Early on a cold Sunday morning in late March, eighteen years ago, 144 people gathered under a pavilion at Mundy Park. It was Easter 2008, the first ever gathering of Providence Church. We were drawn together by a shared vision to see those who feel disconnected from God and the church find hope, healing, and wholeness in Jesus Christ. Since then, God has drawn more and more people to Providence and grown our church beyond what we imagined.
In 2016, we built our beautiful church home on S. Rutland Road. And today, thousands of people call Providence Church home. So many that we have outgrown our building! Remembering that our firm foundation is Jesus Christ, we know it is time to build again.
In this season, will you pray our campaign prayer, God, what do You want to do through me for Your people? This campaign is all about God and all about people.
We have the opportunity to be a part of a historic moment in the life of our church. It will impact generations to come. For that to happen, each of us will have to prayerfully consider how God is calling us to be generous and sacrificial to expand His church for His people. Join us as we ask God what he wants to do through us for His people.
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The Current Reality
In 2018 and 2019, Providence was recognized as one of the fastest growing churches in the nation. After the pandemic, that growth trend continued.
With growth, there have been challenges. Our 800-seat worship center struggles to accommodate the number of people who attend each week, particularly at the 9:30 service. On a typical Sunday morning, every parking spot is occupied, and an additional 40 to 50 vehicles are parked in the driveway and on the grass. Lines of cars stretch in both directions on S. Rutland Road as families wait to enter the parking lot. We have seen families pull into the lot, circle around, and drive away because they couldn’t find a parking space.
The ProvKIDS hallway is also over capacity, with more than 230 children crowded into 10 classrooms. As with the parking lot, we’ve seen families with young children enter the ProvKIDS lobby, see the crowded hallway and classrooms, and then turn around and leave. The size of the ProvKIDS wing has limited the growth of our ProvKIDS ministry. Since 2022, overall worship attendance at Providence has increased by 54%, but ProvKIDS attendance has stayed roughly the same.
Our Direction
1. Build a larger Worship Center. Most people connect with Jesus at Providence on Sunday mornings. We plan to build a 1,600-seat worship center that will allow twice as many people to worship together at one time and reduce the number of weekly services from three to two, allowing church members to connect with each other more often.
2. Double the size of the ProvKIDS wing. Teaching our children that Jesus loves them and desires a relationship with them is perhaps the most important thing we do. Currently, we lack enough space to do that. We plan to expand the ProvKIDS wing from 10 to 20 classrooms and add more lobby and hallway space.
3. Create more parking spaces. As the size of the worship center grows, our parking needs will also grow. We plan to expand our parking lot from 300 to 700 spaces. This will help us address the current parking shortage, provide more visitor parking, and create more parking closer to the building for those who need assistance accessing it.
This proposed plan will benefit all the ministries of our church. A new larger Worship Center and lobby will allow our existing Worship Center to become a multipurpose space used by our Student ministry, Adult discipleship (Practicing the Way, large-group Bible studies), ProvKIDS worship, Vacation Bible School, and more!
Cost Projections
In 2024, following a 7-month study of the needs of the church, the Providence Church board of directors, or “Church Council,” determined that a lack of space was hindering the church from fully fulfilling its vision and mission. The Council selected a Building Committee to work with an architect and contractor to develop preliminary architectural drawings and cost estimates for a possible building expansion. Here are the initial figures for each construction focus area:
Next Steps
Here are the steps our church already has taken:
- Assessed our current facility and ministry needs
- Selected a Building Committee to hire an architect and contractor
- Developed preliminary architectural drawings and cost estimates
- Conducted a church-wide feasibility study to assess the church’s readiness to move forward
Here are the next steps for us to move forward:
- Conduct a successful capital campaign
- Approve, by a vote of the Church Council, the plans for the expansion
- Approve, by a vote of all covenant members of Providence Church, the plans for the expansion
- Begin construction in late 2026 or early 2027
Strategies for Generosity
In addition to traditional methods of financial support, you may wish to donate to the Firm Foundation campaign by providing a non-cash gift.
What is a non-cash gift?
Transferring ownership of an asset, rather than selling the asset and donating the proceeds, is one kind of non-cash gift. Appreciated investment property held more than one year, such as publicly traded stocks, mutual fund shares, and bonds, may be donated.
Why give a non-cash gift?
The tax code favorably treats non-cash gifts. Giving a non-cash asset to Providence may not generate capital gains tax liability for the donor. And as the gift beneficiary, Providence will realize the full market value of the non-cash asset at the time of transfer and not incur capital gains tax liability.
How do I make a non-cash gift?
- Contact Dan Lins, who will provide you with transfer instructions
- Contact your broker and request a transfer
Can I make a tax-free gift from an IRA?
Traditional IRA: If you are 70.5 years old or older, you can donate to Providence up to $111,000 for tax year 2026 as a qualified charitable distribution (QCD) without penalty or tax liability. A gift from a traditional IRA can assist in satisfying a required minimum distribution (RMD) requirement and may lower your overall tax liability.
QCDs can be a great tool for managing taxable income in retirement while also supporting this campaign. Please be aware that QCDs are not permitted from 401(k)s or other qualified plans.
NOTE: Any discussion of tax treatment is not intended as and should not be considered tax advice. For personal tax advice, consult a professional tax advisor.
Make a Commitment
Your commitment is only an indication of your intention to give. We understand that circumstances can change.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How much are we trying to raise?
- An outside feasibility study conducted between July and December 2025 concluded that Providence can raise between $9 million and $11 million or more over three years. A successful campaign at or above that range will allow us to proceed with the expansion as planned on our current timetable. Every pledge exceeding that goal will (first off, be celebrated as a miracle!) help reduce our ultimate costs by reducing loan amounts and interest.
- When will the work begin, and when will it be completed?
- We hope to begin construction in late 2026 or early 2027. Construction is estimated to last 18 months.
- Can we use our current space during construction?
- Yes. One of the reasons we selected T.W. Frierson as our contractor is their experience staging and phasing large construction projects for churches in a way that allows the church’s weekly worship and activities to continue during construction.
- How will we handle continued growth in the meantime?
- Given our current worship space and parking limitations, our most likely avenue for accommodating present and future growth would be to add an additional weekly worship service. Adding a fourth service is not a sustainable long-term solution, however, it is a workable short-term option, particularly with an end date in sight!
- Is this expansion big enough?
- After more than a year of prayerful study and consideration, including two seasons of intentional prayer, our leadership believes this is the right size expansion for our church at this time. It allows us to address our most urgent needs, while not overextending the church financially in a way that would compromise mission and ministry.
- Is this expansion too big?
- Will Providence become a "megachurch" and lose its identity? No. Our focus will always be on Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, and what God is doing in our midst. We are being called to make more and deeper disciples, and that requires more room. One benefit of more room is that it allows us to move from three (or four!) services down to two, which we believe will increase community!
- When does the campaign giving period begin and end? Does it matter how long I take to fulfill my pledge?
- To provide flexibility and creativity in charitable giving, our three-year giving period is actually a 37-month period spanning four calendar years: March 2026 through March 2029. While you have a three-year window to fulfill your pledge, the church will incur a significant portion of construction costs in 2026-27, so any early gifts received will help reduce our ultimate costs by reducing loan amounts and interest.
- What if the campaign does not raise $9 million to $11 million?
- If our hoped-for fundraising range is not met, our leadership will pause for a season of prayer and discernment. We likely would not proceed with the project on its current timetable, which would result in higher costs down the road as prices increase. However, we know God can be trusted! We believe God has guided our church to this exciting moment, and we believe the people of Providence Church will invest in the future He is preparing for us.