I have curated enough church projects over the years to know that when members ask, “When is it going to be finished?” I say, “When it is done.” And when they ask, “When will it be done?” I say, “When they are finished.” Projects of this sort have a life and timeline of their own that nobody can predict with precision because there are so many variables.
About the time we thought we had complete sign-off from the City of Plano to move forward with the sale of our land, we (along with our buyer) were notified there were more drawings and approvals that were required. Why these are not lined up on a schedule for everyone to see at the beginning remains a mystery of nature to me. Here is what we CAN say:
We are on the agenda at City Hall next Tuesday, Nov. 20, at 7 p.m. for a public hearing and expected approval of the replat showing the property line dividing our property from the Buyers’.
With that city approval, we are free to go to closing on Dec. 6.
With the closing, FUMC Plano will have a large gift under her Christmas tree that will reduce our debt from $3.5 million to $750,000, thus freeing up debt service dollars for ministry in 2024.
As we round into Thanksgiving week, I am ever so grateful to God and for the many who have brought us to this threshold after four and a half years; it has been a lot of faithful and determined work. There is still much work to be done but Thanksgiving gives us a built-in pause to gather and hug those we love and to simply say to them and to God, “Thank you.”
As the psalmist says, “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever” (Psalm 136:1). Blessings and traveling mercies to you and yours this Thanksgiving week.
Connecting God and Grace to Self and Community,
