Investing In Missions

Someone asked me the other day why we were building a new sanctuary rather than conducting a capital campaign to give money to our many mission projects. They said, “Wouldn’t that be a better way of serving God and loving neighbor than building a $12 million sanctuary and a $1 million organ?” That is a good question, and it deserves an answer. Perhaps the best way to explain it is to tell a story.

When Christ United Methodist Church was making plans in the early nineties to buy the property where we are presently located and build the multi-million dollar facilities we now have, several people asked the same question. At the time we had only a handful of people actively engaged in missions, and our total church budget was in the $750,000 range. The leaders of our church were convinced, however, that a vital and growing church was a good investment in missions, and today’s results speak for themselves.

Today we have over 1,000 volunteers in both House on the Corner and Project Hope, not to mention all the others in the dozens of other mission projects we sponsor. The Missions eam recently calculated that in 2007 Christ UMC gave $764,039 to others, plus $631,675 of in-kind contributions. This does not include significant amounts given by Sunday School classes and other small groups. In other words, our mission giving is almost double what the total church budget was prior to our relocation. None of this would have been possible without the investments that we have put into our facilities. The lesson? Investing in the growth of the church, including facilities, is the most effective way to invest in missions.

If you stop and think about it, you probably didn’t come to Christ United Methodist Church because of the great mission work that this church is doing. You probably came because you were looking for a place to worship God, or a place to raise your children so that they would know the love of God. Those are the same reasons that people have been attending churches and cathedrals for two thousand of years. You perhaps were even attracted by the beauty of our buildings or the programming of the Christian Life Center. But when you got here you discovered that our mission projects have helped you grow in your journey with Christ. The beneficiaries, other than you, have been the thousands served by this church who are lost or lonely, hurt or hungry.

I said this years ago when we started this journey, and I will say it again: if we are building a new sanctuary so that we will have a nicer place for ourselves, we are making a mistake. I cannot imagine that anyone would make a sacrificial gift to the Living the Legacy campaign just so they would have a better seat in the sanctuary or a few more stained glass windows to look at. Living the Legacy is about investing in the mission which Christ gave us: Love God and Serve your Neighbor. The results of this campaign will be seen for generations yet to be born.

Don Underwood