One event can change the course of one person's plans for life. Sometimes it can even change the plans of a church community.

Thats what happened when Joe Jeffreys visited Chelsea last winter to meet a local need.

The minute I walked in the building, it was an aha moment, said pastor Jeffreys, the new minister at the First Congregational Church (United Church of Christ), 121 E. Middle St. in Chelsea.

Jeffreys was still in his final year at the Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago when he heard that the church was in need of someone to fill the pulpit on a substitute basis until they could find a new pastor.

Since there is an agreement between Evangelical Lutherans and the United Church of Christ, he volunteered to speak several times over the winter. Not only did he immediately fall in love with the church and its congregation, but they sensed that Jeffreys might be the pastor they were looking for.

Jeffreys received a call from the churchs search committee in March. After three interviews, including a meeting with his wife, Lisa, the church's committee asked him to be its pastor following his graduation.

Jeffreys said that the church went out on a limb to call him, since he doesnt fit the stereotypical minister for a church with a long history.

At the age of 51 and as a new seminary graduate, he lacks the years of experience as a head pastor that would be expected for a well-established congregation.

But even though he is beginning his first pastorate, Jeffreys is no stranger to church leadership. He began attending St. Georges Lutheran Church in Brighton about three decades ago when his two sons, Jacob and Joshua, were young.

Once I developed the relationship with Christ, my life changed, Jeffreys said. Continued...

Originally posted here:
CHELSEA: Joe Jeffreys leads First Congregational Church as new pastor

Posted on July 1, 2012, Sunday

SERIAN: Construction of the new St Elizabeth Church at Kampung Ampungan near here is in need of more funding.

Although the project started in 2005, only half of the construction has been completed. The building committee still needs to raise RM620,000 for the project.

The new church is required to accommodate the growing congregation. The old church, said to be among the earliest in Serian, is also in poor condition.

A statement released here said the building committee is still short of funds although several elected representatives and well-wishers have contributed to the project.

A fundraising dinner and concert will be held at the village this Saturday (July 7).

The committee appealed to the public for contributions.

Tickets are priced at RM10 per adult and RM5 for children.

For enquiries contact fundraising chairman Samuel Kona (019-8260425 or 082-255425), village church committee chairman Gilbert Guan Matolo (013-8187261), or committee members Freddy Jeab (013-8269485), Paul Joseph (013-8067420) and Relly Tesap (019-8475953).

More information about the projects progress is available at http://www.work4lord.org.

See original here:
Church project still short of funds

Because of a growing congregation, one local church is making a massive overhaul.

A $1 million renovation at Evangelical Free Church, 3111 S. Sixth St., will add youth classrooms and relocate the sanctuary.

Bob Kosbau, a pastor at the church, said the church's space can no longer comfortably accommodate his flock.

"We have a growing number of young families," he said.

To better serve those families, the church will more than double its amount of classrooms from five to 11. Both children's and adult classrooms will increase.

The expansion will turn what now is a warehouse into the new worship center, John Henze, facilities director for the church, said. It will seat 630 parishioners- an upgrade from the current sanctuary's 400.

Although Kosbau said the church usually only hosts roughly 300 parishioners each week, the extra space will help them be more comfortable. A large, open multi-purpose children's area will provide space for between 80 and 100 kids to enjoy puppet shows, singing and teaching.

One of the biggest differences church goers will notice, Henze said, is they will have to enter on the building's west side.

Kosbau said church staff has been considering the renovation for the last couple years. Charitable donations have already funded half its construction.

"We have been praying for many months for this," he said. "We are going to move forward and trust him to provide the remaining amount."

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Local church makes $1 million in renovations

27-06-2012 14:52 If you dream it...we can build it! Excellence is our standard. We design and build churches, worship & ministry facilities to your budget. Integrity and craftsmanship are more than words, that is who we are.

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Quality Church Construction DESIGN/BUILD (Aerie, Inc) - Video

By Edison A. Delos Angeles Inquirer Visayas

CEBU CITYThe prayers of nuns at Asilo dela Milagrosa church have been answered.

The proposed flyover project in front of the church will no longer push through after a traffic impact study prepared by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Project Monitoring Office showed that it was not feasible.

Instead, the DPWH recommended that an underpass be built to ease traffic at the intersection of Gorordo Avenue and Archbishop Reyes Avenue where the church compound is located.

If an underpass were to be built, both sides of Gorordo Avenue would have to be widened to accommodate two additional lanes, one on each side.

Nuns of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul, who run the church and orphanage inside the compound on Gorordo Avenue, resorted to prayer power in fighting off the proposed flyover project.

The nuns expressed fears that the flyover would disrupt church services. The proposed flyover would have eaten at least 3 meters off the church grounds including part of the garden where a grotto of the Blessed Virgin Mary is located and part of the churchs front yard.

The flyover on the intersection of General Maxilom Avenue and M.J. Cuenco Avenue here is likely to push through, however, after its proponents settle right of way issues.

Carmelito Tizon, of the DPWHs Project Monitoring Office, gave a briefing on the impact study on the project at the DPWH Central Visayas office on Tuesday.

Tizon said the impact study was prepared to determine the traffic characteristics of certain intersections and identify solutions to bottlenecks.

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Flyover won’t push through near church

For 14 years, she was a successful architect, designing and supervising the construction of high-rise commercial buildings in Singapore.

