In this Newletter you will find information about fundraising changes, updates on the future of our Waterville Campus, and an update from pastor Earl about his health.
Calling on Our Community
If you’ve been a friend or follower of Vision Church for awhile, you will notice you did not receive an invitation for our two main fundraisers – the spring Color Run For Hope, and our annual fall banquet. The Color Run supports our summer activities like camp, the block party (which we did not have this year) and more. The fall fundraising banquet supports all of our ministries and we depend on that income to sustain Vision Church.
This year has been highly unusual for our church, and we have not had the people or resources to host these fundraisers. As you may have heard, Vision South Campus Pastor Earl Harris had a double-lung transplant in May of this year at the Cleveland Clinic. He is recuperating well but must stay in Cleveland for awhile longer. He and Pastor Renee have temporary living quarters near the Clinic and are doing what they can long distance.
We are so proud of our Vision family who have stepped up in the Harris’s absence to keep the church doors open. That includes Sunday morning services, events throughout the week, as well as Vision Kitchen, emergency food boxes and our monthly giveaways. We have not missed one night of providing our three free meals each week, as well as monthly and school supply give aways. All of this has been done by volunteers, many of who assist with our fundraisers. But this year the focus had to be on keeping Vision South up and running. As you know, we all can only do so much.
With that being said, we are humbly asking for your financial help. Many of you have attended our fundraisers in the past and have been very generous with your support. We appreciate you more than you can ever know! Would you please consider a financial gift to Vision Church again this year? Without the volunteers and bandwidth currently to host a banquet or typical fundraiser to gain the usual support as we have in the past, as an alternative, we are asking for the help of our community and the generosity of people like you to keep the ministries funded this year. As always, your gifts are tax deductible as we have non-profit status with the IRS.
Again, thank you for your past support, and we thank you in advance for considering additional support at this time. For donation options please click the button below.
When God Closes a Door, He Opens a Window: A Word for Our Church
Our church embarked on a journey to seek a permanent home in the Waterville area two years ago. When we planted the church in 2017, we started by renting the local elementary school. After about a year, our small congregation, along with our general fund, began to shrink. We could no longer afford the rent. It was a challenging time, but God was at work. Our leadership quickly found a new location that fit more closely within our budget: the Waterville Event Center. This was a blessing, but the facility wasn't ideal for our needs. We lacked space for our children's programs, and the weekly setup and teardown, under tight time constraints, were wearing down our volunteers. Burnout was looming, but God wasn’t done with us yet.
He opened another window and led us to the beautiful Noward Property in 2019. The first few months there, we saw growth both numerically and spiritually. Our outdoor services sometimes tripled in size, and in that first year, we baptized over 30 people! Then, the pandemic hit. For the first time in our ministry, we had to close the doors to the church. But God opened another window, and our team learned how to do ministry online. By the early summer of 2020, we reopened our doors and began holding many outdoor services. We fell in love with the Noward location but knew that to continue growing; we needed a place we could call our own.
At that time, the owner was not interested in selling the property. However, the Lord gave us a word to begin planting seeds and preparing for the future. We started the ARK campaign, a faith initiative to prepare for a permanent location. We told our congregation, “We don’t know where we’re going to be, but we need to get ready.” Just as God spoke to Noah about building the ark without giving him all the details, we had to trust God and prepare:
"Make yourself an ark of cypress wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out." (Genesis 6:14, NIV)
In 2022, we had another conversation with the owner of the Noward Property. This time, she was ready and willing to sell. She gave us until January 2024 to secure a down payment and a loan. God was so good—by January 2024, we had raised the down payment. Yet, the door was not opened for us because the interest rates were too high. Pastor Josh had to share this unfortunate news with the church, but we still held on to hope. Perhaps the location was right, but the timing was off. So, we continued to plow the land, pouring into people and faithfully giving to the ARK campaign. But the door seemed closed.
In July, the owner informed us that she could no longer wait and had to put the land up for sale. We knew God was closing this door, yet we also knew He wanted us to remain faithful. We are now under contract and renting our Noward Road location until March 2025. We are still seeking the Lord, asking Him to reveal His plans and show us the perfect, permanent location for our church.
