Valley Mission Church of the Nazarene

110 Hillcrest Way, (in Judah) Bedford, Indiana  47421

December 14, 2020

Dear Valley Mission Friends,

We hope this letter finds you well and experiencing the JOY we talked about this past Sunday.  The JOY that Jesus brought is eternal and overcomes all of our circumstances and situations.  The JOY of our salvation, the unspeakable JOY, the JOY the Christmas story spoke of 8 times, the JOY to the world has come and will come again!

We want to take a moment to share some very important details that are important now and in the future.  First, we want to talk about our reopening plans.  In our December board meeting, the board agreed to reopen in person worship on January 10th.  We will hold worship only and evaluate the possibility of Sunday school, as time goes on.  Our approach will be to offer as many worship opportunities as possible.  We will continue to offer Facebook Live, YouTube Channel, Website, DVD, Drive In, and add in-person to those opportunities on January 10.

We also want to share some other news from our December 9th board meeting.  A little over a week ago while sitting on our couch on a Sunday evening, Pastor Melony looked at me and said: ‘we need to talk about doing something about the church mortgage’.  We had several questions and sent those to Gary Ritter.  If you know Gary very well, you know he responded with both information and several possible options.  These options were discussed with our church board and by unanimous vote we are in the process of refinancing our church mortgage.

Currently our mortgage is a 7yr. ARM (adjustable rate mortgage) that is set to have an interest rate review in 2024.  The current rate is 4.75% and at the current interest and payment, the mortgage would be fulfilled in 2034.  It’s important to note that an adjustable mortgage means that rate potentially could rise as much as an additional 5% in the next review depending on the interest rates in 2024.  In other words, we would have no control.  

Now the great news!  We are in the process of refinancing the same loan amount, only at a 10yr. fixed rate mortgage at 3.75%.  This will not only shave off several years from the loan, but also thousands of dollars.  This is both wise and good stewardship.  This certainly gives us a better financial picture for the future.  I want to personally thank Pastor Melony for her prompting and Gary Ritter for his prompt attention and insight into our options.  I also want to thank the church board for their discussion and love of Valley Mission.  We all thank you for your generous faithful giving, as none of this would be possible if you were not faithful.

We also want to share that we are in discussions about a much needed roof replacement.  We are gathering information and pricing.  We want you to begin to pray now for our future plans at Valley Mission.  When we are ready in all areas, we will begin a capital fund campaign.  The goal of that campaign will be two-fold.  We will be raising money to pay down our debt even further, putting us in an even better position with our mortgage, but we will simultaneously raise money to replace our roof.  Some may say: ‘you are planning this during a pandemic?”.  The short answer is yes!  Yes, we are!  

We have been in a holding pattern for months and we believe it is time to get planning, get moving, get ready, and get busy.  We believe this pandemic will be under control and will come to an end as the medical advancements are in the news this very hour!  We are planning now so we are ready to act in the future.  We will have many more details in the weeks and months ahead.  For now, thank God that we were able to already make a great decision and change to our mortgage.  Also begin to ask God to work in your heart as we will be preparing to raise funds that will not only change the financial future but also the tangible physical future of Valley Mission!

Whew!  That was a lot to share but we wanted you to know we fully expect to hit the ground running.  We as your Pastors are committed to Valley Mission and want to move forward together with you.  You are loved and appreciated and as we seek God and ask Him to help us work out all the details, we know we can rely on you to pray and prepare your heart to help us make this a reality.

Grace and Peace,

Pastor John and Pastor Melony