First CRC Monthly
...or almost monthly...Friday, June 16th
Looking Forward
Well it has been about two months since my last update, so my title "First CRC Monthly...or almost monthly" is really living up to its name!
I am currently looking out my window watching approximately 100 children having a blast at Vacation Bible School! All of that has been made possible by the army of First CRC staff and volunteers who have planned for today and are currently chasing around said 100 children. What a tremendous blessing it is to witness to the love of Jesus shared through the commitment of each person who decided to take the plunge and take time out of their busy schedule to help out all week!
One thing you can look forward to next week, Sunday June 25th, is a little music video highlighting everything that happened during VBS.
In Christ,
Pastor Justin
IN THIS ISSUE...
- PI2 - Next Steps
- Nursery Update - Time Sensitive
- Visioneering Update
- Budget Update & Report
- Online Giving
1. "PI2" - Next Steps
I praise God in knowing that many of you have decided to take the plunge and start praying for people within your orbit who do not yet know Jesus. Even though our "PI2" sermon series has ended, now is the time for us to get to work in praying, by name, for God to work in their lives.
Perhaps there are some of you who are still thinking about joining us in that effort. If so, it's not too late. Just begin praying, each day for no more than a couple minutes, for the following people in your life:
1. A friend
2. family member,
3. Co-worker/classmate, and
4. A neighbor...
...who desperately need to know the good news of Jesus. No need to write up a sign and start shouting from a street corner. Simply start praying for God to work in their lives and for God to open doors (what we call 'providential moments') for God to use you to begin sharing God's love with them.
That's it! Pray...
Scripture says that prayer is a powerful weapon against the forces of evil and that God is the only one who can truly change lives. Here's what this means...
THERE IS NO GREATER FORM OF EVANGELISM THAN PRAYER!
2. NURSERY UPDATE - TIME SENSITIVE
Dear Parents/Guardians of children at First CRC,
This letter is to inform you that the Infant and Toddler Nursery will be closed this Sunday. For a detailed explanation, please continue reading…
As some of you are already aware, a number of children at First CRC have recently been diagnosed with hand foot and mouth disease (HFMD). HFMD is a viral illness that affects mainly infants and children.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE INFANT & TODDLER NURSERY AT FIRST CRC
1. WILL NURSERY BE OPEN ON SUNDAY?
As a result of the number of children in our congregation with HFMD and knowing symptoms often occur many days after exposure, we cannot reasonably and in good conscience ensure the health safety of your children while attending Nursery. As a result, FIRST CRC INFANT AND TODDLER NURSERY WILL BE CLOSED THIS SUNDAY, JUNE 18, BOTH MORNING AND EVENING. If you are relatively certain your child is not infected with HFMD, you may choose to bring them to church to sit with you in the pew or to utilize the Cry Room which has a live stream TV of the service. As always, if you think your child is sick, please keep them home.
2. WHAT OTHER MEASURES WILL BE TAKEN TO ADDRESS HFMD?
Immediate Action(s):
• A team has been formed to thoroughly clean both Nursery rooms and disinfect toys on Saturday, June 17th.
• Nursery will be closed from all activities from Friday, June 16th to Saturday, June 24th as an added precaution.
• Every plush toy and fabric that cannot be cleaned and disinfected in between each use will be permanently removed for the Infant and Toddler Nursery.
Ongoing Action(s):
• This summer all Children’s Ministries Coordinators and First CRC staff will be looking at policies and procedures pertaining to all children’s ministries. This is already underway. Part of that discussion will be the development and implementation of a new routine cleaning program. Volunteers will be trained in that process to ensure the highest level of quality, care, and cleanliness for your children moving forward.
3. VISIONEERING STUDIOS UPDATE
Not a whole lot has happened here since our last update, but I simply want to keep you up to date. For the sake of new readers, we are in the beginning stages of our new partnership with an organization entitled "Visioneering Studios." This company works with Christian non-profits and helps them with real estate and development advisory services. In other words, they will help us discern how our physical space can meet the growing needs of our church community and context as we seek to fulfill our mission to "Saturate our Community with God's Grace and Goodness."
Visioneering development advisory services are designed to help churches like ours answer questions related to the scope of renovations we should seek to pursue, along with helping us craft a budget and schedule for said services. Here is the most recent update:
STEP ONE - "INFORMATION GATHERING" [COMPLETE]
Visioneering Studios gathered as much information they could find on our church and facilities, ministries we currently offer, our mission, vision, future goals, income, debt, community needs, demographics, etc.
(WE ARE HERE) STEP TWO - "RECON" [COMPLETE]
The second step in this process is where we put together a "Recon" team to walk through our facilities and determine what our greatest needs are and what would truly be a good return on investment. A few of those items that must be included for the fact that we are not completely to code are:
1. We have no handicap accessibility to the 2nd floor,
2. We have not yet met Kings County requirements to cut down on 25% of our water usage, and
3. I am almost 100% certain our Cadets building wouldn't pass an inspection...
Other areas we explored were:
4. Our children's ministry spaces (Nursery and upstairs),
5. Possible changes to our outdoor space to make it more 'child (and parent) - friendly.'
So, the Recon team has met and we are currently waiting on their full report. That will include a variety of items such as:
1. A demographic of our community and it's growing needs,
2. A demographic of our church and what trends we might find,
3. A 'Budget Feasibility Profile' indicating how much we might be able to spend if we pursued a "Capital Campaign" to address these issues,
4. Possible recommended next steps for our church to take,
and much, much more.
