1. Welcome to Baptist Board, a friendly forum to discuss the Baptist Faith in a friendly surrounding.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register to get access to all the features that our community has to offer.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon and God Bless!

Had a curve ball thrown at us!

Discussion in 'Other Discussions' started by annsni, Mar 28, 2014.

  1. annsni

    annsni Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 30, 2006
    Messages:
    20,914
    Likes Received:
    706
    We have been meeting in a hotel for the last 3.5 years and just recently rented a warehouse space to turn into a worship center/church but we're still waiting to get the plans so we can submit them to get the building permits. We were hoping to be in by Easter but that ain't happening!

    WELL, we get a call today at 3 pm that the hotel manager wants to talk to us (she called church and hubby was home). There is a problem. We finally get in touch with her and it seems the old events manager booked a large chess tournament at the hotel and they just were notified that it will be 3x as many people as they thought so it means that they have no place for us to meet. Hmmm - interesting. Thank heavens we have our warehouse! So this Sunday, we will be having church in a bare warehouse. There is a small office (we'll use for the kids' Sunday school) and two single seater bathrooms (sufficient for us but UGLY) in addition to the wide open warehouse space. The acoustics are great so we'll skip the sound system. :) Hubby wants to just cut the ties with the hotel now but we can't yet because once we start construction, it just won't be safe to meet there but man, I can't believe our first real church service will be on folding metal chairs, on a cement floor with concrete walls. This is going to be GREAT!!!!
     
  2. Earth Wind and Fire

    Earth Wind and Fire Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Jun 5, 2010
    Messages:
    33,376
    Likes Received:
    1,568
    Faith:
    Baptist
    GOD is at work here...you do see His hand right?
     
  3. Rippon

    Rippon Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Dec 12, 2005
    Messages:
    19,715
    Likes Received:
    585
    Faith:
    Baptist
    A Mighty Fortress is our God. A Bulwark never failing.

    (And it looks as though you'll be meeting in a fortress.)
     
  4. Melanie

    Melanie Active Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Nov 21, 2002
    Messages:
    2,784
    Likes Received:
    7
    So what, do you go to church for the décor? Surely not, even if it is cold, drafty or whatever in the future you will look back and remember where you started from.

    One of the places where there is a congregation of folk, they have Mass in a funeral parlour. It is awful.....cramped stuffy and weeny, but it is better than on the street I guess!
     
  5. Salty

    Salty 20,000 Posts Club
    Administrator

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2003
    Messages:
    38,982
    Likes Received:
    2,615
    Faith:
    Baptist
    Fellowship Baptist Church (English speaking) of Wildflecken, Germany intally met in a bowling ally!
     
    #5 Salty, Mar 29, 2014
    Last edited by a moderator: Mar 29, 2014
  6. padredurand

    padredurand Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Oct 25, 2004
    Messages:
    4,541
    Likes Received:
    102
    Faith:
    Baptist
    Beautiful!! I am sure there is a church somewhere in the world that dreams of having a place as nice as your warehouse.
     
  7. annsni

    annsni Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 30, 2006
    Messages:
    20,914
    Likes Received:
    706
    Oh absolutely!! As I said, hubby has been wanting to just make the jump now and meet in an unfinished space and each week make sure it is safe to meet on Sunday despite the construction but we don't think that's quite prudent. But just when we've decided that's not a good idea, we get kicked out for a week. Hey, we can roll with it!! So today will be spent cleaning, moving over folding chairs (remember that chair thread I started? Hopefully people don't mind metal folding chairs for now! :D ).

    I LOVE the idea of singing A Mighty Fortress! I'll have to mention that!
     
  8. Scarlett O.

    Scarlett O. Moderator
    Moderator

    Joined:
    May 22, 2002
    Messages:
    11,384
    Likes Received:
    944
    Faith:
    Baptist
    Whew!! I got excited just reading about that.

    Ya'll have been faithful without a building of your own. Just think what God will do with this empty warehouse!
     
