“...and upon this rock I will build my church…”
- Matthew 16:18
Dear Friends,
If you are anything like me it's often difficult to “stop and smell the roses”. In other words I can get so busy doing something that it's often difficult for me to step back and look at the big picture of how far a project has come, but lately I’ve been doing something special with our staff. Each week, I have Caleb print off a picture from the last week of ministry and put it on our wall. The mosaic of pictures tells an amazing story of what God has been doing in our church this year. Every day I have made it a practice to stop and look at that wall. Do you know what I see? I see new faces, new members, new baptisms, infants, students, adults, community members, principals, mayors, parents, servants, bed builders, food deliverers, care givers, and prayers. I see that amazing growth and vitality is taking place in our church buildings and through our church members community wide. I see full parking lots, busy welcome spaces, and opportunities to share good news with even more people.
Which brings me to this letter. We are embarking on a bold adventure as a church. With a hope to build our capacity for ministry both in our church facility and in our larger community. We are continuing to expand our vision of putting Lawrenceville first by connecting the church to the community and the community to the church! I am asking every person who calls Lawrenceville First their church to be a part of this work. Our goal will be to maintain our current operating budget so that we may continue to support the wonderful ministries of Lawrenceville First, while also expanding our capacity for ministry through a three-year $2 million generosity campaign we are calling Build Your Church. I am asking each of you to consider making a sacrificial commitment above and beyond your regular giving to fuel much needed renovations in our facility and much needed ministry expansion in our community. If 400 of us will commit to $5 a day above and beyond our regular giving we will easily eclipse our goal.
The Build Your Church campaign will utilize $1 million to fund renovations to both our Welcome Center and our Gibson Wing breezeway, creating safe and welcoming spaces for the 10,000 or so people who walk through the doors of our church on a yearly basis. We will also be able to replace many of the HVAC units that are not able to keep up with the utilization of our facility as well as a few other building updates and upgrades. Additionally, the other $1 million will fund mission and ministry in our community through the expansion of the Parents First Initiative programming and staff for three years beyond the grant funded period. This will allow our church to have a presence at all of the schools with Lawrenceville zip codes, serving students, parents, and teachers in each of these schools. Not only will we be able to serve the 25,000 students and teachers at these schools but when fully staffed we will be able to provide Parents First Initiative opportunities to over 500 families each year, impacting the lives of over 1,200 children in our community and shaping the future of our city and schools.
So, what do we need from you? Jesus’ words to the disciples in Matthew 16 will be both a prayer and an invitation during these next three years together. Jesus reminds us that HE builds the Church,but he also empowers and invites us to be a part of building his Church on earth and for us right here in Lawrenceville. So, we begin with prayer saying, “Lord, build YOUR Church”, followed by asking how we can be a part of that work. In order to do something this impactful in shaping our community, it is going to take 100% participation! As I say often, all of us need all of us! Begin to think about what sort of commitment you and your family can make to this campaign, and check out www.buildyourchurch.org for more information, videos, and opportunities to see God’s work here in Lawrenceville. Join YOUR church in worship throughout the month of October while we talk about how God is building something amazing in and through each of you. Finally, fill out the enclosed commitment card… both your regular annual giving and your commitment above and beyond that for the next three years of Build Your Church. Bring that card back with you on Celebration Sunday, October 26th. That Sunday will involve a time of celebrating what God has done and committing to our work in what God will do through this campaign.
Again, THANK YOU! Thank you for being an amazing church! I feel so honored to be a part of the work that is taking place right here right now and I cannot wait to see what unfolds in the coming years as we pray this bold prayer together, “BUILD YOUR CHURCH!”
Building With You,
Adam Hilderbrandt
If you are anything like me it's often difficult to “stop and smell the roses”. In other words I can get so busy doing something that it's often difficult for me to step back and look at the big picture of how far a project has come, but lately I’ve been doing something special with our staff. Each week, I have Caleb print off a picture from the last week of ministry and put it on our wall. The mosaic of pictures tells an amazing story of what God has been doing in our church this year. Every day I have made it a practice to stop and look at that wall. Do you know what I see? I see new faces, new members, new baptisms, infants, students, adults, community members, principals, mayors, parents, servants, bed builders, food deliverers, care givers, and prayers. I see that amazing growth and vitality is taking place in our church buildings and through our church members community wide. I see full parking lots, busy welcome spaces, and opportunities to share good news with even more people.
Which brings me to this letter. We are embarking on a bold adventure as a church. With a hope to build our capacity for ministry both in our church facility and in our larger community. We are continuing to expand our vision of putting Lawrenceville first by connecting the church to the community and the community to the church! I am asking every person who calls Lawrenceville First their church to be a part of this work. Our goal will be to maintain our current operating budget so that we may continue to support the wonderful ministries of Lawrenceville First, while also expanding our capacity for ministry through a three-year $2 million generosity campaign we are calling Build Your Church. I am asking each of you to consider making a sacrificial commitment above and beyond your regular giving to fuel much needed renovations in our facility and much needed ministry expansion in our community. If 400 of us will commit to $5 a day above and beyond our regular giving we will easily eclipse our goal.
The Build Your Church campaign will utilize $1 million to fund renovations to both our Welcome Center and our Gibson Wing breezeway, creating safe and welcoming spaces for the 10,000 or so people who walk through the doors of our church on a yearly basis. We will also be able to replace many of the HVAC units that are not able to keep up with the utilization of our facility as well as a few other building updates and upgrades. Additionally, the other $1 million will fund mission and ministry in our community through the expansion of the Parents First Initiative programming and staff for three years beyond the grant funded period. This will allow our church to have a presence at all of the schools with Lawrenceville zip codes, serving students, parents, and teachers in each of these schools. Not only will we be able to serve the 25,000 students and teachers at these schools but when fully staffed we will be able to provide Parents First Initiative opportunities to over 500 families each year, impacting the lives of over 1,200 children in our community and shaping the future of our city and schools.
So, what do we need from you? Jesus’ words to the disciples in Matthew 16 will be both a prayer and an invitation during these next three years together. Jesus reminds us that HE builds the Church,but he also empowers and invites us to be a part of building his Church on earth and for us right here in Lawrenceville. So, we begin with prayer saying, “Lord, build YOUR Church”, followed by asking how we can be a part of that work. In order to do something this impactful in shaping our community, it is going to take 100% participation! As I say often, all of us need all of us! Begin to think about what sort of commitment you and your family can make to this campaign, and check out www.buildyourchurch.org for more information, videos, and opportunities to see God’s work here in Lawrenceville. Join YOUR church in worship throughout the month of October while we talk about how God is building something amazing in and through each of you. Finally, fill out the enclosed commitment card… both your regular annual giving and your commitment above and beyond that for the next three years of Build Your Church. Bring that card back with you on Celebration Sunday, October 26th. That Sunday will involve a time of celebrating what God has done and committing to our work in what God will do through this campaign.
Again, THANK YOU! Thank you for being an amazing church! I feel so honored to be a part of the work that is taking place right here right now and I cannot wait to see what unfolds in the coming years as we pray this bold prayer together, “BUILD YOUR CHURCH!”
Building With You,
Adam Hilderbrandt
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