Construction

I am watching, listening, sometimes feeling, even smelling the site work for our new facility this morning.  After weeks of rain it's been great to see progress again.

Our Building Committee continues diligently in their work.  The contractor is already pressing for decisions on paint, floor coverings, light fixtures, and bathroom accessories- and we don't even have a wall up, yet! These are the little things that will draw attention as people enter the new building.  This is what will be seen. We want all these small decisions to fit right, look right, feel right.

Yet, the most important work is being done now- moving dirt and preparing for the foundation.  At some point floors and walls and ceilings will draw attention upward and the dirt work will never be seen again.  But this un-seen work must be done first, and done well, or all that comes after will never be quite right.

I've stopped thinking about the building of a building now... I feel the need to give attention to the building of a life...

Reflections on Giving

In a Thanksgiving blog I reflected on my gratitude for Towne View being a thankful church. This I week I have been reminded of how giving is woven into the fabric of our congregation. In recent weeks we have:

• collected 108 shoe boxes of gifts to be distributed around the world through Operation Christmas Child, a ministry of Samaritan's Purse
• in partnership with Prison Fellowship's Angel Tree shared Christmas gifts with 25 children from 12 families who have a parent incarcerated
• worked with Storehouse Ministries (Noonday Baptist Association) to distribute twelve Thanksgiving food baskets (w/turkeys) and six Christmas boxes (w/hams) to those in need in our community
• shared Christmas caroling with the residents of Laurel's Edge and Highland Court- senior living facilities in our neighborhood
• delivered a ream of paper to each of 34 classroom teachers at Chalker Elementary School
• given generously to typhoon relief in the Philippines through Baptist World Aid of the Baptist World Alliance and to support overseas mission work through the annual Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions

We have given in partnership with other ministries, parachurch groups, and agencies to make a tangible difference in the lives of people.  Our spirit of giving is a worthy reflection of the Gift we celebrate this season.

Nine days and counting

It's quiet on the construction site today. As I look out my window I see heavy equipment parked and almost five acres of Georgia clay turned into mud. Instead of tress crashing and dirt moving I am listening to the steady drip of water. Such things do not a happy preacher make!

The news headline reads "Nine Straight Days of Rain." I am not amused. My mind can't help but go back to the summer we broke ground on the previous building... and broke an extended drought in north Georgia.  I am not encouraged.   We have a tight schedule for the completion of our new facility. For the moment, I am not optimistic.

I know the soil needs replenishment and we all need the water supply renewed but I find myself looking up to heaven wanting to cry-out "why?" or "come on God, you know what we're trying to do here." Then I try to remind myself that "why not?" is just as good a question and that maybe I need to be open to what God is doing here.

This season we are reminded that the creator of the universe became Immanuel, "God with us." In sunshine and rain God is with us... loving us, working in us, and lovingly working through us.

I am thankful for...

Today I am thankful... for dedicated volunteers, faithful co-workers, Clemmie's cooking, and for watching dirt being moved outside my office window!

I am thankful for... a thankful church! Our services Sunday reminded me of the importance of thankful hearts and how a spirit of thankfulness is at the heart of Towne View.

Thankfulness, somewhat surprisingly, is an expression of humility. This spirit of gratitude recognizes that we couldn't- and can't- get through life on our own.  Medical professionals aid us with their skills, friends encourage us with their presence, teachers guide us with their experience, family blesses us with their love. I am thankful that when I'm empty, there's someone to "fill-me-up;" when I'm tired, there's someone to "pick-me-up;" and when I'm feeling a little down, there's someone to "lift-me-up." Our share time Sunday afternoon was filled with expressions of thankfulness from a church family for a church family that has been there in times of need.

Thankfulness is also an expression of hope. As the people of God we call Towne View Baptist Church where God has taken us gives us confident expectancy about where God will lead us. As individuals, families, and a family of families our experience of God's faithfulness allows us to face even the uncertainties of the future with the hope of God's enduring faithfulness.  Maybe this is why Paul encourages us to "not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."

Giving thanks is a simple gift with significant impact, for us we share a simple thank-you we keep ourselves grounded, honor God, and encourage others.

God leads...we follow

My mind (admittedly easily distracted) has been all over the places in recent days.

A recent visit to Grady Hospital in Atlanta coincided with reminder that the first of November marked five years since Priscilla's near-fatal car accident.  I was reminded of her tenacious spirit, the care and skill of medical teams at Grady and Kennestone, the love and support of our families and church family, and of God's faithfulness.

We've begun to have regular meetings of our twenty-fifth anniversary committee. On March 2, 2014 we celebrate the first service of Towne View Baptist Church and remember God's faithfulness over these twenty-five years. We finds ourselves in the midst of a journey, hence the theme, "God Leads...We Follow." It has been exciting to share memories of the past and plan towards this future celebration.

And, of course, Sunday's ground-breaking ceremony signified an emphatic "yes" to God's future for Towne View. A ground-breaking ceremony is a small step in the construction process but a big step for our fellowship. As God leads, we follow.

Maybe it's all the service planning we're doing these days (this Sunday, ground-breaking, anniversary service, advent planning) but my heart and mind have been filled with music recently. This morning I am drawn to the simple chorus:

O God, You are my God, and I will ever praise You.
O God, You are my God, and I will ever praise You.
I will seek You in the morning and I will learn to walk in Your ways;
And step by step You'll lead me, and I will follow You all of my days.