Tuesday, September 26, 2023
Good morning everyone – hope you are all enjoying this fabulous summer weather – warm during the day and cooler at nights with very little humidity and on top of that the beginning of the fall colours – what a glorious experience!
We’ve been talking about the building of partnerships with like minded community groups over the last few weeks and I am thrilled to say to you that those partnerships are beginning to gel and make real differences. Sheena Merling heard back from Early On today stating that Early On is wanting to partner with her to create programming out of St. Andrew’s for children, youth and parents here in the downtown core. At the staff meeting yesterday Mel commented that these and other partnerships are truly turning St. Andrew’s into an outpost of the kin-dom of God. And I agree. St Peter’s is scheduled to begin worship services here on October 15 and their office is opening here in the Temple Room already next week.
In addition two other downtown churches have expressed interest in talking about joining us at this location. This past week one of them actually used the Covenant Chapel. They had been renting space at the Conrad Centre but were locked out due to the bankruptcy of the KW Symphony. They believe they will be let back into that space but not for a few weeks yet. The session will decide tonight whether or not to extend the invitation for them to use the Covenant Chapel on October 1 and October 8, giving them time to work with the city to allow them back into the Conrad Centre. But they have already indicated that they see the vision of congregations in the downtown core working together out of one space. Another church has expressed that same interest. And a private school wants to partner with St. Andrew’s to create a deeper learning experience for their students and to use some needed space.
In order to facilitate these conversations, the session is also looking at a ‘Mission Statement’ for our church building as follows:
Our building is a gift from God to be used to its fullest potential to serve the community with grace, love, compassion, and inclusion. We strive to do so with joy in our hearts. We will continue our long tradition of being a welcoming, caring presence in our community by looking outwards and sharing our building with others. This further allows us to Encounter God, Engage Jesus, and be an Outpost in the Kin-dom of God.
Adopting this statement by both the session and the congregation is important for three reasons:
We have 44,000 square feet of space. At one time the space was fully utilized by the congregation when over 1200 people would enter the facilities on a weekly basis. That is no longer the case. We have far more building space than we need. Stewardship of this beautiful resource means putting it to good use in serving the community
The church needs partners. St. Andrew’s is not alone in this. Partnerships with community minded organizations helps us to meet our purpose and mission of sharing the radical and inclusive love of God in many forms – truly becoming an outpost of the kin-dom of God
Use of the church by community organizations can be an effective means of addressing our budget deficits.
If the session passes this Mission Statement for the building tonight it will go to the congregational meeting this coming Sunday after the worship service. The meeting will begin at approximately 11:15. If it is passed by the congregation, further deliberations with neighbouring churches and community groups can continue in earnest.
This is an exciting time at St. Andrew’s. The possibilities ahead are endless. But it will not be without some challenge. Sharing our building will not be easy for some. It will be an adjustment. However, it all ties in beautifully with the vision of sharing our entire property to create programming, service and housing for adults with differing abilities. The Roy St. Task Force will be reporting on Sunday making this truly an historic meeting.
Please prayerfully consider all of this in preparation for the meeting on Sunday.
Take good care
Marty