Our Vision

To be a fearless, relentless and relevant Christ-centered community for all generations. When we dream and pray about that vision, we see a church that is gathered around the gospel, transformed in and through community, and sent for the good of the city. In this new ministry year we believe God is calling us into a “season of sending.” So we want to help you see what we see…the “relational reach zone” where God has placed you to make a difference. In Luke 15 Jesus said there is more rejoicing in Heaven over “one” who is found than over ninety-nine who are not lost. We believe everyone has a “One.” And we want to help you “see” your One. There is at least one person in your life who is far from God. What if you are not here by accident? What if God has sent you right here and right now because he loves the 217…and wants to work through you to reach one person who is special to him?

We are inviting you to join us this year “FOR217”

See

ASK GOD TO HELP YOU "SEE" YOUR ONE
  • Who do you already bump into regularly or share a network?
  • Who do you feel a natural connection with through shared interests or curious differences?
  • Who often initiates spiritual conversation with you?
  • Who seems restless because of a transition, stress, crisis or social isolation?
  • Who has God simply placed on your heart, but you're not sure why?

Pray

PRAY OVER REGULAR FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR OUR VISION
We think about giving in four steps of growth:

FAITH
Start to give to your church and partner with their ministries and mission efforts.

GENEROSITY
Giving a tithe regularly to your church out of gratitude for God’s faithfulness to you. (A tithe is 10% of your income.)

SACRIFICE
Regular giving to your church above a tithe to experience the spiritual growth of increasing faith.

SURRENDER
Providing self-perpetuating funds for the future through endowment, estate, or other mechanisms so that your gift becomes an investment in the faith of others.

Engage

GET INVOLVED BEYOND THE WEEKEND

Join Rooted

Get In A Group

Serve With Us

Become A Member

2025 Budget FAQ

The budget for this fiscal year is $2.6 million, a 12% increase from last year. About half of the increased budget will enable us to take an important step to address critical facility issues. The other half will provide modest annual increases after two years of a flat budget. There is only one new staff position in this budget for a part-time Bookkeeper. We are also still trying to restore ministry budgets to their pre-COVID levels.

Even with regular maintenance, many of our 20-year-old systems need serious repair or replacement. We currently have a plan for 20 projects over the next 4 years estimated to cost about $750K. These systems include HVAC mechanical, roof, and parking lot, among others.

For the last 10 years we've ended each year in the black, continued to pay down debt and maintained healthy cash reserves. The cash reserves cover an 8-week emergency operating fund and other funds restricted in reserve to complete previous projects. Our asset values are currently more than twice the amount of our long-term debt. Our finance team helps us to manage our budget according to industry standard benchmarks, with about 50% of expenses for staff, 30% facilities, 10% missions and 10% ministry. This increased budget allows us to stay within those benchmarks.

We have around 540 giving units. (A giving unit is either an individual or a family.) We are not a church supported only by large gifts. Instead, many people are sharing the load with different sized gifts to make a big difference together. Annual gifts under $5,000 provide 32%, gifts of $5,000-10,000 provide 25%, gifts of $10,000-20,000 provide 25%, and gifts over $20,000 provide 18% of our annual contributions. We are thankful for every gift, believing God blesses each gift and each giver.

We are happy to provide more information for specific questions. Please email Business Manager, Carol McCaughey at [email protected] for financial questions or Lead Pastor, Brian Mills at [email protected] for vision/strategy questions.

Four-Week Prayer Guide

It's God's Not Ours
Read Psalm 24:1-4 and 1 Chronicles 29:10-20
You are the Lord's; all things in your possession are his.
Your ability to earn a living is because of who he created you to be and where he put you on Earth. Praise the Lord, you are living in a place where education and employment are widely available. You can work hard, earn a good living, and provide a comfortable life for yourself. What if you were born in a third-world country? In another place your intelligence and work ethic might all be used for eking out daily existence rather than the comforts you now take for granted. The possessions and finances you have are Gods. You are allowed to steward them while you are here on Earth. Are you holding on to things with closed hands that are God's and for His Kingdom?

Cheerful Giving Honors God
Read 2 Corinthians 9:6-11 and Exodus 35:20-29
Meditate on why God loves a cheerful giver and write down what you hear from God.
When you read about the building of the temple in Exodus 35, do you notice the hearts of the people? People were joyfully taking part in the creation of the temple. They weren't just laboring; they were willingly participating in something bigger than themselves. Are you willingly taking part in God's work?

Generosity Writes You Into God's Story
Read John 6:1-14
In this passage a boy with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish and most likely a family to feed, offered all he had to God. While we like to focus on how God multiplied the offering, think about the boy. His meager offering is written in Jesus' story and the story will be read and repeated for all of time. God was able to use it in more ways than he could have ever dreamed.
Your offering, no matter what the size, is valuable to God. God will use it and you in his plan. It may be for practical things such as keeping a roof over our heads at church, but more importantly it will also be through your story. Giving and sharing your story may help someone see, understand and trust God in ways they didn't before. How can you allow yourself to be part of God's story?

Our Giving Impacts Our Relationship With God
Read Philippians 4: 18-19
Are your gifts an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing God?
When you need to take canned food for a food drive, what do you take? Do you go through your pantry and pull-out things that have been in there for a while that you aren't going to eat? Or do you go to the store and mindfully buy items that will be tasty and nourishing for people with food insecurity?
Your giving reflects on your relationship with God. Are you giving him leftovers that you can get by without, or are you praying and mindfully creating a budget that puts God first?