{"id":1585,"date":"2017-04-06T16:09:07","date_gmt":"2017-04-06T16:09:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/craigfinnestad.com\/?p=1585"},"modified":"2017-04-06T21:49:59","modified_gmt":"2017-04-06T21:49:59","slug":"church-will-change-today","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/craigfinnestad.com\/?p=1585","title":{"rendered":"Our Church Will Change Today"},"content":{"rendered":"

Our church will change today. And that is a good thing.<\/p>\n

After our 10:30 worship experience WE will travel a few miles to our land. We will thank some of the women and men who have paved the way for the rest of us. WE will sing and pray. WE will all dig a little dirt. WE will take lots of photos.<\/p>\n

It is the next official step WE are taking as WE prepare to move from a high school to our first building. Grading is currently happening throughout our twenty-three acres of land. In a few weeks the builders will be pouring concrete and shortly after that a building will emerge. There is no turning back!<\/p>\n

Last summer I visited some of the most gorgeous churches in the world: Westminster Abbey in London, the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, St. Michael and St. Gudula Cathedral in Brussels, the Church of the Spilled Blood in St. Petersburg, and the Donkirke in Stavanger, Norway. Most of them are tourist destinations nowadays. Beyond beautiful architecture. The empty buildings remain. The vibrant faith and flourishing church is a thing of the past.<\/p>\n

The Water\u2019s Edge will never be about a building. The new facility will help us do many things better. WE will worship better. You\u2019ll love our space! WE will have an incredibly amazing area for our children. WE will be able to welcome more guests and visitors than ever before. Our place to hang out before and after worship and during the week will hopefully feel like home to you. The new space will increase our ability to do missions. But WE will never be about a building. The building exists to support our mission and vision.<\/p>\n

The church is about God and the thing God loves most: people. A few years from now, I hope the new facility is filled with hundreds of people four or five times per week as WE worship God together. I hope students from Millard, Gretna, Elkhorn, and beyond all come on various days and nights of the week and are captivated by God\u2019s love and grace. I hope people who haven\u2019t been to church in years find faith at The Water\u2019s Edge. I hope lonely people find friendship. I hope excluded people feel included. I hope the church helps people\u2019s dreams come true. I hope relationships are strengthened. I hope our missions in Belize and Uganda multiply in size. I hope our partnerships with The Hope Center for Kids, Release Ministry, and Together Omaha all are strengthened and new partnerships develop.<\/p>\n

Our church will change today. A good change. WE are taking the next step. It will change for the better because of God\u2019s vision and your commitment.<\/p>\n

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Westminster Abbey, London, The United Kingdom<\/p><\/div>\n

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The Church of the Spilled Blood, St. Petersburg, Russia<\/p><\/div>\n

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The Domkirke, Stavanger, Norway<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Our church will change today. And that is a good thing. After our 10:30 worship experience WE will travel a few miles to our land. We will thank some of the women and men who have paved the way for…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1589,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,4,6],"tags":[118,141,105],"class_list":["post-1585","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ministry","category-photography","category-waters-edge","tag-building","tag-change","tag-the-waters-edge"],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\t\n