Clarity is a Good Thing!
I just drove back to the office from our new property and Dallas Tent Company is laying the flooring for the 20,000 square-foot tent that we will celebrate and worship under this Sunday evening at the One More Life Gala. Every time I drive by the property, I am overwhelmed by its beauty, the amazing opportunity that it brings us, and the faithfulness of God. Needless to say, the excitement about the coming weekend is ramping up pretty quickly now, and it appears that we are going to be blessed with a stunning evening as we gather for the biggest celebration in the history of Preston Trail!
One of the challenges of carrying out a project like One More Life is simply communicating all the details and information that people need to know in order to process and pray effectively about this opportunity. With that in mind, and for the sake of clarity, which is a really good thing, I want to bullet point some of the basic info that may be most helpful to you. Here goes:
Why is having the Gala important?
- God commands his people in the Old Testament to drop everything and get together for massive times of celebration and worship in his name and for his glory (Check out Deuteronomy 14:22-27 for an example).
- With our three-service schedule, we haven’t worshiped together all in one place for many years. We miss seeing, experiencing, and being encouraged by the amazing movement of God through Preston Trail.
- We need a venue where we have the time and biggest crowd possible to cast vision and call our people to commitment to this great cause!
What do we want to build in Phase I?
An 85,000 square-foot facility that will provide worship space for 1,500 per service.- Approximately 9,000 square feet more than we currently have for our children’s ministry.
- Worship space for 300 students, plus additional hang out space.
- A beautiful atrium space with a coffee shop and play space for kids. Much like our current atrium, it will provide the key space of personal interaction and community-building.
- The finish-out will be creative and functional without being lavish and opulent.
What are we asking our church family to do?
- To pray earnestly about how God would want each of us to sacrificially give to the One More Life Project so that we can meet or exceed our 7.5 million dollar goal.
- Ask God to give you direction in what you are to give for the next three years, over and above your regular tithes and offering. The giving period begins May 2012 and ends May 2015.
- As a part of your three-year commitment, give an up-front “Groundbreaking Gift” in May 2012 so that we will have the cash on hand that we need to execute our construction loan and begin the construction as soon as possible.
- These commitments are not binding contracts, but we will be making our building plans based on these commitments. We understand that personal situations and emergencies occur during a three-year time span. We simply ask that if your commitment needs to change that you would contact the church office to let us know.
There you have it . . . a huge project in a handful of bullet points. While we are undertaking a project that is beyond our human strength to accomplish, we believe that if everyone will be willing to commit something, God will do the rest and provide for us beyond our wildest dreams and imaginations. It is always our hope and prayer that we will look back one day and be able to truly say, “Only God!”
Expectantly!
Jim
