A Church Mortgage Paid

My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19, ESV).

On Saturday, June 3, 2023, Pastor Jeremy Hudson announced that the mortgage of the Fellowship Church building in Springfield, Ohio, was paid!  

As most of you know, I was the Senior Pastor of Fellowship for 49 years, and Jeremy Hudson took over as my successor in January 2021.

It was a sudden and unexpected announcement of the debt paid, as the weekend before, the remaining balance stood at $70,000 – and the next week, it was gone.

Somebody texted me and asked, “What happened?”

I responded, “God!”

I know we want more details. Okay, you convinced me. A church in Washington, D.C., took an offering and paid off the mortgage.  

What?

Yes, another church, of which Fellowship has little past association, took an offering and paid Fellowship’s $70,000 mortgage.

Those attending Fellowship can now agree with Philippians 4:19, “Our God shall supply all of our needs.” And let’s add Ephesians 3:20, “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think.”

A few weeks ago, Pastor Jeremy and Ray Willis (another staff member at Fellowship) requested a meeting with a pastor in Washington, D.C., to discuss the strategy and vision for Fellowship. 

The church in Washington has had success in reaching its community.

Pastor Jeremy wanted to learn what the church in D.C. was doing, hopefully gaining insight for better ministry in Springfield. Jeremy said that he talked to this pastor about the history of Fellowship and Springfield’s past of distress and poverty.

After their meeting, Jeremy and Ray stayed at this church to worship at a mid-week service. During the service, the pastor of the church called Pastor Jeremy to the stage.  

Fellowship’s story was shared with the D.C. congregation, and the pastor challenged his church to send in the money needed for the Fellowship mortgage. Over the next several weeks, the church in D.C. received enough funds to pay it off.

Pastor Jeremy told me, “The pastor of this church said the Lord had spoken to him three times during the day of their meeting, telling him that the Washington, D.C. church was to take an offering to pay off Fellowship’s mortgage!”

Speaking from a less than spiritual perspective – I’m glad God kept speaking!

Fellowship first moved into its current building in the Fall of 2000. Though the final pay-off was $70,000, I estimate that the total cost of the building, including the original purchase and subsequent renovations over the past 23 years, at around five million dollars.

As a senior pastor, I practiced the policy of not knowing who gave to Fellowship. So, I can’t give the names of those giving to the building fund through the years. I did, however, hear stories.

I know of people foregoing vacations, sacrificing money from retirement funds, making a faith pledge to receive the money from unexpected sources, and often “widow’s mite” sacrifices.  

The two decades of giving five million to the final $70,000 owed contain lots of testimony, sacrifice, prayers, and faith from hundreds of believers!

As Pastor Jeremy announced the final payment of the mortgage on Saturday, June 3, I looked around the room and noted only a few who were attending Fellowship in 2000. I want to say “thanks” to all who gave and prayed.

Pastor Jeremy emphasized after his announcement that “Fellowship is not finished yet. What God has for Fellowship in the future is greater than the past.”

Amen!

Fellowship still has an adventure of walking by faith into this future.