Flood in the sanctuary

On Monday, November 19, I arrived at work to find that water was coming in the north door of the sanctuary and flooding the carpet. It was raining heavily all night and all day, so the hillside above the church was saturated. When that happens, it starts to fill the low place between the church and the modular.

There's a sump pump just outside the door in the low place that's supposed to drain the low spot, but the float switch had failed. I went home and got my rubber boots and oilskins, then returned to bail out the sump. It took about 50 trips with a 5-gallon bucket before the water went down enough to get at the sump pump. Once I jarred the float switch, it begin to pump and took care of itself after that.

My son, Guy, came and we moved the piano and organ (fortunately, neither got wet) and all the chairs. Then we pulled up the carpet so it could start to dry. I called the Servpro restoration guys and they came out with their big blowers. They pulled out the soggy carpet pad set up the driers to dry the carpet.

What a day.

Reflections on our parish meeting

Hi, all!

After our special parish meeting last Sunday, I felt humbled and grateful. Not only did we have a lively and respectful conversation about whether we should buy new property, but we had a heart-felt sharing of our hopes and dreams. I felt the presence of the Holy Spirit as we shared together.

For many years, we have struggled with our decision to build on our current site or move to another site, to the point that many of us have become exasperated with the topic. "Let's make a decision once and for all," we said at our annual meeting last January.

The problem is, it's not easy to come to consensus, or near consensus, in a diverse community. How do we decide when there are so many factors to consider? Cost, location, visibility, and the inevitable risks no matter what we do. People of good faith can have differing opinions.

Choosing to buy new property to build a church on rightly makes us cautious. Think of the things that can go wrong. And truthfully it's hard to leave the familiar for the unfamiliar. 

So I was especially impressed in our meeting when I heard so many people speak in favor of buying the new property. Many people shared what St. Antony has meant to them and how their hopes for the future of our church have been revived by the possibility of this new site. Not only that, but a number of people shared how they changed their minds once they saw the new property. I was humbled by the faith and commitment I heard expressed in that room. 

So I think it's the work of the Holy Spirit to make this property available and to bring us to near-consensus. Fifty out of sixty two people marked "strongly agree" with the recommendation of the Long Range Planning team to buy the new property. I recognize that not everyone agrees, and I respect the opinions of those who feel this is an unwise venture or who have voiced caution. Surely we need to hear those voices.

On Tuesday, we made an offer to buy the property, but it hasn't been accepted yet. Nothing is sure until the ink is dry, and undoubtedly we'll have some negotiations to make. But everything so far looks good. It's an exciting time, and I'm grateful to be part of it.

Bill