As a church family, we are stewards of this wonderful facility that God has given us. We've done our best to keep it in top shape, upgrading and maintaining it with care. During their annual visit, our bank remarked, “We always like coming here because you take such good care of your building.”

Of course, the church is the people, but the building allows us to do many things we otherwise could not. And now, we need some help.

We built this building years ago before anything else was here. Our water and fire systems use water pumped from the ground, with 40,000 gallons of stored water behind the church for domestic, irrigation and fire protection. We maintain all or our equipment and the cost to convert to city water exceeds $500,000 and we would also need to pay 1.5 times the city rate for water, so moving to city water is not an option.

Our fire system relies on this water storage. Each year, our fire system is tested, and over the past several years, we’ve noticed that the fire pump is slowly degrading. Although we’ve never had to use it, the extremely hard water is tough on pumps. Even though the pump isn’t in active use, it remains fully pressurized, and wear/corrosion has become evident over time.

We are 100% in compliance at this point, but we can't afford to fail an inspection, as that would be – really bad. Failing would mean shutting down our church, childcare and school operations because we wouldn’t have a working fire system. That’s not something we can even consider. So delay is not an option.

We must replace the pump and some supporting equipment, which can only be done by a certified fire company. This also requires going through the entire process as if it were a new construction. The cost to replace the fire pump is $70,000, and it will take about 4-6 months due to the necessary engineering, plan submissions, approvals, and the actual construction. The company we’re working with is reliable, but anything related to fire safety is costly. We need $35,000 to start the work, with an additional $35,000 required upon completion.

Right now, we need $33,000 because Deb and I have already contributed $2,000. All I ask is that you do what God leads you to do. Whenever God has asked us to step out in faith, it’s exciting because He’s asked us to help in this current need while at the same time taking care of a future need in our family that we may not even know about at time.

 

Here’s what I ask you to do:

 

1. Don’t worry. Be of good courage. The need will be met, and you don’t have to be anxious. We each can do what God asks of us.

2. Be willing to walk this Emmaus Road journey with the Lord. This might be the first time you’ve done something like this, and maybe it’s a journey He wants to take you on. He’s the God of the supernatural, and you want Him involved in your financial world in the years to come. When God calls you to give toward a project like this, it will test your faith—and that’s a good thing. Just ask Abraham. As you involve yourself in God’s finances, He involves Himself in yours. Remember – the widow’s 2 mites was the greater than all.

3. Only give what you believe God wants you to. You can give cheerfully, knowing you will reap far more than you sow. Maybe you can give an amount weekly.

4. Remember not to assign God’s tithe to this project. The tithe is for the normal church operations - what keeps the church healthy and covers regular expenses. This offering should be separate from regular giving.

5. We’ll put up a thermometer on the screen each week so we can all see God provide.

6. Our first goal is to raise the remaining $33,000 in six weeks.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

 

1. Give as you normally do, but indicate 'FIRE PUMP' on your donation, and we will ensure its credited accordingly. If you’re giving online, there will be a 'FIRE PUMP' option.​​

I’m sure the need will be met, and God’s house secured for our future. Blessings!

Pastor Andy
Senior Pastor