This Sunday, November 19 the people of Chain of Lakes Church have the opportunity to share in worship their Estimate of Giving cards. It's stewardship time! And I love to talk about and write about stewardship. The giving of finances is such an important part of each person's spiritual growth. Because this stewardship drive is so important to the ministry of Chain of Lakes Church I have included a Question and Answer sheet on this blog. This info was mailed last week to everyone at Chain of Lakes. If you aren't part of Chain of Lakes, you can see what is happening right now. Enjoy!
Celebrating the Future
Tell Me About
“Celebrating the Future?’
“Celebrating the Future” is the name of the stewardship
campaign at Chain of Lakes for 2017.
Why was that name
chosen?
This is a time of celebration at Chain of Lakes
Church. Chain of Lakes will be
transitioning from a New Church Development to an organized, Presbyterian
church. As Pastor Paul frequently says,
“Yay, God!” This is an accomplishment
that every person who is part of Chain of Lakes can celebrate. In worship, on the first three Sundays in
November, Chain of Lakes will celebrate the past, present, and future.
What is going well
at Chain of Lakes right now?
·
The enthusiasm in worship has never been higher
at Chain of Lakes. Walk through the
front door at Davenport on a Sunday morning and you will experience a wave of
energy
·
Worship attendance has frequently been near
capacity this fall
·
Since September, Chain of Lakes organized two
events on the church property where over 200 people attended each event
·
A large number of individuals and families with
children have connected to Chain of Lakes
·
The wider community recognizes Chain of Lakes as
THE
church who supports homeless youth
·
The excitement about being a chartered,
Presbyterian congregation is everywhere at Chain of Lakes
Once Chain of
Lakes becomes a new church what will be the next steps?
The next steps will be up to the Session, Ministry Teams,
and staff to discern. With continued
growth in worship attendance it is likely that Chain of Lakes will move to two
worship services at some point in the future.
Chain of Lakes will also make concrete plans regarding a first-phase building on the
church property.
When will Chain of
Lakes be able to break ground on the property?
This is a question that is frequently asked. Every time an event is done on the church
property this question is asked by the people attending the event. The fact that the question is asked so much
shows the interest of the community in a building on the property.
The “Breaking Ground Task Force” is meeting regularly to
determine a possible date for breaking ground on a first-phase building. That task force will present a report at the
Annual Meeting in January. When that task
force is done, a path for a building will be identified.
Is Chain of Lakes
growing in numbers?
Yes. Fourteen people
connected to Chain of Lakes as disciples in 2017 with another group soon to
join. Average worship attendance in 2017
is 70 compared to 60 in 2016.
What new
ministries have started in 2017?
With the hiring of Jonathan Smith as the new Director of
Music, more music opportunities are available to youth. In December Chain of Lakes is offering a
musical involving youth in kindergarten through 12th grade.
With the establishment of Deacons and the election of the
first group of Deacons, additional congregational care is offered.
What financial
information is important to know?
Chain of Lakes continues to make progress towards
financially supporting 100 percent of our ministry. In 2017 the Chain of Lakes congregation is
projected to financially support 80 percent of our ministry; in 2018 the goal
is to financially support 90 percent.
In 2018, outside financial support will diminish by at
least $19,000 compared to 2017. Chain of
Lakes will have to increase revenues by that amount to keep the current level
of ministry.
By becoming an organized congregation Chain of Lakes will
now be financially responsible for insurance payments and Per Capita payments
to the wider Presbyterian church. With
more people coming to Chain of Lakes, many Ministry Teams will increase their
budget requests. Each staff person at Chain
of Lakes is working beyond their budgeted hours. Pay adjustments need to be
made.
How can I help?
The people of Chain of Lakes are asked to consider
helping in one of two ways:
1. Consider
increasing your Estimate of Giving to Chain of Lakes by 15 percent in 2018
2. Consider
increasing your Estimate of Giving in 2018.
This increase in each family’s Estimate of Giving along
with the financial giving of people new to Chain of Lakes will allow Chain of
Lakes to take these next steps.
Please note, all financial giving at Chain of Lakes is
voluntary and confidential. No one will
be treated differently based on financial giving.
A video about the 2017 Stewardship Drive can be found at
vimeo.com/chainoflakes/videos
Also—please consider giving through Direct Deposit. This way of giving helps Chain of Lakes
weather the ups and downs of cash flow.
When am I asked to
bring my Estimate of Giving card to worship?
Please bring your Estimate of Giving cards to worship on
Sunday, November 19. The theme for
worship that day is “Celebrating the Future.”
Pastor Paul will share a vision for the future of Chain of Lakes.
Anything else?
Please be in prayer for Chain of Lakes. The future is very bright. It can be even brighter as each of us
discerns the direction for Chain of Lakes, our established church.
Please pray about your personal financial giving to Chain
of Lakes. God has some ideas about
financial giving. Be open to this
direction.
And most of all, thanks! Thanks for all that you have done to live out
the Purpose Statement of Chain of Lakes Church:
We are called to be an authentic, Christian community
where:
Strangers
become friends
Friends
become disciples
Disciples
impact the world
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