A. As a matter of fact we have some management professionals in the Project Lemonade Task Force. But they want to hire somebody from outside. Three particular reasons: A church dialogue and decision-making process is very different from that of a small business or a large corporation. The relational dynamics are so much more complicated, and we are committed to maintaining the unity of the Spirit among us. Second, the process to be followed is not simply one of surveying opinions. Rather it is that of consensus-building while seeking to discern not personal opinions but God's will for the church's future. We could spout opinions all day long, but we need to hear God's will through the voice of the congregation. Third, just as doctors ought not treat their family members and therapists ought not counsel their close friends, the outside help of an objective consultant is much to be preferred over an insider.

A: We began the sanctuary redesign with a budget of $90,000. When one family offered the funds to add pews, the budget grew to $130,000. Given those relatively limited funds we thought conservatively and planned conservatively. After a seemingly interminably long wait, the architect presented designs with a price tag of $430,000. After wrestling through our shock we mustered the courage and the vision to vote overwhelmingly to move forward with that design, and we raised sufficient pledges to fund it. But then the mold was discovered. Wrestling through that new shock, we embraced this new reality as a possible wake-up call from God, a prod from the Lord to reconsider ALL our facilities plans. One of the questions we asked ourselves was, "If we had had an initial budget of $430,000, would we have designed sanctuary renovations that effectively decrease our seating by 10%?" We feel obligated to God to ask tough questions-even to revisit past decisions-and intend to consider asking such questions until God's final plan emerges before us. This may cost us a few months' delay in implementation, but considering the huge costs and-ultimately-God's purposes at stake, we think we all can endure a few more months' persevering.

A: Many churches receive income from more sources than just their members' offerings. Some have large endowments. Others rent space to outside organizations or subsidiary ministries (like schools or counseling centers-a common practice for Samaritan Counseling Centers around the USA). Grace Christian School is a subsidiary ministry of Grace Church; the school pays the church rent for the space utilized. If we were to purchase Grace Church's facilities, a similar arrangement could be negotiated with the school there. Certainly many issues around faith and educational philosophy would need to be sorted out-or shown to be too insurmountable to accept. But we believe that we owe it to ourselves, to the children, to the community, and to God to be open to such possibilities.

A: No decision has been made. No consensus has been built among any group of CLPC leaders. The decision will be made by the congregation, at a congregational meeting, following all the due process guarantees found in the Presbyterian Church Book of Order.

A: One mark of a dysfunctional family is that it keeps a lot of secrets. One mark of a dysfunctional church family is that its leaders hide information from its membership, thereby protecting the power of the insiders. We do not operate that way. Clear Lake Presbyterian Church has long been a healthy church, as marked by the openness and candor with which we operate. To be specific, none of the work of the Operation Lemonade Task Force is confidential. Every task force member is free to discuss every idea and every decision with anybody they encounter. Indeed, the congregation is entitled to know everything that is going on. With the help of the consultant's counsel, we soon will be scheduling an open, candid, fully-participatory discussion and discerning process so that the whole congregation will fully share in the final decisions. In the meantime, much of the information may sound confusing. Frankly, there is SO much information being accumulated; it's too much for any one person fully to grasp! We just happen to think that the congregation is healthy enough, mature enough, and trustworthy enough to wrestle through the process of assimilating and assessing such information-and, ultimately-coming to a Spirit-led decision for the future of CLPC.

A. We don't want to renovate a building only to demolish it. We are being careful to avoid wasting the congregation's freewill offerings.

A: After months of sorting through mold tests, damage assessments, and setting up of critical path analyses, our public adjuster has prepared a draft claim to present to the insurance company (which, by the way, has taken about seven months-half the time most homeowners are finding such efforts to take). A meeting between them is scheduled for July 31. PLEASE PRAY! By state law, the insurance company will have up to 45 days to respond to our proposal.

In the meantime, we have begun the repairs of the sanctuary building; a new roof will be installed this week! This work is ours to accomplish and fund, before the insurance company undertakes the exterior wall repairs (where the mold has been growing).

In parallel with those efforts, our architect has been helping us to finalize our options for the sanctuary renovations (whether to stick with the design developed last year or to make some changes). He also has told us that we do have the option to add more parking and/or building(s) to our property (an option that we had long ago been told would not be allowed by homeowners' association green-space requirements).

We also continue to assess the possibility of moving to another location.

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