In April 2007 the elders completed a master ministry plan for the church and then considered what impact that plan would have on the facilities. The combined plans were then excitedly shared with the church body — “this is what we believe God is doing in our church body and community and how we should respond to that in terms of ministry.”
We were excited not only about the ministry plans, but how the frontage on Highway 4 might be used to our advantage and how some building changes might facilitate even more ministry expansion.
Within a week or two of that meeting, one of the girls asked me in the car while I was taking her to school — “Dad, when will we get started — do you think we’ll start next month???”
I laughed and said, “No, Sweetheart, it takes a long time to get bids and get approval from the city and raise the money, and…”
It does take a long time. But two years?
All along the way, we were making decisions that seemed right at the time, given the information we had, and then many of those decisions ended up delaying us even further. There was no moral issue — no one was sinning in the decision and we continued to move forward. So why the delays? Why has it taken almost two years to come to the point where construction can now begin? Why have we had to wait?
A couple weeks ago, the building committee took some time in a meeting to reflect on the things God was teaching us both personally and corporately through this waiting process.
Here are some of the things we’ve been learning and God has been working while we’ve been waiting:
God is unifying us to sing one song of glory to God. The God who is persevering, patient, and encouraging, is the One who gives unity of mind by the work of Christ so that we would with one heart and with one voice glorify God (Rom. 15:5-7). In other words, God is patient with us (and makes us wait), so that we will be fully unified with Him and with one another. And whether we wait two days or two years or two millennia (to paraphrase Peter — 2 Pt. 3:8), every wait is a short time to accomplish this great purpose.
God is emptying us of our adequacy until only He is proven adequate for this ministry venture. God will not — ever — share His glory with another. God will not even share His glory to accomplish a great goal. This was the essence of Satan’s temptation of Christ (Mt. 4:8-10) and Christ rebuked him sharply with the reminder that only One receives worship. God alone. If we believe in any way that we are adequate for this task — or any other task — it is a benevolent gift from God to make us wait, if at the end of the wait we find our adequacy stripped away.
God is using this time to refine our ministry and our focus. The period of waiting has led us to see the extent to which God was working in our church body, refine the focus of our ministry, and make building plans accordingly. So one of the great benefits of this waiting period is that the building will now be much more serviceable for the ministry that is already expanding, and that we anticipate increasing all the more in coming days. Had construction begun 22 months ago, there would have been improvements to our facilities, but we would already be identifying issues that needed change again.
In kindness, God is protecting us from our own decisions, and teaching us to give thanks (even if it is not readily apparent what He is doing). This is a corollary to the previous lesson — with the additional component of gratitude. Learning to intentionally and joyfully cultivate contented thankfulness when life circumstances are different than our desires is a great blessing. Many times I have asked myself — and sometimes others, too — “have you given thanks for that hardship and disappointment yet?” If this period of waiting has taught us contented gratitude, we have been richly blessed!
God us teaching us to pray and trust. Jesus told the disciples a parable about persevering in prayer — to teach them not to be discouraged (Lk. 18:1ff). And the point of the story is that discouragement comes when God either says “no” or doesn’t answer. What is the appropriate response? Keep praying. Don’t give up asking. So as we’ve waited, an appropriate question to ask is, “have we persisted in prayer?” And do we trust that what He gives us is His gracious best for us (even if the answer is “wait” or “no”)?
God is providing yet another example of how all things are working for our good and His glory — even in the worst of times. Bad times are never really bad times for those who trust and love the Lord. For in every circumstance, God is working His good purposes to a God-glorifying end for those who love Him. So whether we wait or not, whether we are sick or healthy, whether we are destitute or have plenty, God is working good and He is being glorified. And that means that this wait has been good.
God is reminding us that ministry is not dependent on buildings and facilities. The impetus for all the building changes has been ministry goals. So two years ago, we identified a number of goals we desired to achieve within a few months, others that we envisioned attaining in one to two years, and still others within five years. As the committee recently looked at those goals, we found that even without the building modifications, God has enabled us to not only reach many of the shorter-term goals, but already we are in the process of fulfilling some of the five-year goals — like an ever-increasing Bible Institute ministry and plan, missionary trips, and special events and conferences (some of which are currently being planned)! These were reminders that God is the provider of our adequacy, and that even amidst the waiting, He has blessed us richly with many wonderful and expanding ministry opportunities.
So, yes, we have waited. But the waiting has been a gift from a benevolent God who is accomplishing His purposes in our church body. So give thanks and pray and keep serving for His glory. And now He has truths to teach us in new ways and circumstances as He opens the door of opportunity for these facility changes. In other words, this period of waiting is over, but more opportunities for ministry and personal and corporate growth lie ahead
Words of Grace 