The Q&A

The Decision to Give

How can I handle this faith promise (pledge) with the economy the way it is?

Your decision to make a faith promise to this building expansion is one that should be driven by prayer. With God's help, decide whatyour faith promise will be. If you encounter financial hardships, you may deal with your faith promise in the way that works best for your situation. Your faith promise is not a binding contract.

Since three years is a long time and my financial situation could change during that time, can I make a faith promise for only one year?

Again,your faith promise is not a binding contract. We encourage you to make a faith promise for the three-­year period. If you encounter financial hardships, or if your situation were to improve, we ask you to prayerfully decide how to handle the remainder of your commitment.

I don't want to be told what to give. Why were the gift charts in the brochure?

Many people are uncomfortable being told what they should give. Therefore, for the Building His Church project the elders elected to not suggest a percentage gift for each family.  The gift charts in the brochure are simply guidelines to help you get a feel for what a particular gift amount might look like when considering an annual, monthly, or weekly gift amount. The goal is for equal sacrifice among our membership, not equal gifts. It is through prayerful consideration that you should decide the amount of your faith promise.

How will this building expansion affect our annual giving and other outreach giving?

Statistics show that churches experience an increase in annual and other giving in the years following a capital building expansion effort. This is because Christian stewardship is a virtue that continues to grow once people begin to practice it. Also, a building expansion stimulates growth in membership,which positively affects annual giving.

Nationally, only about 5% of Christians actually give 10% of their income. The average giving rate is two percent. Therefore, many people are not tithing at the ten percent level with their gifts to the church. This building expansion gives all of us the opportunity to grow in our giving, regardless of our current giving level.

Giving Details

How long will the faith promise period be?

The faith promise period is the three years following Commitment Sunday, December 7, December 2008 through November 2011.

Can we designate gifts to a specific project?

Gifts to the Building His Church initiative will all be placed into the building fund, and they will be utilized as directed by the Session. We feel that the elders have the best vantage point to use the funds as most needed by the church.

What if our proposed building plans cost too much money?

If sufficient funds are not raised to build a sanctuary and classroom space, we will approach building in phases.

What if we raise more money than is needed for the building expansion project?

That will be a wonderful problem to have! If this occurs, the matter would go to the Session for a decision on how to handle excess funds. Remember, a portion of the funds raised will be given to missions as well.

Project Urgency

Are all of these projects really necessary?

The results of the readiness assessment study, personal  interviews, written surveys, and the building expansion dialogue events indicate that this congregation feels these projects are urgently necessary.

How was the building expansion timing determined/decided?

The timing of this building expansion was in response to three factors. The staff conducted a space-need sassessment and the building committee determined there was a need for expansion. The elders then hired Treanor Architects to begin planning and drawings. This has resulted in a basic master plan. Finally, the elders approved launching the Building His Church effort to help determine if we have sufficient funds to pay for the expansion. The elders have indicated that now is the time to pursue expansion.

Other Funding Sources

Could we borrow to cover part or all of the expenses?

Depending upon the amount raised by the Building His Church effort, we may also need to borrow funds. Right now we want to focus on commitments through this building expansion to cover as much of the project's costs as possible. Even if we do borrow in the future, we will still need to raise funds to pay off the loan. As of January 2009, the church should be 100% debt free.

Isn't there a building fund that could fund some of this work?

Yes, we do have a building fund that people continue to contribute to. The proposed project items of this building expansion fall outside the scope and capacity ofthe current building fund. The current building fund is, however, covering some of the early phase expenses of preparing for a building expansion, such as architectural drawings and consulting fees.

Project Details

Once the church building is renovated, will there be an increase inannual operational (maintenance, insurance, etc. )costs? How much of an increase? Can we afford to pay for them?

Some improvements will introduce new maintenance costs, such as higher utility bills. However, we anticipate that increased church growth will lead to increased giving to our ministries.

How many seats would there be if we build a new sanctuary?

We anticipate seating of 750-850 people with overflow seating in a new narthex.

How long will it take to complete the renovations?

There will be quite a bit of prep work that needs to be completed by the architects and builders. If all goes well, construction may start in the fall of 2009.The time table for completion would have to be determined by the builder.

Will the Elders decide the project order?

The building committee and the Elders will determine the project order. However, additional feedback and input sessions will also be held to gather the ideas of the congregation. Ultimately, the Session will provide oversight for the overall project.

Can the project be split up in phases?

Yes, there is a good chance the project will be done in phases. The Session will determine what plan is recommended to the congregation for a vote.

How much confidence can we put in the budgeted costs?

The price estimates were obtained by an architect who toured the building and analyzed our needs. More precise estimates will be done as we get closer to building, but these preliminary estimates have given us some basic guidelines for developing our building expansion plan.

What are the cost estimates?

The total project estimate is $4.5 to $6 million. This is a rough estimate and more detailed information will be available at a later date.

Will there be a library or chapel in the new building?

There will, of course, be a long “wish list” of what could be built. At this time, these plans are not solidified, but it is hoped there will be a library and a chapel/prayer room.

What will be done with the current sanctunasium?

Our gym will continue to serve multiple purposes, including hosting large events, college ministry, and perhaps additional classroom space.

Does the proposed master plan max out our current site?

Yes. While we are considering a second story on part of the education space expansion, this round of construction would max out our site.

Will the building be aesthetically pleasing? Who will design it?

There has been a lot of healthy, productive conversation around this topic. The general consensus from our church family is we’d like to build an aesthetically pleasing sanctuary and classroom space that is pleasing to God. Most feel it should be nicer than a warehouse but not overly ornate like a cathedral. Beautiful while affordable is a common theme.

The building committee along with the architects will design the new facility.

Will there be more office space in the plan?

The building committee, which has been meeting for several years working on this project, has indicated that repositioning and reorganizing the current office space could produce more efficiently used space that should be more than adequate for our church staff.

Currently our crowded narthex can be very intimidating to visitors.  What can we do about that?