As Pastor Steve Weldon announced on Sunday, Sept. 25, 2011, Exp. Hope is moving forward.

The time has come to do something positive and Kingdom-strengthening with the funds raised for Exp. Hope... We have building needs right here and right now, plus many new families are moving to Andover with new neighborhoods being built less than a mile from the church campus … So, the Leadership Team has prayed and discussed the situation and decided to use the more than $1 million raised to meet those needs.

We started this expedition more than four years ago. Of course, shortly after that, our economy went into decline. Many Hopesters lost jobs and are struggling financially. The economy is still not strong, but we know that these are not the days to wait. So, our next move is to reevaluate the needs, set new goals, and find the best way to achieve those goals with the more than $1 million in funds we have available. Because of the uncertain economic landscape, we will NOT incur any significant, long-term debt to reach our goals. Architect and fellow Hopester Scott Ramser will be leading a team to reevaluate and address our current facility needs, always keeping in mind our need for deeper relationship with God, the community, and each other. He will then produce new building plans.

So, our present Exp. Hope building plans will change significantly. While that is a bit sad, those original plans did provide us with an excellent vision for what we believe God wants us to accomplish.

If you are not familiar with Exp. Hope and its goals, you can learn about it by speaking with a member of the Hope Leadership Team.