06/08/06 :: Sell the building, move into a school?
Richfield, MN >> Most churches want to move out of schools and into their own building. Sovereign Grace Fellowship is going in the opposite direction. Pastor Rick Gamache explains…
Sell a building that’s paid for in order to set up a base of operations in an office complex and hold Sunday celebration in a grade-school gymnasium? Sounds crazy. Most churches our size are beginning to dream about doing the exact opposite. But, hey, it was Steve Shank’s idea!
Actually, it was a remarkable moment for our staff a couple of years ago when Steve, almost glibly, said, “I wonder if Sovereign Grace Fellowship is in the right location.” Little did Steve know then that the staff had been kicking around the idea of relocating the church for some time. Steve’s simple sentence landed on us as a confirmation from God to move the church.
And the idea is not nearly as crazy as it seems. We are a church of just under 200 folks. The building is 44,000 square feet. That’s a lot of space to maintain. The newest part of the building was built in 1964 (the architecture is typical Minnesota Lutheran, and I’m pretty sure we no longer meet any of the City of Richfield’s building codes!). No one knows when the north end of the building was constructed. (Judging from the musty stench, I’d guess sometime late 19th century.) The amount of money it takes just to heat the facility in a Minnesota winter would make you shudder. And the building is starving for improvements and redecorating and some tender loving care, which we simply cannot afford.
(Unfortunately, we will lose the distinction of being the only Sovereign Grace church with a pipe organ. But since Ken Boer left us to join the staff at Covenant Life Church, no one knows how to play it anyway. So its pipes have become home to our resident bat who loves to surprise folks with an occasional nighttime flight through the hallways.)
The building was on the market for just over a year, with many nibbles but few bites. The Church of Scientology expressed interest. But apparently Tom Cruise’s “Mission: Impossible 3” didn’t meet expectations at the box office and John Travolta hasn’t had a hit in years, so the financial backing wasn’t there. In the end, God sent us a wonderful Pentecostal church that has a vision to improve the building and carry on the gospel mission to Richfield.
On June 25, Lord willing, we’ll hold our first meeting at Washburn Elementary in Bloomington (home of the world-renowned Mall of America—malls are very important here since Minnesotans spend ten months of every year indoors!). We’ll spend the summer reviewing our vision and values and go public with the re-planted church on September 17. And there really is a church-planting-type excitement and mentality sweeping the congregation. People are eager and expectant for what God may see fit to do and what Kingdom fruit he may grow as we begin this new season. All for his glory!
Photos from Sovereign Grace Fellowship's website