August 29, 2024

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. - Isaiah 55:8 (NIV)

I love these words from Isaiah, for they remind me how important a sense of perspective is when we grapple with life's challenges. So often, we forget that our way (often singular) fails to encapsulate the full range of possibilities found in God’s ways (plural).

This was especially true in one of the churches I served. The congregation paid off its mortgage several years ahead of schedule. By the time the mortgage was paid off, they had come to see the building as “theirs.” While they were generous in inviting groups from the community in to share the facilities, the congregation believed the property was their responsibility and theirs alone. As the facility aged, the building’s maintenance became the congregation’s primary focus. It felt as if the congregation believed it existed to serve the needs of the building.

Over the years, I tried many things to get them to shift their perspective. During our visioning conversations, we talked about what it would mean to diversify our source of income via things like grants and what it could mean to create partnerships with our community partners that would invite the community in to help us share the responsibility for maintaining the community space.

No matter how hard I worked, I could never get them to shift their thinking. They were convinced they had to go it alone and fund and fix everything themselves.

As I look back now, I realize that sometimes a shift in perspective is hard to affect from within. Sometimes congregations need a resource from the outside to come in and help them see things differently.

We in The United Church of Christ are blessed to have an incredible resource that can do just that: Church Building & Loan Fund (CB&LF). There are many services CB&LF provides ranging from visioning and strategic planning to assistance with setting up capital campaigns.

This September, CB&LF is offering a program designed to help local churches shift their perspective on the church and its resources. The Partners in Building program, offered via Zoom on September 26 and 27 from 11 am until 4 pm, will help congregations come to see their resources not as burdens that weigh them down but as keys to their future.

The two-day event will feature presentations and workshops on land use, repurposing resources for mission, faith-based entrepreneurship, fundraising, and the future of ministry. It will also connect registrants with loan partners, capital fundraising executives, and building professionals who can help congregations meet their goals for the future. Registration for two days is $75; registration for one day is $37.50.

For more information about the program, click here: PARTNERS IN BUILDING 2024. To register, click here: PARTNERS IN BUILDING REGISTRATION.

I hope your congregation will join with others from around the country who are committed to broadening their perspectives as we move from our isolated way closer to God’s ways that include shared vision and collaboration.