Earlier this month, The Dalles Seventh-day Adventist Church community celebrated a landmark achievement – paying off their church mortgage!
The Dalles church building, one of the newest in the Oregon Conference, came about from a years-long, prayerful effort by local members. “The church building project was completed right around the time COVID began,” shared Nick Gosney, who now serves as pastor for the church. “Really remarkably, they were able to get all of their bids and necessary materials to construct the space just before all of the prices spiked during the pandemic, so they were very grateful for that. I’ve gotten to come in and enjoy the beauty of this church plant. One of the notable features of this facility is its immaculate view of the eastern side of Mt. Hood. On a clear day we can see the Columbia River Gorge, the hills, and the mountain. It’s really, in my opinion, one of the best church views around. When I first arrived here as pastor, several church members told me not to worry if they were looking to the left toward the windows, it would just be so they could hear me better!”
“Between a collection of Maranatha workers and local church members, they were able to not only build this building, but also to pay it off in record time,” continued Pastor Nick. “At the end of last year our board decided to finish paying off our church loan.”
On September 13 the church came together to celebrate. “It was really exciting,” said Pastor Nick, “Almost like a family reunion. Our church treasurer gave us a snapshot of the project and shared some of the notable events that took place along the way. It all concluded with her handing out a copy of one of the notes that exemplified the church mortgage and everyone present had an opportunity to tear up that piece of the ‘loan.’ We wanted to recognize that it wasn’t just the treasurer or the pastor or even the board that paid this down. It was all of us. And I thought that was beautiful and symbolic of the road this church has been on together.”
Pastor Nick shared a brief homily on God’s creative process, starting with the first three days of creation where God formed various areas; light, firmament, and land, and continuing through the following days where God filled those spaces with life and beauty. “As a church, we’ve formed a beautiful space together,” said Pastor Nick. “Now our job is to fill it.”
Eric Davis, Oregon Conference Vice President for Finance, participated in the event and shared that the Dalles Church paid off their loan far ahead of schedule, much of it due to the generosity of the members. “Many gave extra time, extra effort, and extra finances to make the building a reality,” said Davis. “I’m so pleased that they have set their sights on now filling the church with new believers in Christ, and I pray God will continue to bless their efforts.”
