Dear Faithful Futurists:

I’ve been careful to avoid using this Monday Musing space to talk about contributions to FPCLG, but once every couple of years I like to muse about the financial side of our shared work and worship. I know when that’s the opening sentence of a pastor’s letter, most readers scroll on, but I’m hoping you’ll keep reading because there are several important projects underway, and I think you’ll be happy to help.

First, the financial health of our congregation is good. Reduced expense and continued contributions during our pandemic lockdown permitted us to consider post-pandemic possibilities. This was Session’s thinking in expanding our education staff from two part-time directors (Children's Ministry and Youth Ministry) to one full-time Director of Christian Education. Kelly Higgins has been on board for only a few weeks and has already given us a wonderful expansion and vision for the broad educational programming of our church. Kelly is the first full-time staff member addition in several decades.

Over the past six years, the Property Committee under the guidance of Session has overseen several hidden infrastructure projects. Even though this summer has been quite warm, the Sanctuary has been comfortable. This would not have been the case a few years ago, but the complete replacement of the electrical panel for the AC unit has kept us from overheating. Additionally, our boiler system has been updated with state-of-the-art, high-efficiency ignition and controllers, and the response time for heating and cooling the Sanctuary has been cut in half, meaning significant savings in energy consumption.

The next major unseen project is to address electrical concerns in the Sanctuary. About ten years ago, the major fixtures that illuminate our worship were relamped with dimmable LED bulbs, resulting in massive savings. Five years ago, the remainder of our building was also converted to LED, thanks to a generous single contribution by an anonymous donor who was excited to help. What remained unchanged was the electrical panel that controls the chancel lighting, which remains predominantly incandescent. Unfortunately, LED bulbs do not like resistance dimmers. (For my video about this, click here.) Our Property Committee has engaged an electrical contractor to replace the dimmer system for the Sanctuary to better use the LED technology. Additionally, the deterioration of our sound system is partially due to its age but also to insufficient amperage available in the balcony to properly distribute the amplifier system. An additional circuit will be added to accommodate improvements and repairs to our listening experience.

Consideration is also being given to the visual aspects of the Sanctuary; some proposals include a bottom retractable screen so it can ‘disappear’ for certain worship services. Significant reductions in flat-panel screen prices have resulted in rethinking the distribution of video in the Sanctuary. Ample consideration will be given to the architectural aesthetics of our Sanctuary prior to any changes in video.

Walk with me down the west cloister and into Westminster Hall. This space has become one of our most popular meeting and fellowship rooms, but it needs work. Over the next several months, this room will be completely refurbished along with a major remodel of the kitchen, which is in significant disrepair. Property is also considering a high-efficiency system for heating and cooling this space.

Come downstairs (you can use the elevator if needed) and join me in the Ashland building basement. On your way, please ignore the Fellowship Hall Kitchen for the time being. The carpeted hallway will be replaced with composite vinyl flooring, and neglected Room G-9 needs some help, but if you look on the north side of the hall, you will see our Living Waters for the World room and our new Heritage Museum and Archive rooms. We will celebrate the grand reopening of our museum and archive space this fall. Our own William Cotts has adopted the digitization of our archives as his Eagle Scout project.

The Living Waters Room will hopefully inspire our congregation to adopt another community in El Salvador for a clean water project. You will hear more about that soon.

While we’re down here, it’s important to note this building is 70 years old. We’ve long talked about the windows here, as they are extremely inefficient and many of them leak. The problem is the way the leaded glass panels are set into the stonework. While replacement windows are possible, the removal of the current windows would require substantial expense. Removal and replacement are estimated to cost in excess of $1,000 per opening. Frankly, we’re a little stymied by the expense and scope of such a project. Additionally, the electrical system in this building is up to 1950’s code, meaning fuse boxes and cloth-covered wire. Regularly inspected, it continues to work, but this expensive project may be addressed in phases over the next decade.

So, there you have it. It’s not everything, but it’s a lot of things. Believe it or not, our facilities are in good shape. The fact that we can even consider upgrades in technology and aesthetics is testimony to your magnificent stewardship over many years. But buildings are fussy things; regular maintenance prevents sudden emergencies.

Now, you may be thinking, “Here comes the pastor’s push for money,” and you would be right. FPCLG has two major capital assets—money in the bank and mortar in the buildings. While the financial markets have taken a toll on the value of our liquid assets, our investment portfolio remains stable. On the other hand, our structural assets need some attention. Session is dedicated to keeping a careful balance between these two assets, but your contributions will make that balancing act far less precarious.

Consider what you can do as you balance your own fiscal concerns, and then consider again how great it will feel to know you’ve made a significant difference for the future of our church. If so inspired, here’s the link.

Pledging to not muse about money again for a while, I remain,

With love,
Jonathan Krogh
Your Pastor