We Didn’t Get What We Want
And so we praise God from whom all blessings flow.
Earlier this year we convened a congregational meeting and prayed as the Reforming Board of Management placed before us a terrific proposal. Our plans and prayers from that time in May till now were that we’d ask a grant fund for a monetary grant to spend on split-system air conditioning to heat and cool the chapel space of Reforming House.
As a church-plant that has a history of having to change rental locations so many times in our first few years of planting, we are so grateful to God that we have Reforming House. It is an incredible building for the church. Yet, it is a building that could do with some updates as it has some challenges.
Most of all it is a challenge for some people to hear the speaking of the gospel clearly in gathered worship, and in having conversations over morning tea - due to the due to the open-space warehouse design of the building. Secondly, when it’s February many find the chapel space of the building really hot and in August things can be really cold. So we sought a solution to ask for grant money to provide for heating and cooling in the chapel space. This we prayed for every week at gathered worship during the pastoral prayer. Then today we received the response from the grant fund…
‘Applications to the Fund this year remain high and the value of the applications were four times the amount the Fund had available for distribution. As a result, we were unable to fund every grant that we receive.
Unfortunately your application has not been successful.
We appreciate the time and effort required to prepare and submit an application and are sorry that we were not able to assist you on this occasion. We understand, at this point, most applicants want to understand why their application has not been successful. The main reason is that although the vast majority of the applications received are very worthy, as pointed out earlier the sheer volume of applications and the amount being requested means that not everyone can be supported. You are welcome to apply again next year, and I encourage you to refer to the funding guidelines on our website before making an application, as the funding polices are subject to review and may have changed.
Thank you, again, for your time and effort in applying to the Fund.’
Reforming, I write to you as one of your fellow-members and pastor who is of course, disappointed. It would have been such a blessing to receive such grant money to make Reforming House a much more welcoming space where sound and temperature issues were not issues. Yet, this is not to be for now - and it is not for us to respond with only sadness, but gladness.
For a good heart diagnostic question for us is to ask: “When we don’t get what we want, are we able to still praise God from whom all blessings flow?” The answer we know is, “yes”. For of course we can be disappointed that we didn’t get what we want, but we won’t be devastated. A diagnostic response of devastation would show that we have been placing our hopes in the wrong thing, a good thing yes - but a good things that we may have made into a “god-thing”, an idol.
Whenever we don’t get what we want, is always an opportunity for such a series of diagnostic questions for our hearts.
“Why did I want that?”
“Were all my hopes misplaced when placed in that?”
“Did I look to that with greater affection than the Lord Jesus himself?”
Reforming, this is an opportunity for us as a church to look to the Lord Jesus, again.
Whatever decision-making process that has happened with grant applications, whatever plans we make, even whatever prayers we pray - the Lord is on the throne (as we’ll see this Sunday from Revelation 4,) and he has given us every spiritual blessing in Christ (as we saw last Sunday from Ephesians). This we know, experience and live thankful lives in response to Jesus’ lordship over all things.
Who knows, it may have been that this particular move at this time would not have helped with the next step of building a chapel? Who knows, it may have been not a helpful system to heat and cool a future chapel? Who knows, it may be that the Lord Jesus is working in this so that we develop a better solution to the sound and temperature issues we face at Reforming House? Ultimately, Jesus knows.
Jesus knows, and Jesus is sovereign - over everything.
So what’s next?
Next we plan and pray for how we may map out a master plan for Reforming House that serves to enable our Elders and Board to build a capacity of care in Reforming Church. We plan to continue loving Jesus, loving the church and loving the lost. Added to that, whatever happens, we can and will praise God from whom all blessings flow.
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, you heavenly host;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
