Ashland in Madison County,

As a church plant, for the last five years, we have had little cause for concern over money. Combining resources with our campus in Lexington has allowed us to do much more than we could ever do on our own.

Here are some examples of what has been done for us as a church plant:

• Ashland Avenue Baptist Church in Lexington helped us be a part of hosting the Richmond Fourth of July Extravaganza 4 years ago. This event helped us make a huge splash in the community. The cost was over $20,000.
• AABC also donated a significant amount of money for our I heart MC campaign a few years ago which included billboards and other strategic outreach tools.
• Each year there has been a strategic investment in the renovations rental facilities by AABC ($10-15,000)
• On top of all this there is more than $250,000 of Ashland’s budget that is commitment to our efforts in Madison County. This is more than $100,000 of what our campus has taken in annually.
  

I tell you this only to make you more aware and appreciative. Know that our members in Lexington are extremely excited about everything that’s happening at our campus. I know for certain, if asked, they would do even more to help us be successful as a church plant. They truly believe we are family and would sacrifice whatever needs to reach more people in Madison County.

However, the attendance and membership growth at our Madison County campus has reached the point where we must now take more ownership of our ministry. It’s time for us to step out and make certain sacrifices independent of our sending church. It’s time for us to move from being cared for to caring for ourselves.

The transition to our new facility provides us with the perfect opportunity to do so!

In May we increased the overall annual budget for both campuses by $30,000. This money was to give us initial access to our new facilities. As we said at the congregational meeting and have said since, much of this money was to be used just to get us in the doors. We have always planned to add to the facilities as we grow. This is a place where we can grow as much as we want. This means we will need to continually add to the facilities in some way. Our prayer is that many of these additions will be done by our Madison County campus before, during, and after the process of becoming our own church body.

If you have been in the new facilities recently, (as great as they are) you will notice there is still much more we could do to make things more hospitable for ministry. Our desire is to accomplish ministry with a sense of excellence.

We estimate a cost of around $10,000 – $15,000 to help finish renovations while adding a finishing touch to the facilities.

Some of these things include:

• Stage construction
• Quality sound, audio and media setup
• Glass double doors for
• More renovations and carpet in the children’s
• Quality welcome
• Effective signage outside and around the building

This list could be much longer. If asked, you would probably add many more of your own ‘needs to be done’ items. Clay and I still have no idea where we will be working from on a daily basis.  However, all of this helps us get in the building and carry out ministry with a sense of excellence. It only makes sense that we as a campus give so that these things can be accomplished. Such sacrifice will also further solidify our bond in ministry together.

We will have a special offering this Sunday at the end of our service. You will need to mark your check RENTAL FACILITIES for it to be used in this way. This will be on top of our regular offering. All money marked this way will go directly to finishing renovations.

Know that I am beyond excited about the days ahead. I cannot tell you what a joy it is for me and my family to be connected to this church body.

– Pastor Jeremy