transformations and fresh starts

everyone needs a fresh start in some area of life. i love the idea that yesterday's failures don't have to be today's extra baggage. i love that we don't have to be stuck in same-'ol, same-'ol... and that God's grace is ever prodding us towards the new thing, the fresh start, the way where there seems to be no way. it's why i love makeover projects. fresh looks cause us to view our lives in fresh ways. UNSTUCK!!! (hey, i think there's an upcoming message series at ginghamsburg on this very subject...)

i've been part of a mini-makeover team (husband clark, friend robin, + kim) who in the last year have transformed my brother's 7-room coffee house in granville, ohio in our "spare" time. i most recently recovered four chairs to finish one room. see the photos at the bottom of this post- a glimpse into the new look at www.riverroadcoffeehouse.com.

recently a couple from ginghamsburg -walt and debbie toney- offered up a large amount of pottery to be sold and profits go towards THE SUDAN PROJECT. the potters who made this pottery already had their work featured at river road... so we struck up a deal to sell this larger amount right there at river road. it's a win-win-win scenario. my brother gets added inventory (which was needed), the toneys get to give a larger gift than they'd orginally planned, and the people of SUDAN will benefit greatly in the end. God is good!

makeover @ the FORT

most of my working hours for the last three weeks have been spent at fort mckinley, ginghamsburg’s latest mission initiative. during the summer we acquired the responsibility for a smaller UMC inside the city of dayton. lovingly referred to as the fort, this church and its people have already captured our hearts. the makeover team has worked two full days redeeming community spaces God is already using in a huge way.

our first project was a room formerly known as the parlor. we saw the potential in this space from the get-go, and it now boasts IKEA-esque seating areas, three bistro table sets, and a coffee area with free java available all week long.

this cozy room is just the beginning – much more to come in future blogs. I wanted to share what’s been going on. God is good and people are passionate for this mission. let me know if you want to join this project team. ~ kmiller@ginghamsburg.org