Our New Parsonage in Orangeville, IL
In December of 2004, the Mann family, David, Lucretia, Ahnriel, Carl and Christopher came to our church. David and family would become our new spiritual leaders. There was one big problem. Our church had sold our previous parsonage and we had no parsonage! At the same time the Winslow United Methodist did not have anybody living in their parsonage. As brothers and sisters in Christ, they extended a very gracious offer to house our new family by renting the house to our church at a reduced cost while we sought a solution to our pastoral housing need.
This solved the problem for the short term, but we still needed a parsonage. A parsonage committee was formed and they looked at several different homes in the Lena, Winslow, McConnell and Orangeville area. Almost everything they looked at was over our budget and would require even more funding to do repairs and necessary upgrades. The committee brought back its findings and the idea was brought up to investigate building a new house with the funds the church Society had so carefully saved in reserve for a parsonage. The Society looked at options on where to build, the cost of building in the area, available lots of land, etc. and came to an agreement that the new subdivision in Orangeville would be the most economically feasible site. This was not a unanimous decision by any means. Many wanted our pastor to reside in McConnell, but since this was not possible we had to look elsewhere. To many, building a new home was a daunting and costly task that would consume all of our spare building funds. We had to build a home under a tight budget, and taking out a loan was not considered an acceptable option. To proceed was a true leap of faith.
All this time the clock was ticking to get the Mann’s out of the Winslow parsonage. The McConnell, Lena and Winslow United Methodist Churches were separating their parish and closing down the Winslow church. The Winslow church building and its parsonage were being put on the market. We had to start stretching that “Faith Muscle” if we were to get this done before the buildings sold.
Getting blueprints drawn, modified, collecting bids on heating, electricity, plumbing, windows, doors, sheetrock, etc, all became issues in short order! It was decided to out-source the cement work and the framing of the interior and exterior and the heating and cooling system. God smiled on us by giving a long dry Summer and Fall, and the work began. We were already into August before excavating could begin.
As time went on some others things had to be contracted, but a huge amount of the work was done by volunteers. There were many donations of time, materials and skilled work. The church’s members and attenders, their families and friends put in countless hours of work from excavating to electrical work to plumbing and varnishing trim. It truly was a labor of love and an investment in the future of our church. To say everything went perfectly would no doubt be stretching the truth, but the Holy Spirit was definitely working in people's lives. He was giving them talents they did not even know they possessed. The project was finished on time and within the available funds.
In Spring of 2006 we were able to move our new family in. We are trusting in the Lord that this new building, in a village six miles away, can be used to spread God's word and bring joy into McConnell, Orangeville and in the surrounding area.