You know one of the worst parts of spring? Potholes. In both 2016 and in 2017 roads in Kitchener, Waterloo, Cambridge, and Guelph have been named in the top 5 worst in Western Ontario. In one case a car caught fire after hitting a particularly bad one – let that sink in… “It caught fire.”
Unfortunately I think about those types of scenarios at times when I drive into the church across a 28 year old parking lot we’ve patched more times than I can count. When I think about it I get frustrated. Not because it needs repair or replacing, but because the large amount money that it will take to do it could probably go somewhere else… and that’s what we’ve done for a few years now.
Then I had a thought a couple years ago. What if this property and this building are important? What if our set location that serves as home base, training ground, meeting space, and sending place for at least 641 people (that’s how many people are in our database) is actually important in the Kingdom of God?
So I had this thought – if this space is important to gather and scatter seeds of God’s kingdom… and if we should be keeping it functional to the best of our abilities… then what if raising money to repair or replace stuff is just the beginning of something bigger? Our heart and focus is always people, but what if God uses something like this to reach more people in a way we can’t yet see? That’s exactly what I think God is doing, and I couldn’t be more excited about it.
Over the next few months you’ll start hearing about what we are calling “THRIVE.” It’s based on Amos 9:11 “In that day I will restore the fallen house of David. I will repair its damaged walls. From the ruins I will rebuild it and restore its former glory.” I’m not talking going back to the good old days, or about a prosperity gospel. Instead I think God wants us to THRIVE. To enter into a new stage of blessing and ministry as we walk out our mission more intentionally, but as we help everyone create margin in our lives so we THRIVE and so that we can be a greater blessing to others through greater generosity in our time, energy, and money.
I believe God wants you to personally THRIVE in the days ahead. I challenge you to invite God to use an initiative that will begin with raising money this spring to be just the beginning of something greater for you and for us!