Homeland Park Elementary Playground COMPLETE!
The new playground at Homeland Park is now COMPLETE. This project was possible because of your generous and faithful giving to GameTime. Check out what the students at Homeland Park are now able to play on!
Read recent GameTime blog posts HERE.
Anderson Campus Building Outline
On Sunday, the perimeters of the new buildings were outlined with Christmas lights so we could all see exactly where they would be located. The building on the right is the Student Life Facility and the other one is the the Children’s Facility Expansion!
One of our fellow NewSpringers flew his plane over the building to get a better look!
AWESOME! In just a few days, the dirt will start moving …
Spotted In The Anderson Parking Lot - Surveyors!
This morning at 11:34 AM, surveyors were spotted in the NewSpring parking lot!
The surveyors were performing work necessary to begin grading and construction of the Anderson Campus Children’s Facility Expansion and the Anderson Campus Student Life Facility!
Greenville…Here we come!
Starting in December, the
Local and Global Missions
Expansion of Anderson Campus Children’s Facility
The design of this facility is complete and final pricing is nearing completion. The next step is signing the construction contract and permits are being drafted for the grading and construction. We are on track for grading to begin by the end of January!
Student Life Facility At Anderson Campus
Final pricing is being prepared. Permits will follow. The grading for this facility is also included in the grading permit. Look for grading to begin by the end of January.
Greenville Campus and Beyond
Great News! The Bi-Lo location on
GameTime Giving
We are now one full month into GameTime and total pledges have reached $14,331,503! The total given through November 11 has reached $654,016.
Money that is given prior to construction helps reduce construction financing. This means that more giving can be directed toward ministry!
This week each person will be receiving a GameTime letter that contains their original pledge card. You are encouraged to keep your pledge card in a place where you will see it often and be reminded of how God is using GameTime to impact the entire Upstate for Jesus Christ!
If you want to give to GameTime, you can make your pledge on-line.
GameTime Update
This September we began a capital campaign called GameTime. In this series we intentionally strived to make everything about Jesus and His kingdom–which DOES bring us to the subject of money.
About a year and a half after NewSpring began, I discovered that the ONLY people who get mad when you speak on the subject of $$$ are the ones who have it as their idol…and when you attack their god, tempers will flare.
Personally, I think that one of the reasons our country is so screwed up financially is because the church has neglected to teach on the subject of money. (Yes, we are screwed up–more Americans will declare bankruptcy this year than graduate college!) But, when Christians follow Biblical advice on ANYTHING, especially money, and get their hearts right–money will not be an issue–ever.
That is why during the GameTime series we brought every message back around to Jesus. AND in this series on money we saw people give their lives to Christ!!! Folks–according to Matthew 6:21, how we handle money directly reflects who or what we worship.
What were the results of this series? Glad you asked…but first, let me hit some basics…
We had a goal of raising $20 million, BUT we said from the beginning that if we could get at least $12 million pledged then it would be a win because we would be able to secure the financing needed for every single project:
- A state-of-the-art children’s worship facility – I am sick and tired of the church losing the battle for our children…if the world spends money on them then so should the church!
- A youth building that will rock teens’ worlds - Around 85% of all decisions made for Christ are made before a person reaches the age of 18. That is why when people ask me, “Are you investing in missions?” I always answer, “You bet! There is no greater mission field than our teenagers and children!!!”
- Greenville Campus - We are aggressively trying to finalize negotiations on a SWEET location in Greenville…the deal is about 95% done…PRAY…and when this location opens we feel that thousands of lives across the upstate will be impacted.
- Missions - We are still aggressively pursuing foreign missions opportunities (more about that later). We have partnered with a local elementary school to provide them a playground AND purchase every child in the school a jacket and pair of shoes for Christmas. (Around 80-90% of the kids in this school are on free or reduced lunch. It has been reported that many of them will often come to school in the winter without a jacket or shoes, because they can’t afford it!)
- And a few more things are coming as well! (Anyone remember last Mother’s Day?)
So, saying all of that and after speaking for five weeks on vision and where our hearts are, this church has stepped up and pledged over $13 million dollars!
YEAH GOD!!! NewSpring – thank you for being obedient. Thank you for sacrificing, for giving up a thing or two to make this happen. Thank you to all the middle school, high school and college students who committed to go all out. I saw families come down together and pray over their card before putting it on the stage. I watched people who had recently given their lives to Christ just about jump out of their seats to make a pledge. AND in everyone who came down I saw joy, hope and excitement.
NewSpring–I love you guys, and I am so pumped about the future. God has given us an amazing responsibility…and as long as we keep Jesus the focus and His Word the centerpiece to everything we do, wow–dang we will continue to see Matthew 16:18 become more and more real!
A Few of Your Questions
This past weekend, Perry again detailed the GameTime vision for NewSpring. He presented the specific plans for reaching the Upstate for Jesus. We have received a number of great questions about what’s coming next in the life of our ministry. Here are a few that may be on your mind as well:
Will there be any additional parking on the Anderson campus?
Yes, we will be adding parking. And, we are in a great position because we already own the land we need to accommodate both of the new buildings and the additional parking.
Will we eventually be helping other schools/neighborhoods beyond Homeland Park?
Yes, but we’re going to focus first on Homeland Park. We believe we can have the biggest impact if we focus all of our resources, time, energy and prayer on one neighborhood at a time. We’re going to do our best to meet the physical needs of children in this neighborhood and offer them the love of Jesus Christ.
Who will be the pastor of the Greenville campus?
Perry will be the senior pastor of all the NewSpring campuses. We will, however, have a dedicated staff at Greenville to oversee the live worship, childrens, student and home groups ministries. Every ministry that we offer at the Anderson campus will be available at the Greenville campus.
How will Perry be in two places at one time?
We have plans in place to broadcast the message portion of each service live via satellite. Greenville will have its own worship band, but the message will be presented on huge video screens. And, the Greenville crowd will be hearing the message at the same time Perry is presenting it in Anderson–uncut and unfiltered.
Check out more answers to frequently asked questions, and feel free to contact us with your questions about GameTime.
GameTime Launches at NewSpring
This past Sunday Perry launched the GameTime series and outlined our next steps as a church. GameTime is the plan we believe God has given NewSpring to reach people in the upstate for Jesus. The plan includes:
- Opening a new campus in Greenville by next Easter. The campus will house a 1,000-seat auditorium with children’s ministry space. The Greenville campus will have all the same programming as Anderson, but the teaching will be live via satellite video.
- Construction of a Student Life Center at the Anderson Campus. This will be a 37,000 square foot facility with a 1,000-seat auditorium. It will be the home of both our middle school and high school ministries.
- Expansion of the Anderson Campus Children’s Facility. This 45,000 square foot expansion will include eight new nursery rooms, dedicated space for Special Needs Ministry, three large theaters for elementary-aged children and a renovation of our existing children’s space for preschool rooms.
- Investing in local and global missions. Our primary local focus will be helping the students who attend Homeland Park Elementary School. We are also planning foreign mission efforts. One dime of every dollar raised will be invested into future missions to reach people for Jesus.
In the coming months, we will use this blog to keep you updated on what is happening with GameTime. Watch for news about upcoming events, stories of life change, updates on facility construction and lots of pictures.
God has called NewSpring to play to win, and it’s time for each of us to get in the game!
