Greetings!: Is Dad Smiling? (LB)

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Is Dad Smiling? (LB)

LOOKING BACK - A repeat of a blog that I first published on March 3 2010

When we purchased the property for our new church it included an oval for riding horses and a large building that had once been a stable for horses which were raised and trained there. The oval was where our new building was built. The stables was dirty and in bad shape, except for the walls and foundation. It was suggested that someday this would be a good place for a youth center.
Many volunteers shared in gutting and cleaning up the inside. A new roof was put on to protect it. An architect was hired as was a former missionary construction worker. The big problem was how to finance this since over $500,000 would need to be raised. The congregation was encouraged to start building when a number of businesses and a foundation made large donations for the youth center.
Work was begun and a magnificent building emerged. The finished product contains a large meeting area with the very latest in sound and projection equipment, a kitchen and a large eating area which is even equipped with booths from a former local restaurant, a large classroom, a fully equipped game room, modern bathrooms, large storage areas for church and children's ministry supplies, and a huge garage for storing our vans and doing other maintenance work. Many churches would love to have such a building for their church , not just for a youth center.
Because of what it was originally, it has officially been named the Stables Youth Center. It is now used for all youth events as well as receptions, parties, meetings, and all sorts of gatherings. It is beautiful, modern, and very functional. But there was one major problem - finances. The campaign to raise money from businesses faltered and fell way short of its goal. As a result, the church had to take out a large note to pay for it and this placed a very heavy burden on the congregation with the already heavy mortgage for the new church. But my father had the vision and fully supported this project. His one desire was to see this note eliminated as quickly as possible so that the congregation could concentrate on reducing the mortgage. Over $4,000 was needed each offering just for the church mortgage. The Stables note was in addition to this.
Well, dad didn't live long enough to see his desire fulfilled – elimination of the note on the Stables. But when he died we tried to honor his desire by designating that all memorial gifts received would go to reducing the note on the Stables. There were numerous gifts received the first month after his death but several others continued to come in during the next year. This brought the total of memorial gifts in dad's memory to $20,270 and this reduced the note on the Stables to less than $2,000! PTL! And, with a few more memorial gifts later the note was finally be retired by the end of March.
This was so exciting. Dad would be thrilled. The Lord has been so good and we are so thrilled that, even in death, the Lord has used my dad's life to provide another landmark in the history of our church. His influence continues to impact the ministry at Faith Bible Fellowship Church, in Lancaster, that he helped found in 1950.
I wonder if dad knows about this new development and if he does, I am sure that he has a big smile on his face.

(1) To God be the glory, great things He has done;

So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,

Who yielded His life an atonement for sin,

And opened the life gate that all may go in.

Refrain

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,

Let the earth hear His voice!

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,

Let the people rejoice!

O come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,

And give Him the glory, great things He has done.

(2) O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood,