The Pastors Desk

Relocation Update

2010-12-24T01:25:00.008-06:00

I wanted to take a moment to wish our entire North Dallas Community Bible Fellowship Family the merriest of Christmases and a blessed New Year. This year has been one of both ups and downs. I would like to share an update on our moving situation.

For the last two months we have had both volunteers and paid consultants conducting a thorough inspection of the Hillcrest Church property. Our due diligence revealed it would cost more money to prepare the property to meet our programming needs than expected. Our final offer was not accepted and after prayerful consideration and much discussion, we have concluded that the total cost is beyond our ability to fund.

Let me share a personal thought: I am glad we tried to make the Hillcrest property work for us. It represented the possibility to get near term relief from our space concerns without too much of a compromise to our master plan. It did not work out and it is time to move on. I am equally happy about the way that the due diligence process was conducted. It allowed us to make an informed decision. You can praise God for a leadership team that does not just act on emotion, but blends both fact and faith. We allowed the facts to inform our faith.

We appreciate the Hillcrest Church family and have formed what we hope is a lasting relationship with their leadership team and members. We pray the best for them and that God is glorified.

At the outset, when we first began the evaluation of the Hillcrest property, we stated emphatically that God had given us two good options. It seems clear now that the Hillcrest possibility, while showing great promise in the beginning, is not the best alternative for us. The elder board is in prayer during the holiday season about the next steps and timing for the SH-190 project. I will discuss this further in my January 2011 blog. With the Hillcrest issue now officially tabled, we turn to other matters.

We have now begun to focus on improving the worship experience here at our current location as we begin to make serious preparations for our eventual move. One of the first things you will notice is a change in format and service time for our 7:30 service. Effective January 2, the first Sunday in January, we are moving the service time to 8:00a.m., and will change the service length to one hour. However we will continue to serve communion. We also plan to make modifications to our overflow spaces to make them more “worshipper” friendly. We will begin to implement these changes right after the first of the New Year. In addition, we are in the early planning stages for a new and more contemporary worship experience to complement our Sunday services. You will be hearing more about this at the annual business meeting in January.

Watch Night services are quickly approaching and we are planning for a New Year’s Rocking Eve. We invite you to come early see the old year end and promises of brand new opportunities in 2011 begin. Service begins at 9:30 p.m., December 31.

Pastor Smith,
with support of the NDCBF Elder Board

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Putting Our Behinds in the Past

2010-11-18T10:07:00.000-06:00

Most of you already know that one of my all time favorite movies is the Lion King. You may also know that my two favorite characters in the movie are Timon and Pumba. When Timon and Pumba found young Simba exhausted in the desert and nearly dead, they tried to cheer him up. They told him, in essence, that the best way to face life in the present is to forget the bad things of the past. Pumba, perhaps not the brightest bulb on the string, told Simba, and I quote, “put your behind in the past”. The quick-witted Timon corrected Pumba and told Simba he should “put the past behind him”. I don’t think that simply saying “Hakuna Matada” is going to solve America’s problems. I do hope, however, that Americans can take the advice of a wart hog and a meerkat and put the past behind us. The election is over and the people have spoken. Even more comforting is the fact that “God has spoken”.

Whatever your political persuasion, it is time to remember that we are all Americans, and more importantly, we are believers. No matter how you feel about the results of the election, the encouraging truth for us should be that God is still in control. Let us commit to pray for our leaders and cooperate in making America the best country on the planet. If you want to have an impact going forward, and you are a registered voter, get out and vote at the next opportunity. If you are not registered, you should make it a priority to become a registered voter. Either way, you should encourage your friends and acquaintances to do likewise. It is the American way.

On a different note, we are deeply immersed in the process of evaluating the viability of the Hillcrest purchase. As you might expect from a project this large, there are challenges, and some of the challenges are daunting. Our study on the book of Joshua is particularly timely considering our effort to acquire the Hillcrest property. Yes, it is a good land. It is a land flowing with “milk and honey”. But there are giants in the land. God told Joshua, “No man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you.” (Joshua 1:5 NASB) These words are resonating in my spirit. No matter what happens, God is with us. We don’t have to fear men. We will not overcome without struggle, but the outcome is determined and the victory is assured. We just have to be careful not to look to the left or to the right.

As I celebrate another “birthday month”, I want to thank all of you who remembered. Perhaps you sent a card or perhaps you gave a gift or perhaps you just said “Happy Birthday”. Whatever you did, I am grateful. I feel privileged to have been called to serve you, and with God’s grace I will continue to serve until God releases me to do something else. May God richly bless you and yours over this Thanksgiving season.

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The Precious Privilege of Voting

2010-10-29T00:38:00.001-05:00

Today is the last day for early voting and I want to take this opportunity to encourage our entire North Dallas Community Bible Fellowship Family to get out and exercise your voting privilege. That’s right. Voting is a privilege and a responsibility but not a right. It is one of the privileges granted to us as citizens of the United States of America. It is important that you are part of an informed electorate and you must vote your conscience. It is easy to be swayed by misinformation and outright lies. Know the candidates and get the facts. Your vote matters. You and you alone can determine who leads our community, our state and our nation by going out and casting your ballot. May God direct you as you make these important decisions.

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A Call to Sacrifice and Service

2010-10-27T19:34:00.043-05:00

We have spent the last few days trying to digest the implications of the Hillcrest vote and we are both excited about the possibilities and somewhat daunted by the enormity of the challenges. Even so, we are convinced that we are seeing the providential hand of God directing our steps and we are praying that God will increase our faith as we move forward. We see blessings in the possibility of acquiring all of the space we will need for the foreseeable future. Needless to say, we intend to be very diligent in evaluating this opportunity, and we are praying for wisdom and discernment as we move forward.

As we began to prepare our operating budget for 2011 and beyond, we were gearing up for the normal cost increases that occur every year. We were also anticipating additional costs associated with our proposed move to Plano. With the Hillcrest acquisition, we will potentially see some of those increases much earlier in 2011. We are painfully aware that many NDCBF members have lost jobs or have been otherwise impacted by the economic downturn, and our prayers are with those families.

We firmly believe that God is leading us into a brighter future by His powerful, providential hand. We are equally convinced that where God guides, He also provides. If God is leading us to acquire the Hillcrest property, and we believe He is, then He has already made provision for us to accomplish it. That provision is through the combined efforts of the people of NDCBF. I want to thank all of you who have faithfully supported our ministry through one of the most difficult times in our history. We are grateful for your sacrifices and your service.

In the future, we all will be asked to do more. We are looking forward to a new era of volunteer service to the church and to the community-at-large. We simply cannot afford to add enough paid staff to perform every task that needs to be done. In addition, we need to broaden the base of our financial support. We are trusting that members and frequent guests who are currently not supporting the church financially will be led to do so. We are also praying that those who are currently committed to give will seek the Lord as to how they might be able to do more. Won't you join me in this great move of God? We are not asking for equal giving but equal sacrifice.

To God be the glory.

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Praise God While In The Hallway

2010-10-14T07:35:00.001-05:00

Greetings from the Pastor’s Desk,

I wanted to take a few moments to attempt to put the recent decision by the Hillcrest Church to sell their facility to NDCBF into some kind of perspective. Needless to say, the growing excitement and anticipation is palpable.

We have known for some time that the size of our physical campus has been significantly hampering our numerical and spiritual growth. We had sadly come to be known as the “church where you cannot get a seat”. People are looking for other options and we are failing to fully engage and impact the community around us.

Over the last several years, we have made a number of futile attempts to remedy our space problems. It has felt very much like what Pastor Bob Rice described in his Founder’s Day message. He said that God will often close a door before He opens another, and you may find yourself in the hallway waiting for that other door to open. The challenge is learning how to praise God while you are in the hallway instead of succumbing to bitterness, blaming and backbiting. It has been a difficult process, but I am beginning to learn how to praise God from the hallway.

Our entire leadership team was convinced that God was opening a tremendous door of opportunity for us when we acquired our Plano property. Each time we have tried to build on it, however, the door has been closed, significant funds have been expended, and we have found ourselves back in the hallway again. God has been teaching us about praising Him from the hallway.

That was then! This is now! God has opened a new door and He has given clear insight as to why we have not been allowed to build on our Plano property. God was providentially planning something better for us. The Hillcrest purchase, if consummated, would give us the chance to be a real blessing to a congregation that has experienced some challenging financial times over the last few years, and at the same time satisfy our space concerns for the foreseeable future.

There are several aspects of the potential purchase that make it so attractive. First, it is existing space and we could occupy it, with minimal modifications, within the next few months. It also gives us a “true” sanctuary instead of the multipurpose building we were planning to construct, and it gives us 150,000 square feet of space on day one. Second, we can acquire the Hillcrest property without exceeding the original debt ceiling established by our lender. The most important aspect of the purchase of Hillcrest is that we can turn our focus from building new space to doing the ministry God has called us to do.

With the upsides there are also some downsides. We will have to made provisions for the age of the buildings and the maintenance costs associated with their upkeep. In addition, we will have to make some modifications to make the space work in some areas to accommodate our ministries.

We are moving quickly to formalize our purchase agreement with Hillcrest and begining the 60-day due diligence period. During these two months, our plan is to determine if moving forward with the purchase is in the best interest of our congregation. I will address other issues of interest regarding the Hillcrest property in this space over the next few weeks and months.

A final note. Please continue to pray that God will give us wisdom as we evaluate each aspect of the purchase in detail. In addition, please pray that God will begin to move the congregation to fulfill the obligations that were made to our Arise and Build campaign. We need those commitments fulfilled today more than ever. The less money we borrow, the less money we have to pay back. Members and frequent guests who are not currently committed financially to supporting the church are being encouraged to do so if they believe in the vision. We suggest tithing as a good place to start.

To God be the glory as we move forward to take the land.