  9. Salty

    Salty 20,000 Posts Club
    Administrator

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2003
    Messages:
    38,982
    Likes Received:
    2,615
    Faith:
    Baptist
    First Baptist of Atlanta moved from downtown to the burbs into an old Avon wharehouse
     
  10. annsni

    annsni Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 30, 2006
    Messages:
    20,914
    Likes Received:
    706
    OK - We've been out ALL day (left the house at 8 am and just got home a bit ago - it's 5 pm) but we're as set as we can be. Here we are, our sanctuary:

    [​IMG]

    Can't go without coffee!! I donated a spare coffee maker when we first got in there and now another woman donated another so we're all set. The blue pot on the right is for hot water. The hotel only gives us one pot of regular. :)

    [​IMG]
     
  11. annsni

    annsni Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 30, 2006
    Messages:
    20,914
    Likes Received:
    706
    Our children's area (we have about 10 kids so a few will need to bring their chairs with them from the sanctuary). That's a folding table and a card table - hence the different heights. LOL

    [​IMG]

    Finally, we usually have a small table with the offering plates and Bibles that we will hand out to those who need it but we didn't have a spare table so this is what we used. LOL

    [​IMG]

    I can't wait until tomorrow!!!
     
  12. Earth Wind and Fire

    Earth Wind and Fire Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Jun 5, 2010
    Messages:
    33,376
    Likes Received:
    1,568
    Faith:
    Baptist
    Now you gotta church! And I like it just the way it is. If you added some old school hymn singing, I would feel at home.:thumbs:
     
  13. Deacon

    Deacon Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Aug 23, 2002
    Messages:
    9,469
    Likes Received:
    1,228
    Faith:
    Baptist
    I helped to make a worship center from an old lumber yard building.
    It looked a lot like the pictures you've posted - lots of potential.

    Rob
     
  14. thisnumbersdisconnected

    Joined:
    Apr 11, 2013
    Messages:
    8,448
    Likes Received:
    0
    I'll second that emotion! :laugh: Ann, if you need anything for next week and the rest of the future, will you let us know? I'm confident if I let a couple brothers and the church leadership know, there'd be an outpouring from here, and I'm betting others on this board, so don't hesitate. "You do not have because you do not ask."
     
  15. annsni

    annsni Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 30, 2006
    Messages:
    20,914
    Likes Received:
    706
    What we need more than anything else is prayer. We had thought we'd be in the building by now but we JUST got all of the building plans done by the architects and will be submitting the plans on Monday to apply for the building permit. Now we need prayer that the building permit is granted quickly (we hear it is normally about 8 weeks) so that we can get started on building this place for a more permanent home for our church. Also pray for the new believers that we have that they will grow in the Lord and stand strong. So many are coming from places of addiction and hurt but we've seen God's mighty hand in their lives!!

    This has been an awesome, exciting, frustrating and humbling time and I know that will continue!! God is just so incredible. Absolutely jaw dropping incredible. :)
     
  16. Gina B

    Gina B Active Member

    Joined:
    Dec 30, 2000
    Messages:
    16,944
    Likes Received:
    1
    You're so cute. LOL I'd say let us know how it goes, but I'll just come back in a bit to hear all about this! I'll be especially interested in what songs echoed throughout there. That had to be beautiful...
     
  17. annsni

    annsni Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 30, 2006
    Messages:
    20,914
    Likes Received:
    706
    We had a GREAT service today!! A few little kinks but nothing much at all. 63 people attended and 5 became new members. :)

    [​IMG]
     
  18. ShagNappy

    ShagNappy Member

    Joined:
    Nov 12, 2003
    Messages:
    568
    Likes Received:
    0
    Fantastic! :godisgood::thumbs:
     
  19. Bro. James

    Bro. James Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Sep 14, 2004
    Messages:
    3,130
    Likes Received:
    59
    Faith:
    Baptist
    The age of planting church plants/LLCs

    Some of our spiritual ancestors met in caves--without coffee pots, portalets and by-laws. How crude is that? There is no evidence of many creature comforts at the Sermon on the Mount. Thousands were fed spiritually and physically.

    Imagine: preaching the gospel where it is against the law with a death penalty. Preaching a conformity gospel is politically accepted; preaching John 14:6 is not.

    Actually the Gospel thrives on hardship and persecution.

    Yep, a fire may be necessary to preach the Gospel in Minneapolis in January. What we really need is a spiritual fire.

    The battle is not over, it is just beginning.

    Even so, come Lord Jesus.

    Bro. James
     
    #19 Bro. James, Mar 31, 2014
    Last edited by a moderator: Mar 31, 2014
  20. annsni

    annsni Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 30, 2006
    Messages:
    20,914
    Likes Received:
    706
    I will post more later once this all goes down but I may have an incredible update on the building permit later today. Let's just say that God sometimes leaves you speechless when you least expect it.
     
Loading...