We are in dire need of our partners and church members to stay strong in faith and look forward to the future. Early in the ARK campaign, God dropped three Greek words into our spirit that would be foundational to our church: AGAPE love, sharing His RHEMA Word, and cultivating KOINONIA fellowship. Our vision remains the same. God’s ways are higher than our ways, and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts:
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”Isaiah 55:8-9 (NIV)
Although we dreamed, hoped, and planned to purchase the Noward property, the door was closed. However, we know God will open a window so we can continue growing as a church and ministry.
Please prayerfully consider donating to the future of our church. We don’t know where that future will be, but we know the One who holds it:
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)
To donate to the A.R.K. Capital Campaign Click Here
Health Testimony from Pastor Earl
Through The Fire Praise the Lord,
Let’s get this party started with a testimony, my testimony. God has blessed my family to not have many health issues no matter how bad I have been neglecting my body. I was never concerned with regular office visits to the doctors until I turned 60. It has been said that: to have a testimony, there must be a test. Well, this year has truly been a test. I have been dealing with breathing issues for at least 10 years now and things took a turn for the worst with me being admitted to the hospital with pneumonia. That trip to the hospital made us aware of how sick I really was. Long story short, I went to Cleveland Clinic on May 1 and was told that it would be better for me not to go back home. When we were told that I needed a double lung transplant I totally lost it. I wasn’t as concerned about the physical aspect of the battle, as much as I was about the cost of it all. Here’s the testimony part 1. We were told that the minimum amount of money needed in our savings was more than we make in a year. Well, me being a still very prideful person wanted to trust and believe that God would make a way without us making a big deal out of it. I have never had a problem with asking for help for others but, when it comes down to me asking for myself, I have problems doing that. After talking with friends, I was told that for as much as me and Renee had done for people, they would be glad to be there for us. Here comes the testimony part, as soon as word went out the body of Christ went to work! I have been involved in a lot of fundraisers before, but the response to the call for help for this need was mind blowing, and that is an understatement. Let me just say right now that I am so grateful to all the people who answered the call of what God put on your hearts to give. I will never be able to come up with enough words to express how grateful I am to the people that God has put in my life that are there for me through it all. They say that you find out who your real friends are when you have a need. Well, we must have a lot of real friends, because you guys really showed up. I still get choked up when I see how many people opened their hearts to what was the most faith building moment in my life. We knew I was in for the fight of my life, what I didn’t know about was the army of God’s people that would be there for support, prayerfully and financially. Oh yeah, let me tell you, every prayer was felt through out this and is appreciated above everything else. I must admit there have been some very dark moments during this process, but the prayers of the saints brought me back to knowing who I truly am. This is why I say that I am going through the fire, God’s refining fire.
Malachi 3:2-4
2 But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. 3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the Lord will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, 4 and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the Lord, as in days gone by, as in former years.
Through out this process of being healed there have been times when I was totally dependent on others for the very breath that I breathed. In those moments was when those much-needed prayers were felt. Some people might ask why I feel like this is God’s refiners’ fire? My response is that in every challenge that I have faced I have grown physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Not only that but my confidence in God and His plans for me have never been clearer. I have always proclaimed how fortunate my wife and I are to see the body of Christ at it’s best. I always thank God for the people He has put in my life. Now I thank each and every one of you who continue to be a part of the family. Thank you for every smile, hug, word of encouragement, or meal. I will be released to come home soon, which I am so looking forward to seeing and once again doing life with people of God. Renee’ and I are looking forward to getting back to doing our part in helping the body of Christ grow. We pray for your continued support and prayers. There is still much work to be done and there is no doubt in my mind that we can do it together.
Thank you
Pastor Earl Harris
Save the Date
Get ready to join us for an amazing outdoor church service at Vision Waterville! Both South Toledo and Waterville campuses are coming together for an unforgettable experience. We'll have horse trough-baptisms, a delicious potluck, and wonderful fellowship. The service kicks off at 10:30 am, followed by baptisms and the potluck. If you can, bring a dish to share and come prepared for an uplifting and inspiring time together! If you've been thinking about getting baptized, this is the perfect opportunity to take that step. Just let one of the pastors know or shoot us a message. And that's not all – Pastor Earl will be there to share a powerful testimony, so don't miss out! It's going to be an incredible gathering, and we can't wait to see you there!
Quick Links:
Thank you to Munn Wealth Management for kickstarting our Fall Fundraising Initiative! You can join them by giving today at www.vision.today/give
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