EXCEEDING ABUNDANTLY BEYOND

Today I received a check from Church Mutual Insurance Co. The check is their final payment for the repair work that has been done on our building as a result of the December 2007 storm. It is a blessing to have it so that we can make the final payment to the contractor, but beyond that it was more than we thought it would be. Not surprising, considering the way that God has blessed us throughout this entire project.

As you know the storm caused much damage to our building and our property. At the time it was much of a trial. But then we saw, step-by-step, how God was to bring great blessing out of it.

We had an old bus barn on the property that needed to be torn down. The storm blew it down. The insurance company paid for the cleanup and gave us $5000 for the building.

The parsonage lost some shingles from its roof. It had three layers of roofing that needed to be replaced anyway. The insurance company paid for a new roof for the parsonage.

The chimney in the back of the church was not properly flashed and leaked at the connection to the building. The insurance company paid to have it removed.

The building had strength concerns and a roof that was in a bad state of repair. The insurance company paid to have the building strengthened and a new roof put on.

The steeple on top of the roof had leaked over the years and was getting worse. The insurance company paid for its removal.

Much of the inside of the building was in need of improvement, paint, etc. The repair project resulted in new paint and carpet in the foyer, sanctuary, and balcony and new paint in countless other rooms.

The downstairs bathrooms needed a major remodel. The insurance company paid for that.

The downstairs kitchen needed improvement. The insurance company paid for that.

The ceiling tiles in the Fellowship Hall needed to be replaced. The insurance company paid for that too.

We needed some new windows and new outside doors. With change orders we were able to do some less expensive options with some repairs so that we could get these things done.

We needed to replace the awnings on the west side of the church. The contractor remodeled those for us.

I could go on and on with improvements that were made to our building as a result of this project. But in the end the blessings still do not stop. The final payment is almost $25,000 more than the final invoice for the contractor. We have money left over to do some other non-insurance related projects.

What a blessing. It didn't look like that in December 2007. It looked like a real mess! But isn't it wonderful how God can bring blessings out of our trials and do it in a way that is exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think. Praise to the glory of His grace!

Pastor Jerry