AUGUST 2 0 2 5
With Christ at the Center
VOLUM E R R N O. 8
CONNECTIONS OUR CHILDREN'S SUMMER CAMPS HAVE BEEN A BLAST! FROM JUNE THROUGH THE END OF JULY, KIDS GATHERED TO DEVELOP ATHLETIC SKILLS, DO HANDS-ON CRAFTS, ENJOY THE OUTDOORS, AND HAVE FUN. WE HOPE YOU'LL JOIN OUR CAMPS NEXT SUMMER!
From the Senior Pastor Restore & Renew Update: Transforming our Worship Spaces The next phase of our campus-wide Restore & Renew project begins on Monday, August 25, with work getting underway to, well, in some cases restore, and in some cases renew the paint, flooring, pews, organ, and lighting in our Sanctuary and Narthex areas. ecause we are committed to B paying for Restore & Renew projects as we go—as opposed to borrowing money to fund the work—progress has been slow and steady over the last eighteen months. The most visible R&R work to this point has been the extensive exterior painting we had done last fall. For most of us, though, a lot of the necessary work thus far has been invisible: Replacing leaky flat roofs, replacing end-oflife HVAC units, and swapping our 1977-vintage temperature controls for new, more responsive, digital thermostats. That’s about to change. Our Property Resources Committee (PRC) has assembled a team made up of committee members and church members at-large to plan this upcoming phase of R&R. Their goal is to restore and renew our Sanctuary and Narthex in a way that enhances our worship experience, highlights the rooms’ unique
architectural beauty, and welcomes both guests and members into worship space that feels welcoming and cared-for. I have a great deal of confidence in the work that this group has done so far and am really looking forward to seeing the fruit of their labor take shape. A local contracting company, Edifice, will coordinate this project in partnership with our PRC and Adam Lawlor, our Director of Church Operations. The plan is for all the work to be completed in time for us to worship again in the Sanctuary by the first Sunday of Advent, which this year is November 30. So, what does all this mean for the thirteen Sundays in between August 24 and November 30? It means that we will worship together on Sunday mornings in the Fellowship Hall, fitting as many chairs in the room as we safely can. Pete Leo, Ed West, and Noel Friedline are already working together on how they’ll lead great music in an unfamiliar worship space. Our ministers are developing plans for an “overflow” space that allows us to worship together on campus via our livestream if the Fellowship Hall fills up. It also means that, with Midweek dinners beginning on September 17, the Fellowship Hall will need to be
transformed each week from a “dining hall” to a “worship hall”—and it won’t happen by itself. Adam is working on a plan for how to setup and take-down as efficiently as possible. Once we have a “turnaround plan” in place, we will all be invited to lend a helping hand in order to accomplish this weekly transformation. The good news here is three-fold. First: We can do this. Second: It’s only temporary. Third: When it’s over, we’re going to have a beautifully restored and renewed worship space. And here I’ll add a fourth element of good news: We get to do this together—and that will make us stronger. May the peace of Christ be with you!
Lee Canipe Senior Pastor
SERMON TEXTS THIS MONTH August 3 August 10 August 17 August 24 August 31
High School Mission Trip Report Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16 Isaiah 5:1-7 Psalm 71:1-6 Luke 14:1, 7-14