Final stretch...

Last week before dedication day! Wow! You all have been incredible! We've had such a great turn out of volunteers working almost every day cleaning up and getting us ready to move!
Monday and Tuesday during the day, we are going to let the contractors work in peace to get their final inpections and painting done. We will send out an email to update on the jobs that need to get done for the end of the week.

Don't forget to come to the Monday night Volunteer training at 7pm if you didn't get to last week. This is for all Sunday morning workers, those that already are and those who want to be!

Continue to pray for the final inspections to pass and for us to get our certificate of occupancy. The parking lots are coming along, slowly but surely! Pray that they finish soon. The landscaping right around the church and our big sign down on Wooster are both being worked on tomorrow so pray that those projects go well.

Still lots to do but we're moving on! So exciting!! Sunday is going to be amazing! Pray now to prepare your hearts and minds for a God visit!
See you soon!
Val

Awesome volunteer crew!

Thank you so much to all the volunteers that have come out and attacked the construction dust in our church! You guys have been awesome! The floors, toilets, windows, auditorium seats, kitchen equipment, door handles, baseboards etc. have all been cleaned by a crew ranging in ages from 5 to 75! If you haven't had a chance to join in the action, don't worry, there's still plenty to do! Someone is working out there everyday, stop by whenever you have a free moment.

We still need your prayers for all the work to be completed and to pass final inspections! Also, be praying for God to show you how He wants you to get involved on a deeper level in ministry through SonRise. We believe God wants to use all of us at SonRise to share His Love with those in the world who don't know Him yet!

If you are one of our Sunday morning volunteer workers or would like to be one, please come to the new building at 7pm tomorrow, Wed., evening for a training session. With our new building we will need to make changes in how we go about our service on Sundays. It's our chance to start fresh and all be on the same page, well prepared and ready to serve others who walk through our doors on Sunday mornings.

Less than 2 weeks away!! Get excited!!
Val and Jeff

Cleaning Days have arrived!

Tomorrow, from 9-2, we will have a cleaning party at the new church! Bring your rags, gloves, sweepers etc. and join in the fun! If you want, pack your lunch and we'll take a break to have a picnic around noon. If you can't come tomorrow, don't worry, there will be plenty to do later in the week. We will be cleaning from 9-11:30 every morning next week and 7-9 on Monday evening. We would love your help!

Continue to pray for all the final inspections and parking lots to be completed on time. The contractors still have quite a bit to do these next two weeks so pray for them to work effectively, efficiently and safely.

See you in your work gear tomorrow on site!!

Val and Jeff

The Big Screens!

Yesterday, while making my usual rounds on site, something new happened. I walked into our auditorium and the big screens popped on! WOW! Seeing the media screens uncovered and turned on made the place look alive and ready to go! My wonderful sidekick, Ann, and I were beyond excited! The really cool thing was that we arrived just as a new church member was bringing someone else to show off his new church. We got to give them a tour and let them know the building is for everyone, a tool for all of us to use to be a blessing to others. What will make this church work is having our people ready to welcome and love on all those who God sends our way.

I was reminded of what I learned by watching my parents at our retreat center in Kentucky. They taught us to pray everyday for God to send the ones He wanted down the road to us that day. So whomever happened to stop by, whether they were looking for us, looking for the river or just plain lost, we welcomed them and treated them with love. We want this church to be the kind of place where people are drawn to because they are treated with love, no matter who they are, where they come from or what they look like. Jeff and I are very thankful that so many of our SonRise family are amazing at doing just that. Pray that we all grow in our ability to love like Jesus loves!

Don't forget to be praying for us to pass all of our inspections this week! Also, keep praying for the parking lot work to be finished without delays!

Our first official workday will be on Saturday, August 7 from 9-2. We will be cleaning up inside and out of the building, doing some landscape work and washing windows. Pack a lunch and we'll take a break from cleaning and have a picnic together!

August 22, Ready or not, here we come!
Val

Big Week!

This is a big week! We are having our final inspections for the HVAC, plumbing and electricity. Please pray that all of that goes well so we can move on!