Nestled in the heart of Singapore is the Wesley Methodist Church, where she found her true calling.

Today the Rev. Norma (Nory) Leachon is an architect of souls.

Leachon, a citizen of Singapore and a native of the Philippines, graduated from the Boston University School of Theology May 19 and will begin her ministry at the Holbrook United Methodist Church Sunday, July 1.

This is the day her vision for the Holbrook UMC will begin to unfold.

For a vision, you must know the congregation first. I have met five people, and they are very nice, Leachon said. We are a small church, but we have so much richness in us. Even though the budget is difficult, there is so much richness in the people. They would like to grow the church.

She was appointed to Holbrook UMC June 7.

The bishop chose to send me here because he felt that my talents and gifts will be useful in Holbrook, Leachon said.

Leachon describes herself as a city girl.

It was not easy to give up the corporate life. I feel this is a different kind of life. My focus is my ministry. Im very blessed. I think I will like Holbrook, she said.

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Leachon looks to build Holbrook United Methodist Church

By Daniel Brunty The Winston County Journal

A pillar of the Noxapater community, Liberty Baptist Church is receiving blessings in the form of a new parsonage.

Thanks to the kindheartedness and hard work of two mission groups and funds raised by the church, the new parsonage is now becoming a reality. The parsonage, which is the house provided by a church for its pastor, will be located right beside the old parsonage.

Liberty Baptist Church Pastor Jim Pender and wife Loretta will be the new residents of the parsonage upon its completion. Pastor Pender gave a brief history of the old parsonage, which will be removed after the construction of the new one.

The original parsonage was built 60 years ago, Pender said. The original parsonage was built by church members from that time period. A lot of the wood that the old parsonage is constructed with came from the property itself. And some of the lumber came from the old Liberty school that was here years ago. So this will be just another phase of history here at Liberty.

As with any older structure, the need for some type of maintenance arose. A couple of years ago, we ran into the realization that the old parsonage was in need of a new roof, with it having so many problems, Pender said. The parsonage, being 60 years old, was bound to run into problems. Over a period of time, it was determined the most feasible thing would be to build a new pastorium. We started raising funds and wanted to get to a specific point in fundraising before we actually got started with the building program.

Once the funds were acquired, the church would receive help in the form of the Mississippi Chapter of Campers on Mission, a national fellowship of Christian Campers who participate in mission activities. Campers on Mission is mostly made up of retired but professional people such as electricians, carpenters, and others, Pender said. We even have a plumber who is actually a member from our church.

Campers on a Mission decided to incorporate the help of another fellow missionary group to assist them with the project. Mississippi Campers on Mission, which I am a member of, knew of and have worked with Westwood Tools of Ministry, Pender said. They recommended that the Westwood group to come in and do the framing as well as the roof and shingles for the project.

Westwood Tools of Ministry is based out of the Westwood Baptist Church in Alabaster, AL. The group is comprised of several churches that travel on missions to assist other Baptist churches all over the United States.

The churches that comprise Westwood Tools of Ministry besides Westwood are County Line Baptist Church in Mississippi, Liberty Baptist Church in Columbiana, AL, Indian Grave Baptist Church in Billingsley, AL, Hillsboro Baptist Church in Hillsboro, and St. Thomas the Apostle in Montevallo, AL.

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Liberty Baptist Church builds new parsonage

26-06-2012 23:04 This is a guided tour of the interior of the new sanctuary being constructed by the parishioners of Saint Vincent de Paul Catholic Church in Austin, Texas. Our new church will be dedicated by Bishop Joe Vásquez on Saturday, October 27, 2012, at 10:00 am.

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Guided tour of new St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church construction, Austin, TX - Video

Imagine doing construction all day long during this sizzling triple digit summer with no pay and being there because you want to.

Members of Kingwood United Methodist Church near Houston are working and sweating in Bryan on a mission trip to help people here.

Texas summers can be miserable to work in, but there are smiles on these faces.

Veronica Schmauch is part of the youth group for Kingwood United Methodist Church.

She's one of 90 people here in Bryan all week building wheelchair ramps, doing construction, and helping make life a little easier.

"It's been very fun and rewarding, but yeah the heat is definitely a factor. We are very hot out here," said Schmauch.

For 76-year-old homeowner Odessa May Thurman the new porch and ramp makes getting in and out of the house possible.

"Im just so thankful to the Lord about what they are doing for me because I'm pretty sickly now and I take a lot of medicine," she said.

"Most of them could be at home hanging out with their friends... Doing whatever they would do inside in the air conditioning. But they give up a week, the older kids are giving up a week of income," said Melanie Cheairs, Director of the United Methodist ARMY camp group.

The church brought in pop-up tents to try to beat the heat a little bit on the hottest week of the summer so far.

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Kingwood Church Making A Difference In Bryan Despite Triple Digit Heat

25-06-2012 18:14 Church Building with Building Gods Way @ , shares an incredible building strategy with church leaders. Building God's Way is a remarkable network of services that includes ministering to workers on the jobsite while in the church construction process. Don't wait till your building is finished before you reach out to further growth in His kingdom BGW has a nationwide builder network, specializing in church building, that fully endorse and support the Ministry of Construction outreach program. An example of that Builder network is listed here, visit any to learn more: Connect with us on facebook & twitter:

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"Pre-Construction Stewardship during Church Building", by BGW's Don Mahoney - Video