base of the church through their service and financial support.
- The leadership of Living Hope will not put the church in an "upside down" position of debt outweighing assets.
- The church has been aggressively addressing its existing debt ($1.9 million) at a rate that would be required of a $12 million debt load. The leadership of the church has done this to acclimate the budget of the church to such a debt retirement strategy.
Having a studied strategy that would culminate in a new ministry point with it resulting construction debt, it is equally important and God-honoring to have a studied strategy for retiring that debt.
|
|
|
The Master Plan has 1,200 sq. ft designated for a kitchen. A kitchen that can serve the basic needs for light cooking, food
preparation, warming and catering is being anticipated. There will be stoves, ovens, microwaves, refrigerators and freezers, etc...
but the kitchen will not technically be commercial grade given the great expense (upwards of $250,000) of a commercial one and
ease of use of a more conventional one. When it is time to actually design the kitchen area, the hospitality committee members
will be consulted as to how best furnish and layout this area.
|
|
|
Estimates are that it will take $38 million to $42 million. We need to raise as much of this money as possible, sell our current structure and borrow as little as possible to reach this goal.
|
|
We must move now or the church will begin to decline. A detailed statistical analysis of our attendance shows that Sunday worship service has been at capacity for about two years. Everyone has been to worship service when it has been full, and seats have been difficult to find.
In the fall of 2001, the church began praying and making plans for the people who would be coming to "The Hope." Those prayers and plans led to the construction of the children's wing and the purchase of the property on Lovers Lane.
When the children's wing was constructed, we believed that the church would have several years of breathing room to grow at our current location until all three worship services were full. Amazingly, that belief turned out to be wrong.
When the children's wing opened in the fall of 2003, it immediately filled up during the 9:30 a.m. hour. By the fall of 2004, the Adult Bible Fellowship space that was recovered from the children filled up at the 9:30 a.m. hour. The 9:30 a.m. worship service also is now full.
To deal with this, we asked people to move from the 9:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. worship hours to the 8 a.m. worship service. Many graciously did so, and it worked for a while. Now, on an average Sunday, we are 40 percent full at 8 a.m., and 80 percent full at 9:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. More than 2,000 people are coming to worship service and another 400-500 children and students attend Sunday school but not worship service. That means on any given Sunday, 2,500 souls are on this property.
Our consultants tell us that on a typical Sunday we have 800 people more than our facility can accommodate. There are two problems with this. First, Hopers probably feel crowded and uncomfortable, but stay with us because this is home for them. Secondly, people who are visiting because they have heard the exciting news about our Church do not return because the Church is full.
We must relocate now or, in time, people will stop coming because we do not have space for them to get to know and connect with others on Sunday morning. Further, we run the risk of losing current members and attenders who feel cramped. When people stop coming, we cannot help people get to God, grow in Christ and give to others. If that happens, we will no longer be a vital work in the Kingdom of God and the church will decline.
|
|
