The following is adapted from a letter to the Core 2024.
Hello Ren Core!
I’ll be excited when I don’t have to give you updates and needs regarding the new space :)
But … here we go!
I estimate we are at 90% completion of the renovation of the new space. The electricians have been there daily working away—praise God! That’s probably the biggest task that needs to be completed before fire and electrical inspections. Pray for the crew of electricians that they’d be filled with energy and motivation to finish well. Pray that the inspections would go smoothly.
The next biggest task to be completed is the bathroom project. Rich has been working away daily to get that done. Charlie and I picked up the new toilets and sinks on Tuesday and he will install everything early next week. Then he’ll schedule a plumbing inspection. Pray for both Charlie and Rich to be energized with God’s power (Col 1:29). And pray that the inspection goes well.
Rich has also begun to design and prep for the building of a coffee bar that will house all of our coffee supplies and function as our coffee station on Sunday mornings. He was showing me the designs yesterday. It’s going to be beautiful. Rich did a concrete counter for our coffee bar at 184 Broad. So he’s doing a similar thing at the new space. Pray for Rich not only for energy but for creativity and wisdom as he constructs this over the next weeks.
The next volunteer block will be this Saturday from 10-4. Again, to keep things simple, come either 10-1( before lunch) or 1-4 (after lunch) so we don’t need to fuss with providing lunch. If you want to work the full 6 hours, bring a lunch or shoot out between noon-1 and grab some food.
I know everyone is super busy. I get it. But please make every effort possible to volunteer as much as possible in these last weeks. There are a million details to tend to and the more volunteers we have the quicker we can get finished.
Here are some of the remaining tasks volunteers can work on this Saturday.
Clear cafe/hall
The entire cafe and large hall needs to be cleared out so the floor guys can finish the floors. This involves just moving things from that area into the sanctuary. And then sweeping.
Cove base install
We have 1200 feet of cove base that needs to be installed. Cove base is the rubber trim on the wall where the wall meets the floor. It’s glued onto the wall. Rich gave me a 10 min lesson yesterday and I did my office. It’s not too hard. Some of you who are even somewhat handy can handle this. Ideally, it would be good to have 5-6 people work on this.
Carpentry
There are some basic carpentry tasks that I’m sure some of you can handle. We want to build some storage shelves in the band closet. We want to put some wood ledging (sills) on some of the window sills. There’s also some trim work here and there. I’m looking for someone who has at least done some home projects and is comfortable using power tools.
Painting details
Much of the painting is finished, but there are still several details to be done. For example, there are doors that need to be painted. Some of the walls need a second coat. Some light sanding is needed. Beams need to be painted. Electrical pipes and boxes need to be painted. I’m looking for a handful of you who have significant experience painting. I don’t mean professional experience. But those who have done a lot of painting over the years on your house. Or maybe worked a summer job painting.
Organization
I’m looking for those of you who get high on bringing order out of chaos. Storage is extremely limited at the new space. So what we need to do is have a team of organizational gurus thoughtfully condense what we have. About half of our “junk” was brought to the new building last Saturday. Now it needs to be organized.
Insulation
The only insulation to be installed is above the bathrooms. This is one of those tasks that I think will result in great rewards in the next life ha! It’s not exactly fun. But maybe some of you like doing the tasks that no one else wants to do. That’s star servanthood.
Those are the main things that come to mind. I could also use a floater and someone to run to the store if needed (it’s always needed). Think about what seems like the best fit for you and let me know. We are really pushing to get in as soon as possible. Let’s push hard in these final weeks. Our collective servanthood is essential.
Just from the Ren community (mainly our small Core of 100 members) we’ve raised about $150,000. That’s amazing! I’m so grateful for this and so proud of how everyone has sacrificed. My prayer now is that we’d finish the year strong. Let’s not grow weary at the end of the race. Keep giving what you can to the Spring Offering and please keep giving your regular tithes. I’ve done enough renovations through the years to know that every renovation costs more and takes longer than predicted. At this point, we have a good handle on what the remaining expenses will be. We could use about 40-50k more. It’s a perfect time of year—Thanksgiving—to give one last offering to this project.
…
Once the dust settles from this renovation season, we will dramatically shift gears into a season of prayer and mission. I believe we are going to see lots of new people stream in next year. I believe it’ll be a year of growth in every way. Get ready! Be faithful. Be strong. Keep practicing the basics. Keep showing up. Keep serving. Don’t stop investing in each other. Pray like crazy. And watch what the Lord does. It’s not been easy in the last 20+ years of Ren, but I can confidently say that we have been abundantly fruitful in so many ways. May we increase and abound in the years ahead!
Love you all!
Pastor Scott