Fulfilling Freedom Moment
Good morning! My name is Katie and a week or so ago, Jimmy and Kandy
Hamilton asked me if I would be willing to do a Fulfilling Freedom moment. They
said that I could talk about anything that had to do with the new building, the
campaign, or what the church means to me in general. My first reaction was
sure, this should be easy, but then I began to really think about it. I began
to realize just how much is here at the church that I take for granted and just
how much all of it means to me. But I knew, I couldn't cover everything in one
morning, so I would like to share my testimony with you guys about how I
learned to serve God and the church, through the old building, the new
building, and the Fulfilling Freedom campaign.
To start off with, my family and I have been
a part of this church since my mom, Sarah, became the Children's Director here,
in the year of 2001. Some people might say that church for them is a place to
pray, a place to hear and learn the word of God, or an environment of people
that share the same beliefs as them, but if someone were to ask what the church
is to me, I would say a second home and a second family.
When my family and I first joined St. John's, I was 2 years old and my
grandfather had just passed away after a long battle with brain tumors and a
series of strokes. To say that his death was devastating to our family would be
an understatement, and starting off at a new church and for my mom a new job
during such hard times, quite frankly was nerve-racking. But it didn't take us
long to realize that we had nothing to be nervous about. St. John's seemed to
be the church where we fit in. We were welcomed by many people and it was clear
to us that St. John's was the church where we were meant to be.
At
the time we joined, it was just my mom, my dad, me, and my grandmother, Lesley,
who decided to join with us. I would like to take a minute to share my
perspective of what St. Johns was like at that time, before the new building. I
was only 2, but I remember it as if it were yesterday. There was a total of 4
nursery classrooms and one children's bathroom. I can remember spending many
Sunday mornings in this area. There were several kids crammed into each
classroom and there was not a lot of space to move around. My mom’s office was
in the library across from the sanctuary, away from all the other staff. There
was not yet a preschool program, the after school program was crammed in
Huddleston Hall, there was no Contemporary worship service, or rotation Sunday
school for the elementary aged kids. I can also remember many Vacation Bible
Schools where all of the kids were crammed into the sanctuary instead of having
the open space of the core.
A
few years later, when I was about 4 or 5 years old, and my brother was born, I
began hearing talk about a new children's and youth building being built, and I
became excited. I can remember my mom telling me about the new rotation Sunday
school program we would have and how the nursery was going to grow. But along
with everyone's excitement, I can remember lots of people feeling uneasy about
such a big change in the church. People were always asking whether or not it
was really a good idea and why couldn't we just leave things the way they were.
But I can assure you that everything was well worth it in the end.
When the building was complete, I was in the 3rd grade and the changes
in St. John's were unbelievable. There are now nursery classrooms for every age
group with plenty of space, a preschool that consists of nearly 150 children
and a very long waiting list, a full after-school program with its own space
and much more. I can remember starting rotation Sunday school. Our first
rotation was all about Daniel and the Lion's Den, and instead of just reading
about it, we got to learn about it through music, movies, cooking, drama, and
art. Through the new building, the church has also added a Contemporary worship
service, a new space for Quest, and well you get the point. The list goes on
and on. But then there was one problem. St. Johns was now in a lot of trouble
financially because the new building put the church in a lot of debt. I can
remember everyone being stressed out all the time wondering what we were going
to do to fix the problem. A few years later I began hearing talk about the
Fulfilling Freedom Campaign.
I
am ashamed to say it, but I have to admit that I was one of those people that
wasn't too sure about the campaign at first. I had a lot of what-if questions.
Questions like what if no-one commits to giving anything, and even if they do,
what if people don't follow through with what they committed to? But, boy was I
wrong. In fact, I get the honor this morning of announcing to you that the church
has now raised $1,432,113.80. I would also like to add that through the
campaign, not only has the church grown through the financial part of the
campaign, but I have also noticed the church growing closer together as a
family through serving on the various committees and so forth.
Now
you are probably wondering what this has to do with how I learned to serve the
church and why in the world am I telling you things about the building that you
may already know, but I am getting to that. I count myself blessed because as I
have grown, I have gotten to see the church grow in its ministries as well.
When the church added a building just for the children and youth, I realized
that we are expected to make up a part of the church as well and that serving in
the church isn't just for the adults. I realized there was a reason the church
made such a sacrifice for the children and youth-- so we could have a better
opportunity to know what it is to be a disciple. Since the new building, I have
become an active volunteer in things like iServe, teaching rotation Sunday
school, assisting with children's choirs, playing the trumpet during some of
the services, helping with Vacation Bible School, acolyting, many years of the
CROP walk, serving on the youth council, mission trips such as Salkehatchie,
and even things like Journey to Bethlehem. Some people assume that I
participate in all of those things because my mom works here and I don't have a
choice, but they're wrong. On occasion something will be out of my comfort
zone, and I will have to think with the "do it for Jesus and get over
it" mindset, but most everything is done by choice. Over the past several
years, I have grown to love serving in the church and most of it is by choice
because I love spending time here. The congregation and staff have helped raise
me and over the years have all become my church family which I would not trade
for anything. Thank you!
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