Additional information on the PCQ Announcement

Following on from the announcement yesterday, the staff met today to discuss the situation in the context of our ministry here at Living Church.

There is a large amount of information we don’t know, and won’t know for a while, but we will pass on information as we are able through our the newsletter and our regular communication channels.

Ministry as usual

What we do know is the day to day ministry of Living Church will continue as usual. The ministry plan and our priorities will not change, the selection process for a new pastor is proceeding as planned, and the ministries of our church that happen on Sundays and through the week will still go ahead.

One of the questions we’ve been asked over the last day is the impact this announcement will have on our church finances and property. The ordinary, operational bank account of Living Church is not affected by this development at a denominational level. The money is held by Living Church for the operational and capital expenses of Living Church. So please be assured your giving is still going towards supporting the ongoing ministry of your church.

Our building and property, and money in the Capital Fund held by PCQ are both held in trust, so cannot be easily sold or used to fund PCQ.

Outdoor project impacted

The one impact this development does have on our church is we have had to put a hold on signing the construction contract for the outdoor project. We don’t yet know how long this hold will be in place, but will update you as we find out.

Trust our sovereign and loving God

This Sunday we will be deviating from Daniel for a week to have Dave Thurston preach on Romans 8:31 -39 – drawing our attention to the sovereign and loving God who is in control of everything, and in whom we trust in hard times.

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. – Romans 8:37-39

We will be spending some time in prayer as a church family in response. We encourage you to be lifting this situation to God in prayer, in your own time with God, with your family, as you meet together, and with your growth groups. Remembering it’s not what we have, but who has us.

Next Step

The Board and the Staff will be holding a special meeting on Tuesday night at which time we hope to discuss this situation further, and get some clarity. We hope to be able to communicate something more next week.