Planning, Growing, and Building for God’s Greatness
Sunday, April 26, 2026 will go down in history as a milestone for athletic achievement. At the London Marathon, Kenyan Sebastian Sawe did what some in the running community thought impossible: he broke the 2-hour marathon barrier, running the 26.2 mile distance in 1:59:30.
Doing the math, that means Sawe averaged 4:33/mile for more than 26 miles! Along with Roger Banniest breaking the 4-minute mile barrier in 1954, Sawe’s name will forever be associated with testing the limits of human achievement. But smashing that goal was not a fluke for Sawe. It took planning, dedication, and a commitment to greatness.
At FPC, we are working to achieve an eternal greatness as we continue to make and mature disciples for Jesus Christ. Back in September of 2025, we launched our Growing for the Future campaign in which we set out to add ministry space to our campus. To date, we are a little less than $80,000 away from our $2 million goal and 51% away from full participation from our congregation. If the other 569 gave an average of $2.65/week, we would have both goals accomplished!
This campaign was meant to accommodate the rapid growth of our children’s ministry, the vibrancy of our special needs ministry, the burgeoning impact of our student and young adult ministries, and the community outreach of our Pedal Power Bicycle Ministry.
Today, I am excited to say we are well on our way to seeing that greatness become a reality.
The Work to Get Here
To get here, it has taken planning, dedication, and a commitment to greatness.Long before last September, though, in 2022, our next generation ministries were not reaching the potential we believed God wanted.
So a Children’s Ministry Task Force – led by Julie McGowen, Abby Rodda, and Laura Rodriguez – was assigned to come up with a comprehensive plan for improvement. That plan was researched, drafted, and adopted by our Session at their January 2023 meeting.
This included a total revamp of our Sunday morning programming, staffing model, and long-term plans for a new ministry space. As a result, by that fall, our ministries saw growth in all areas and necessitated the hire of Anna Butler as our full-time Children’s Director.
This task force was followed by a Youth Ministry Task Force made up of Rob Bolton, Kim Bowers, Jason Rodda, and Kelsey Wesche. While their assignment was broader in scope, it ultimately led to the hire of Seth Lail as the Student Ministries Director. He was then tasked with increasing the presence of the youth in the wider congregation and establishing a stronger discipleship basis for growth.
From an attendance standpoint, our Children’s Ministry went from averaging just over 20 children on Sunday morning to now averaging more than 50. We went from averaging around 30 on Wednesday nights to more than 60. On Easter Sunday this year, we had more than 80 kids worshipping with us!
This growth has meant moving Marion McDowell from part-time to full-time to aid in our children’s ministry growth. In the youth program, we went from averaging roughly 35 students in the spring of 2024 to now averaging more than 50. And now there is a regular youth program on Sunday mornings that sees more than 20 students each and every week.
Additionally, the tremendous impact of our Special Needs Ministry (SNM), which serves more than 80 families each month across four programs, has necessitated the move of Libby Chappell from a part-time position to a full-time SNM Director, along with two part-time assistants.
Tim Timmes is now our full-time College and Young Adult Director, regularly guiding 80-90 per month to deeper faith in Jesus.
Pedal Power has been growing consistently for more than 18 years as they have give away up to 600 bikes per year.
All of this has happened in less than three years!
Greatness Being Realized
When we launched the Growing for our Future campaign, Jason Rodda outlined the various locations around our building which would see improvements, and we are thrilled to say the progress has been substantial!
The Pedal Power project, which took over the old bus pavilion, is now fully complete. It was designed with Pedal Power in mind with dedicated power outlets and compressed air at each station, a more robust work station to keep track of our bikes and parts in the ministry, and safer work spaces for our volunteers. Ted Hogan and his team now have a state-of-the-art operation in a secure home that can tangibly bring hope to people through reliable transportation.
With the completion of Pedal Power and the tireless efforts of our staff to clear the remaining upstairs areas, the Youth and Youth Adult project began in earnest at the end of March. A new worship music space, new small group rooms, and new office spaces are well underway, and the rooms are projected to be ready for furniture as soon as the end of May.
At that point, the remainder of the upstairs landing area will be completed. This will give our teens and young adults more space to connect around the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
What’s Next
This summer, the biggest changes will occur downstairs as the building team begins work on the elementary children’s area and the modification to the Special Needs areas. The former youth hall will be greatly expanded to accommodate secure check-in, a larger gathering space for music, crafts, and games, as well as new bathrooms.
New bathrooms and more secure entrances will be added to the current special needs spaces. This move will free up more room for our growing nursery and preschool ministries which will remain in the Little Shepherds areas. It will also leave more space for Shine On, our adults with special needs, on Wednesday nights. All of these ministries will have more vibrant, engaging, and safe places to communicate God’s love and celebrate his goodness.
If God continues to bless all the projects, we are hopeful that all the work in these areas will be completed by the end of the summer! Our prayer is that we will then have a dedication celebration in September to thank the Lord for all he has done and is doing in our congregation and to pray for the continuing work to expand the reach of the Gospel in Lakeland.
What to Expect and What You Can Do
There is still work and sacrifice ahead. Some spaces once used for storage and other activities are going to be reutilized. Access points will be redirected. There will be plenty of “Pardon Our Dust” moments. But God is continuing to do great things!
You can continue to be part of the Lord’s great plans for FPC in a few key ways:
Continue to Pray – There are always unexpected challenges with a project like this. Pray for its smooth completion and the safety of everyone involved.
Support – If you would like to contribute to the Capital Campaign, there is still time. Again, unexpected costs arise, and additional resources will go to improve many other areas of the church building. Also, the growth will mean more opportunities to volunteer in all these areas. Be ready to say “Yes!”
Be Flexible and Gracious – While exciting, change comes with certain short-term inconveniences. Doors will be locked that were once opened; closets will be rearranged; and rooms reused. We are doing our best to accommodate as many people as possible. If you or your ministry is impacted, be open to the change knowing that God is doing great things through your flexibility.
I am honored to be part of how God is opening doors for more people to be introduced to Jesus Christ, and I know the goal will be worth the effort!
Pastor Zac