Category: Central Construction (Page 1 of 2)

Prayer in the Commons

Our brothers and sisters on the board at Polk Street United Methodist Church came over to Central yesterday to take a tour of our newly expanded spaces and to pray over our elders and ministers and our church.

Take just a second to re-read that sentence. Let it sink in just how gracious is our God and how amazing is the work he is doing in and through our downtown Amarillo churches.

After a quick look around our new entry way and Commons, Guest Central, the fireplace and the coffee bar, our new play space and ministry / meeting room, we held hands in a circle while pastor Mark Welshimire led these Methodist ministers and elders in prayers of thanksgiving and blessing for us. They asked the Lord to bless everybody who walks through the new doors at Central. They asked God to bless all the kids who play on the new equipment, in a safe place to learn about Jesus. God was praised for the long-time faithful witness of the Central church and he was blessed for our partnership together in the Gospel.

Wow.

I am so grateful to belong to a church that emphasizes the unity of the saints for which our Lord prayed and that works so hard to tear down the walls that divide God’s people. What a thrill! What a unique privilege that not many people get to enjoy!

Thank you to our brothers and sisters at Polk Street for the generous gift of your time, your presence with us, and your prayers. May our partnership continue to grow richer and deeper to the eternal praise and glory of God.

Peace,

Allan

Missions Sunday Videos

The Lord blessed us with a really fabulous Sunday at Central. Not only did he provide more than $396,000 through our generous church family for local and foreign missions, he filled us with a true sense of his great faithfulness through the Grand Opening of our grand opening. You’ll find here the two videos we showed to our church on Sunday. The first one is the Revelation 7 reading by our local and foreign missions partners, speaking from different contexts in different languages, all wearing white. The second is the time-lapse of our construction project.

$396,890 and Counting

“My God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen!” ~Philippians 4:19-20

We are still riding the wave of Spirit energy and enthusiasm generated by our God’s actions with his people on Missions Sunday yesterday here at Central:

~ $396,890 was generously given to fund our local and foreign missions budget for 2020, far surpassing our set goal of $360,000

~ Amber, Tamara, and Craeceola publicly confessed Jesus as Lord and put him on in baptism

~ Jared Odhiambo, all the way from the Alara village in Kenya, inspired us with his powerful testimony and godly vision

~ Stephanie Goins and Robyn Terrill, from Downtown Women’s Center, honored us with their gracious words

~ The new west entrance, the play space, the coffee bar, Guest Central, and the Central Commons were unveiled to great acclaim with an open house and reception

All of this Sunday morning at Central — proof that our God is working in and through his people for the sake of his Kingdom; testimony to our Lord’s faithfulness to his salvation plans; evidence that the old has gone and the new has come!

As blessings pile on top of blessings, we are increasingly convinced that our Father is keeping his covenant promises to Central and to all of his creation. May he be glorified and may his Son be exalted for ever and ever. Amen!

Peace,

Allan

Um… It’s October 24

The Dallas Mavericks won their season opener for the first time in forever?
Our construction project at Central is finally finished?
Mary McNeill went 24 hours without eating?
Bernie Sanders unveiled a plan to legalize marijuana nationwide?
The baseball team in Washington DC is winning the World Series?
Adam Gray’s beard now makes sense?

Sorry. Just trying to figure out why it’s SNOWING on October 24!!!

The Pool Guy

One last thing about this invalid at the Pool of Bethesda in John 5. I want us to notice today that the ultimate Healer always takes the first step in our salvation. And he always does whatever it takes to save you.

Jesus is heading into Jerusalem for a religious feast, but he takes a detour along the way. He decides to first visit the city’s most sick and disabled. He singles out the most destitute among them, a man who is sick on the inside and the outside. And Jesus heals him. He calls the man to immediate action and heals him! He changed him.

And Jesus initiated the whole thing.

This guy had no faith. There’s no confession. No cry for help. A couple of verses later we learn this guy had no idea who Jesus even was! But Jesus was looking for him. Jesus loved him and healed him. He changed him, made him whole. And then he followed up later with him in the temple to encourage him.

What a beautiful picture of the amazing love and grace and mercy of Jesus. Our Lord Jesus goes against the grain, he moves heaven and earth, he breaks the rules, to reach out to you and heal you.

And he’s the one who takes the initiative. Always. He’ll stop at nothing to save you. That’s his nature. That’s who he is and what he does.

Do you want to get well?

What’s wrong with us and this world is sin. We know that Jesus is the answer to the problem. But do we really want to be healed? Whether you’re experiencing the physical brokenness of this pool guy or his complacency that Jesus challenges with a call to action or the warped attitude of the religious leaders who valued their rules and restrictions over the healing of others, Jesus’ question is the same. So is his will and power to save.

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The construction around our church building at Central is progressing up and out.  There’s a lot of scaffolding in play here.

 

 

 

 

The three arches of our new main entrance have all been encased in brick and the walls and beams of our new ground-level ministry space are almost complete. The chapel steps and wall that went down and then out to the sides have been torn out to reveal the original 1930 steps that went straight down to the street.  And pretty soon the beautiful cast stone will be installed on this west side front.

 

 

 

 

 

If you run into them, be extra kind to Mark and Kevin and Mary and Vickie. They’re losing their office windows in this deal and it’s just now starting to sink in. As the walls go up, there’s less sunshine coming in. Vickie’s is just that little “Laverne and Shirley” window, but she’s still going to feel it. Mark and Mary are going to have to be shown where their light switches are. And Kevin might actually go stark-raving-mad.

Peace,

Allan

 

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