During the spring of 2011, we emptied the church and later that summer we burned our church.
What kind of church would burn down their building?
We did and here is why:
We were going to re-shingle the church roof and a person checked the interior attic the day before the shingles were to be delivered. The trusses were under-designed and were curving. Gusset plates were bent from the shift and pressure. Three engineers gave the same report: you cannot repair this – you must replace the roof.
The bid to replace the roof was $185,000. To get rid of mold in the nursery, update building code: make the building more accessible and remodel the kitchen exceeded the value of the building.
We asked some really good questions:
What was important to us?
What was important to Jesus?
Our front door was given a “do not occupy” notice from the city.
Inviting became a challenge:
“There is a yellow condemned building tag on the front door – do not go in that one – go in the side door on the east side…..”
Amazingly, we outgrew the basement the following spring!
We kept the building until 2011 when our insurance underwriter would no longer cover us.
The sheriff’s dept conducted a hostage training and our local fire dept used it for a practice burn along with three other fire departments.
What kind of church burns its building down?
A church that cares about lost people like Jesus cares about them.
Luke 15:1-7
Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.
Adam Clarke writes that sheep stray more than any other livestock and cannot find their way back.
What kind of church would burn its building down?
A church that will do everything to rescue lost people.
Alvin Reid’s book “Radically Unchurched” of 350,000 churches in US only 1% growth is by conversion.
Most church are not growing and the rest grew by transfer growth.
What kind of church would burn their building?
A church that will do anything to reach lost people.
What kind of church would burn down their building?
We did and here is why:
We were going to re-shingle the church roof and a person checked the interior attic the day before the shingles were to be delivered. The trusses were under-designed and were curving. Gusset plates were bent from the shift and pressure. Three engineers gave the same report: you cannot repair this – you must replace the roof.
The bid to replace the roof was $185,000. To get rid of mold in the nursery, update building code: make the building more accessible and remodel the kitchen exceeded the value of the building.
We asked some really good questions:
What was important to us?
What was important to Jesus?
Our front door was given a “do not occupy” notice from the city.
Inviting became a challenge:
“There is a yellow condemned building tag on the front door – do not go in that one – go in the side door on the east side…..”
Amazingly, we outgrew the basement the following spring!
We kept the building until 2011 when our insurance underwriter would no longer cover us.
The sheriff’s dept conducted a hostage training and our local fire dept used it for a practice burn along with three other fire departments.
What kind of church burns its building down?
A church that cares about lost people like Jesus cares about them.
Luke 15:1-7
Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.
Adam Clarke writes that sheep stray more than any other livestock and cannot find their way back.
What kind of church would burn its building down?
A church that will do everything to rescue lost people.
Alvin Reid’s book “Radically Unchurched” of 350,000 churches in US only 1% growth is by conversion.
Most church are not growing and the rest grew by transfer growth.
What kind of church would burn their building?
A church that will do anything to reach lost people.
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