Wilderness . . . does that word conjure up images of Jesus spending 40 days in the wilderness? Or, perhaps the Israelites wandering in the wilderness for 40 years?
Or does wilderness bring to mind the beauty and magnificence of our Canadian wilderness?
In biblical stories, wilderness was a symbol of life-threatening danger. However, it was also a place where God's spirit could be clearly seen and felt.
In our present time, we can feel very close to our Creator God when we experience wilderness landscapes, or even the less wild places of our cottages.
At Beach UC we are entering a different kind of wilderness, a time of wandering in an unknown landscape like the Israelites, a time of discernment like Jesus in his 40 day experience. In eight weeks we will be heading to St Aidan's Anglican Church to continue our ministry in a different context, a wonderful opportunity to explore ecumenical partnership. As we enter the wilderness of transition, let us remember that each step forward is surrounded by God's Spirit and each decision made is embraced by God's love and vision. One step forward is our upcoming Congregational Meeting on September 25th. Let's hear more about that meeting from our Chair of Council, Jane Dickson.
Shalom, Abigail
Which Way To Go?
On Sunday you will see what the new building will look like by looking at a scale model. What an exciting time!
Our congregational meeting process on September 25th will engage us in decision-making about which of our resources we are going to use to bridge our financial gap and enable a model to become a reality.
As we look ahead to our new building, a question is sometimes raised, “Why renovate? Just keep the church as it is and fix the leaks in the roof." But it is not that simple. For the past few years, Bob Torrance with the help of a few colleagues and repair people, have managed to keep our boilers functioning; however, he has been told that it is only operating on a wing and a prayer. Our entire heating system must be replaced. In addition, one of the supporting buttress beams in the church is in need of significant repair. There are other such examples.
To complete these necessary repairs would be very costly and would not help us to reach one of our original goals. With our current large building, our regular operating costs are considerable for things like hydro, heat, and regular caretaking maintenance. Our plan was to reduce our expenses by reducing our floor space and making our building much more energy efficient both to preserve our financial resources and to become better stewards of our environment. Our new renovation takes these factors into consideration.
Beyond these practical reasons for continuing forward, there is also the one of respecting our bond with each other. When we amalgamated, we agreed that we would move into one church home and that we would renovate it to reflect our new vision of ministry for Beach United. We owe it to each other to remain true to our ideals and to work together to achieve them. Going back is not an option. We are capable of meeting our financial challenge. We just need to agree on a method.
Come on Sunday, September 25th, following the church service, to help us achieve our goal.
Jane Dickson, on behalf of Council
For more news about our faith community read our newsletter: HEARTBEAT
Cannot access Heartbeat? Go to our web site: www.beachunitedchurch.com
and see the blue wave on the home page.