Under Construction: Church Renovations and Discipleship Formation

Under construction. There are a few projects that we are working on prior to fall. You may have noticed we painted the east facing door of the church. We are going with a completely new color to add some freshness to our building. Our painter will continue around the building working on our metal doors as his time permits. We are grateful for him volunteering his time and talent.

We have also upgraded the software that controls the doors of the church. It is now cloud based so we can open or lock doors from literally anyplace in the world. More importantly we can lock down our building more quickly if there is an emergency that requires such a response. We have also installed cameras that monitor who enters and leaves our church. Again this is an added safety feature to hopefully help deter someone from damaging our property or harming us. Our office area is also now monitored to help keep our staff safe. This is the last project related to our capital campaign. Similar work will be done at the school next week. 

We are also starting to renovate our offices since we are desperately short of office space. At times we have five people sharing one office. We will be dividing one office to accommodate two staff. We will also be removing the accordion wall that separates the cry room from the bride’s room and installing a permanent wall there. What was previously the bride’s room will then be divided into three workspaces for part-time staff. We hate losing this big area of the two rooms when the accordion wall is open, but we need office space, and this seemed to be the simplest solution. We are doing much of this work with our own maintenance staff and volunteers. 

Under construction could also be a title for our next homily series. During the month of October we are going to preach on the Sacrament of Baptism and how the grace received in the sacrament provides us with new life. In our Bishop’s Pastoral letter, released now almost a year and a half ago, he spoke about being created, captured, rescued, and response. These themes come from a book by Father John Ricardo, titled Rescued: The Unexpected and Extraordinary News of the Gospel. In his book he highlights the pathway of discipleship. 

We are all under construction. We were created by God who loves us unconditionally. However we all encounter brokenness and pain. Sin and death are realities that must be admitted and dealt with. From the first people, Adam and Eve, God has been working to bring us back to Himself. By the action of Jesus Christ we are saved. And so with the victory of Christ, our response is to surrender our lives to Him who loves us. God does not impose, but rather proposes and invites. This is the pathway for a disciple. The journey begins at baptism. 

Put on hardhats, tool belts, and safety shoes as the construction work happens.