Since the waters flooded the church, there has been much activity tearing out the destruction in preparation for the restoration. You have probably heard that the damage was in the entire church structure. The worst was in the area of the preschool where the only thing left in some areas was the wooden skeleton and the old brick church building. Other areas including the sanctuary, the atrium, and most of the offices were stripped of all flooring and up to two feet of the walls. Though the Fellowship Hall and library have not yet been stripped of water and moisture damage because they are being used for storage of pews and other items. Eventually they to will need to be dealt with.
The restoration will be done as soon as possible, but it will take some time. IT WILL BE DONE! This also puts a stop to the restoration of our congregation. We had started to gather for worship once again. Our missions had started down new avenues to help others. There were plans for the future. We are back to where we were when the COVID-19 scattered us to our separate homes and our connection to each other became harder to maintain. The restoration of our building will mean nothing if we do not have a restored people of God to use it.
When the church building is restored, we will rededicate it to God’s glory and mission. When we rededicate it, we will also need to rededicate ourselves to God’s glory and mission or the building will remain just a building. How will you prepare for that rededication? What sacrifices are you willing to live? This is not something others can do for you. We talk about service in Christ’s Name, this no longer what others have done in the past so that we might enjoy the benefits, but a new calling for us now.
As your interim pastor, I came to help you through the Call process so that you may seek a new pastor. That work is on hold until you can reach the rededication that needs to come. You may have to put up with me longer than was planned or anticipated. Until we can be together, rededicated in building and purpose, you are stuck with me being here with you. For the rededication of the building, I put my trust in those who have the gifts to restore the physical church. For the rededication of the Church, let us put our trust in the one who can spiritually restore us, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Pastor Baker