Bobservations: Structural Integrity

My brother-in-law works as an engineer for the State of California. In part, he ensures that the construction of schools meets the established codes and standards. Obviously, no one wants to be enjoying a high school basketball game and have the gymnasium roof come crashing down at half-time. He confirms the structural integrity, meaning the facility will hold together under its own weight and function as designed without catastrophic failure. I think churches need structural integrity, but I’m not referring to the facility – although that is important. I’m thinking about the inner workings of the church. The church’s structure needs to hold it together when the pressure is on, provide security during times of distress, give direction in uncertainty, and unleash it to accomplish its mission. Words like reliability, security, and integrity come to mind.

One way I think Sunridge demonstrates integrity in our structure (see what I did there?) is in the area of finances. Processes are in place, like having our finances reviewed annually by a CPA, reviewing our spending and donations monthly, and spending about five months to create our annual budget. In addition, we have a proven track record of doing what we say we will do with the money donated. Last December, we shared five initiatives we wanted to accomplish with donations we received above and beyond the budgeted amount. Here is a quick update on what your generosity accomplished:

• COMPLETE – Sunridge fully funded the Faith and Finance Program at Rancho Damacitas. 
• COMPLETE – We replaced the HVAC unit no longer working in the MultiPurpose Room. $15K.
• COMPLETE – The upper parking area needed a fresh coat of slurry to prevent further damage. $10K.
• IN PROGRESS (fully funded) – Fire Alarm Retrofit – The imposed fire alarm saga is nearing completion. We expect our final installment to be around $60K.
• IN PROGRESS – We purchased a new sound system for the Worship Center on April 19 to replace the failing used sound system we bought when we occupied our facility in 2004. The total cost of the new system, including installation, is $107,241. We provided the vendor with $76,920 to purchase the hardware, leaving a balance of $30,321. As of May 16, there is $13,645 in the CIF to use toward the balance, which means we still need $16,676 to meet that goal.

And all of that was just in the last five months! That list is a testament to God’s amazing provision and goodness toward Sunridge. And just as important is how He uses people just like you and me to accomplish His purpose. We understand the trust you give us when you donate to Sunridge and that is why we will continue to uphold the structural integrity of our systems and processes.

If you are ready to jump in and help us finish paying for the new sound system, you can use this link here to give directly to the Capital Improvement Fund.