Prepare the Way

Church at the Crossing is a blessed church family with a very bright future. We know that God is guiding us into the future He has for His people and that God is trusting us with more and more of his children. Together with God’s guidance we are continuing to experience both congregational and spiritual growth. The time is now upon us to take the next faith-filled steps on this amazing journey…

20/20 Vision
In January 2004 we kicked off the new year with a clear vision night we called 20/20 Vision. We committed ourselves to a strategy of three capital campaigns to create the campus that would enable the harvest we believe God is bringing our way. We celebrated our 100-year anniversary in May 2005 with more than 2,000 people in attendance and launched the Hundredfold Harvest campaign. Since that time we have started several new worship services, planted a new daughter church, and grown dramatically in attendance, involvement, stewardship and active mission.

In June 2007 we had our first glimpse at the drawings of our much-anticipated Centennial Center, a new sanctuary and special event space. We were all surprised when only three weeks later the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) came to tell us that they would need a portion of our land on our north and east boundary lines for necessary road expansion. This unforeseen news brought our Centennial Center plans to a halt, yet our campaign contributions to the future of Church at The Crossing remained strong.

The successful completion of the Hundredfold Harvest campaign means we have paid in cash for all plans to date, reduced our only existing debt, which is on our sanctuary, and reserved nearly a $1 million nest egg for the future.

INDOT
The Indiana Department of Transportation will be on site in November 2008 to work with us to determine our new boundary line. They will compensate us for both the expenses incurred with the development of our earlier plans and for the value of our land which they will use for the expanded road construction. They have worked cooperatively with us and we look forward to bringing this to completion in the not-so-distant future.

Remove Every Obstacle
The only debt that Church at the Crossing holds is from the 1993 construction of our sanctuary. The Cox Education Wing was built in 2000 and paid for in cash. We completed our Youth Center in 2003 and paid off the loan in 2004. From 2005 to date we have continued to pay down the debt on our sanctuary and now is the time to totally eliminate our only existing debt.

Prepare the Way

• Our strategic plan is to raise $1 million from October 2008 through December 2009.
• We will invest our people and $150,000 in four strategic mission partnerships in our city, state, nation and world.
• We will eliminate our only debt of $850,000, which is on our sanctuary.
• We will do this together with God’s great help and blessing.

Preparing the way will not be easy. It will not be business-as-usual. It would be more convenient and comfortable to postpone this effort. Yet we see God’s hand at work in our midst and God’s way opening before us. We are poised for the future. Working together on our strategic mission partnerships and eliminating our only existing debt together is our way of saying a clear YES to God and the future He has in store for Church at the Crossing.

Your Role:Pray – Give – Go

PRAY. First and foremost – before, during, and after – let us pray together that God will keep leading us forward. We want to fulfill His word and promise from Isaiah 57:14 that we may “Build up, build up, prepare the way. Remove every obstacle out of the way of My people.” Let us pray for God to use each one of us individually and collectively to literally build up, prepare the way, and remove every obstacle. Pray for wisdom for our leadership as we carry on God's plan for us. Pray for your own guidance on how you can be a part of the debt elimination and the missions projects. Give thanks to God for everything He has provided this church and the means He's given us to help so many others.

GIVE. The financial target of this campaign is at least $1 million. The timeframe is 15 months. This challenge can only be met as each of us give sacrificially toward this aggressive goal. In looking at all that God has entrusted to us, how much can you give to prepare the way? What can you sell? What can you not purchase for these next 15 months? What can you give? How can God creatively work in and through you so that together we can give? And how can you be a leader in this effort, influencing others who may be weighing their contributions? How can God work through you to help our outreach as a church? How can God help you see beyond your experiences at Church at the Crossing and realize the needs of others – needs that may be so very different than your own?

GO. Together we are going to our city, state, nation and world. We want every single person in our church to GO to at least one of our four Prepare the Way partners at least one time. Our partners each have unique needs, and we'll be sharing those with you over time. As a congregation, we'll be coming together to make an indelible mark on the future of each organization:
City – Bell’s Chapel Church of God, Indianapolis
State – Camp Challenge, Bedford, Indiana
Nation – Camp Challenge, Wasilla, Alaska
World – Children of Promise's Home for Destitute Girls, India

Building Up
We've chosen our missions carefully and their needs are not small. With financial outpouring and the volunteering of time and talents, we are convinced that Church at the Crossing can come together to make a lasting change in many lives. And it's our commitment to give 15% of everything raised to support these missions. The more we give and the more we go, then the more we can do!

We know that we are amazingly and abundantly blessed. It is from God’s provision for us that we can now give generously to prepare the way. This is for all of us. God smiles upon the cheerful heart of a willing giver. How will you pray? How will you give? How will you go? How will you … prepare the way?