Dear Church Family
Our new home, Liberty Centre, is really taking shape. Over these past few weeks we have leapt forward thanks to a great team of people putting in a lot of time and effort. Every day there is something new to see and as I write this in my office I can hear the sound of drilling downstairs as our central heating is being installed. Contractors are on site over these next few weeks putting in toilets, heating, electrics, flooring, suspended ceilings, alarms, ames taping, plastering… !! There is a lot of activity and Stan is doing a great job of managing both the contractors and the teams of volunteers to get us in to our new home.
As we move ever closer to completing phase 1, we are also firming up on prices for the work which still needs to be done and so I wanted to give you an update on our financial situation regarding the building. As of the beginning of April our total spend on developing the building, not including the car park, has been approx. £109K. This leaves us with approx. £67K in funds (not including the sale of the land). In order to complete phase 1 we anticipate a further spend of approx £120K, ie a shortfall of £53K. This does not include any work on our new kitchen, which although not needed to get into the building, would be a great asset.
The sale of the land would obviously release much needed funds to complete phase 1 and get us started on phase 2, but in the meantime we need to find the balance. The Trustees have already, in faith, approved a lot of the extra spend by using some of the church’s general fund and by exploring short terms loans from the church family.
I know with absolute certainty that God is with us in this venture and I trust that He will provide all we need, but I also know that very often that provision comes from us, the church family, stepping out in faith and sacrifice. I know that many have already given prayerfully and sacrificially, for which we are incredibly grateful and I am not looking for you to give more. However, I want all of us to be fully aware of the situation so that we can pray for God’s provision and so that we can all consider our own giving to this project. It is not merely money that is required, but also time – time to clean, to clear, to paint, to cut grass and, importantly, to pray.
I am excited at the prospect of the Liberty family gathering together to worship in Liberty Centre this Summer in a building that honours God and reflects the Liberty Church values. We already have our first baptisms planned and we’re postponing our 40th anniversary celebrations so that they will take place in our new home. We have a lot of work to do but also a lot to celebrate and give thanks for!
Love
Jon |