STEP THREE - "RECON REPORT" AND FINDINGS
We expect to receive the "RECON REPORT" within the next 2-3 weeks afterwhich the Governing Council will look it over and discuss possible next steps.
More Visioneering updates to come...
4. BUDGET AND FINANCE - "THANK YOU!"
Dear cheerful givers of First CRC,
As of today we have entered into the 10th month of our fiscal year and we would like to take the opportunity to thank you each of you for your generous commitment to God's Kingdom work at First CRC. Your Christ-like generosity does so much more than balance a budget. It helps to mobilize and resource First CRC ministries to share the love of Jesus in Hanford and Kings County, and also the agencies we support around the world including, but not limited to, church plants, missionaries we support, World Renew, Back to God Ministries, Calvin Seminary, CRC Home and World Missions (now called "Resonate Global Mission" as of two days ago), and much, much more. I am grateful to serve alongside you for the sake of the advancement of God's Kingdom. Your response to giving in grace, your support, concern, and practical action are a real source of encouragement and will encourage others in our church as we partner together.
You can be very confident that your giving is making a real difference to people’s lives in this church and in our community and we hope that we can continue to take meaningful steps to be good stewards of everything Christ has entrusted into our care through investments of time, talents, and finances. We hope you have noticed the intentional steps we have taken this year to resource you with stewardship information ongoingly and we pledge to continue to do so in the future.
As of today we have hit just over 75% of our annual budget (which ends August 31st). As we bring this fiscal year to a close, we humbly ask you to prayerfully consider contributing to our current budget shortfall of approximately $35K. This will ensure that all of our stewardship commitments will be met both locally and globally. Specifically, hitting our budget ensures that we can pay 100% of our CRC "Ministry Shares" and have adequate funds for Building and Grounds projects including updates to our infant and toddler nursery and a few other minor projects before the end of the fiscal year. Consider that if every giver in our church contributed an additional one-time gift of $250 to their regular giving by the end of August we would meet 100% of pledged goal.
Once again, "Thank You!" for your generosity, support, encouragement and partnership in our ministry here in Hanford and Kings County. It is greatly appreciated, never taken for granted, and we trust it will help our church to move forward for the advancement of God's Kingdom.
If you would like to discuss any aspect of First CRC stewardship giving please do not hesitate to contact myself or Timothy Thomas (Deacon comptroller) directly.
In Christ, Pastor Justin
PS This Sunday (June 18th) is the last Sunday scheduled to meet in the Council Room to discuss aspects of the proposed 2017-18 budget. You, of course, can speak to any member of Council at any time, but this time has been specifically set aside to address any comments or question you may have in preparation for our annual congregational meeting in August.
-On behalf of the Governing Council-
2017-18 BUDGET PROCESS REMINDER & UPDATE:
As previously mentioned, the Governing Council has approved a first draft of the budget to present to the congregation in August. Our goal is for members of the congregation to know with clarity where their stewardship contributions are going. To that end, unlike years past where the congregation would receive the budget only a couple weeks prior to the congregational meeting and then discuss it on the floor of the meeting that night, we determined that does not leave sufficient time for feedback and discussion, and ultimately edits to the proposed budget, if need be.
Thus, the new process as determined by the Council is as follows:
1) We will present the budget in every member's mailbox months in advance (likely in early May),
2) Followed by multiple weeks where members of council will be available after the service in the council room for questions and discussion. (WE ARE HERE)
3) If a congregant presents a legitimate concern we will now have ample time to address it in good order prior to the congregational meeting.
4) You will then receive a possible revised/updated proposed budget in July.
5) Then at the annual congregational meeting we will vote without an open mic discussion, followed by a spaghetti supper.
This way gives significantly more opportunities for productive feedback with ample time still to address those concerns.
ONLINE GIVING
Did you know that First CRC has ONLINE GIVING?
First CRC utilizes an online giving option through a ministry called “Planning Center—Stripe.” If you are interested in considering your stewardship contributions through this secure resource, follow these simple instructions:
- Go to our website at www.Hanfordcrc.org and click the “Give Online” button at the top of the page.
- Once here, click “Make a Donation” and you will be directed to the “Planning Center Giving” portal.
- Add in your preferred giving method—debit, credit, or ACH banking information. You can set up ‘one-time’ or ‘recurring’ gifts and allocate them to various ministry opportunities.
That’s it!
If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact Timothy Thomas (Ministering
Deacon Comptroller).
About Us
Email: hanfordcrc@comcast.net
Website: hanfordcrc.org
Location: 2175 Leoni Drive, Hanford, CA, United States
Phone: (559) 582-4423
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HanfordCRC/