The outside stonework is completed and looks amazing!! The inside fireplace is getting it's hearth laid this week to finish the inside work as well. (Love it!!) The last of the flooring (lobby area and stairs) will be laid this week also. There will be carpet in the main part of the lobby and a wood grain flooring in front of the fireplace and cafe area. That's where we will have our round tables from the Bridge placed. Won't it be great to have a cup of coffee or juice and visit with someone while sitting in front of the fireplace on Sunday mornings?

There is still tons of work going on behind the building to create our back parking lot. That will be going on for awhile. It's scheduled to be finished before our Grand Opening and Open House (our public opening) on Sept. 12 but not our Dedication on August 22. The front lot will be getting a final resurface to remove all the construction ruts and will be ready for us on the 22. Please pray for these parking lots to be completed on schedule. The weather greatly affects this kind of outside work.

We appreciate everyone being ready and willing to pitch in to get the building ready. We will be sending emails out with work schedules this week. As soon as we pass inspection and get cleared to be in the building, we'll start our cleaning!!

Thanks for all the prayers! Remember, this building is being built as a tool to reach those who don't know Christ. We are fighting a spiritual battle when we seek to move forward and take turf for God's Kingdom. Prayer is a very effective weapon! Keep it up!!

We're praying for each of you!
Val and Jeff

Moving more dirt!

Hey Everyone! (We have 5 followers now, so I can say "everyone"!)

The bulldozers were hard at work today moving dirt around to get our upper level parking lot started! There will be a drive around both sides of the building to enter and exit the back lot. We're thinking that we will use that parking for the volunteers, staff and regular attenders on Sunday mornings. The lower lot will be kept open for our visitors. We do have an elevator so no problem with handicap access if you have to enter from the top floor.
They were also moving some of the top soil from the back and putting it up around the front of the building to get it ready for some landscaping!!

The stone work was being completed on the very top of the chimney! Looked scary to see our guys up that high but they were doing great! Continue to pray for safety for all the workers.

On the inside, the movable partition walls were being installed in the classrooms and also the shades on the HUGE windows. They look awesome and will work well to keep light out when showing movies (like the great Elevate teaching videos Nick uses with the All STARS).
The audiovisual equipment continues to be installed and looks really impressive with all the knobs and such!

Overall, a lot of details are getting put into place and it looks amazing!

Keep praying for all of it to be finished well!

That's it for today,
Val

P.S. Don't forget to pray for our crew at MFuge this week! For each of them to have their hearts drawn closer to Christ, to be strengthened and renewed in their faith and to hear God's Voice in a clear and personal way. Thanks:)

Check out our new building blog!

Hey SonRise Family,

We're guessing that you are all on the edge of your seats in anticipation of moving day and chomping at the bit to know how the building is progressing! I have been visiting the work site daily and probably driving the workers nuts because I'm so ready to move in!

So many of you are feeling the same way and have been incredibly helpful in getting us this far!

We will try to update you on the progress and let you know how you can plug in to get things ready for moving day, August 22!

So here's my "unofficial" view of how things are looking so far!

The flooring has all been laid except for the lobby, the rooms are getting their final coats of paint, baseboards being installed, lights being hung and all the technology is being put into place. Lot's of other really cool stuff happening! The stone work outside and the fireplace inside is beautiful and will be finished this week! (Thanks to our very own SonRisers Walt and his sidekick Gregg! Great job guys!!)

Here's what we need to pray for this week:

*Elevator guy to finish his work so we can pass final inspection for conditional occupancy

*Roofers to install what they need to for our stove hood in the kitchen

*Final fixing of a few leaks

*Installation of parking lot behind the building

*Pray for safety, wisdom and efficiency for each of the workers as they finish their jobs.

We will have lots to do the 2 weeks prior to the 22. So whenever you're available pencil us in for cleaning, moving, landscaping, and all the other stuff we haven't thought of yet. We also will have some extra office work because we are updating all our information brochures, sending out invitations, and working on special items for the Dedication.

Thanks everyone for all your prayers and hard work! Can't wait for the 22nd! Ready or not... Here we come!

Val (for Jeff too!)