Pastor Why Do We ... Not have a paved parking lot?
Well, compared to former questions addressed in this series of blog posts, this one may sound trite. But not so fast! This is one of those questions that is deceivingly theological at its core, but also has multiple tributaries.
But before this issue gets theological, it is first ridiculously practical.
The last time we had someone quote paving our parking lot at Corydon Baptist Church, I think the estimate was somewhere around $80,000.
That’s 8, with four zeroes after it!
Our entire annual budget is just a smidge over 300k. So, let that cost estimate of 80k soak in for a quick minute. It might become fairly obvious why we have hesitated to pull that trigger!
Now, to be sure, there are some reasons why we might keep considering having our little gravel lot paved. This past winter reminded us of one BIG reason. Snow and ice on gravel is very hard to handle. And, then there’s curb appeal. Which, sadly, in our culture, matters too much. Our church family has been blessed with a ministry to persecuted churches in the Middle East. Seeing our brothers and sisters gathered under a tree, sitting on the hot sandy ground, to worship the risen Savior, has kept us humble and grateful for our building and gravel parking lot. Not to mention our cushioned chairs, our reliable electricity, our sound equipment, our educational spaces, and our air-conditioning and heat. A paved parking lot really is a 1st World “problem.” And that moves us into the realm of theology.
While I am not against nice church buildings or parking lots, I am against them if they hinder a church’s ability to give generously to missions and missionaries. I am against them if they’re merely for the sake of “curb appeal” or “creature comforts.” I am against them if such an expense limits the church’s ability to pay pastors and fund local outreach efforts. I am against them if we trust in them! Boast in them! Think they’re somehow necessary to be the church God has called us to be in His Word!
Sure, there are pragmatists out there who would say a nice paved parking lot would help attract more people to CBC. But, my pastor in North Carolina used to warn, “What you attract people with is what you have to keep them with.” Bells and whistles come and go. One tornado can undo it all. But the Gospel lasts. As the old hymn rings:
The church’s one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord
She is His new creation, by Spirit and the Word:
From heav’n He came and sought her, to be His holy bride,
With His own blood He bought her, and for her life He died.
So, a decision to spend $80,000 on a parking lot is not as easy for us, here at CBC, as it might be elsewhere. God owns it all. He calls us to faithful stewardship. Jesus had much to say about our attitude and actions in financial matters (Luke 12:13-21; 16:1-13; 19:11-27). At CBC, we want to be “rich toward God.” We seek God’s grace to love Him, and not money.
None of this means we would never consider paving our parking lot, or prayerfully considering building a new church facility, or so on. These things are not evil, in and of themselves. But, in our current financial environment, and given what the Lord is presently entrusting to us, the pastors do not think it would be wise or faithful stewardship to shell out eighty grand for a parking lot. We’re committed to allocating 25% of our annual budget to missions and missionaries. We also enjoy giving surprise gifts to missionaries as the Lord blesses us with financial abundance / overages. By God’s grace, may we continue to “Spend Less. Give More.”
As trite as material matters may sometimes seem, they often do reveal our hearts. If we ever get to a place where the pastors and church body think we can make large-scale expenditures on facilities without compromising our gospel hearts, we would prayerfully ponder pulling that trigger. But until then, we enjoy first-time guests often telling us how surprised they were, having pulled up to our modest building with a crowded and jumbled gravel lot, at the warmth of our welcome and the God-sized vision we have for our community and world.
Turns out, you still can’t judge a book by its cover!
Or a church by its parking lot.
by Keith McWhorter