Destiny Campaign

URC Building

Watch the "Moving Toward Our Destiny" Sermon

Since the founding of Harvest Mission Community Church (HMCC) in 1996, we have held gatherings at a multitude of auditoriums, theaters, and meeting spaces across the campus of the University of Michigan and the greater Ann Arbor community. Sunday Celebrations have been held at the Dental School, the School of Education, the Medical Science Building, and Angell Hall - to name a few. Smaller gatherings have ranged from Trotter House, to First Congregational Church, to the Business School, to the Michigan Union. Meetings have been held at almost every coffee shop and café in town. Just as the Israelites wandered in the desert for years, so did we, moving from location to location all in an effort to build a vibrant community of faith that shines the glory of Christ.

Nearly twelve years after its founding, HMCC is now at a moment in time when we have the opportunity to take a step towards our greater destiny by obtaining the facility where the University Reformed Church (URC) currently resides.

The Israelite people were in a similar situation as they were about to enter the Promised Land. As God's chosen people were about to cross the Jordan River to take hold of the land, after years of wandering in the desert, the Lord spoke to Joshua the following:

Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them - to the Israelites. I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates - all the Hittite country - to the Great Sea on the west. (Joshua 1:2-4).

It was at this moment that the Lord reaffirmed the promises that He had made to His people and displayed the fulfillment and reality to them. But God, in His love and kindness, was not only going to deliver on His promises, but renew His promises to the Israelites. "No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you" (Joshua 1:5).

Similarly, we at HMCC believe that God is reaffirming and renewing His promises to us. Three years ago, we started the Transformation Vision with the dream of bringing the Gospel message not only into our community, but to the ends of the earth. The vision was grounded on three main pillars: broadening missional initiatives, birthing missional churches, and building a transformation center.

Where we have been since casting this vision:

Broadening Missional Initiatives

In an effort to shine greater light into our direct sphere of influence, we have partnered with local organizations and started new initiatives in our community more so than ever before. Excel Academy, our summer education program, has reached nearly 200 children from international families living in the Ann Arbor community. This summer, the academy is expecting to expand its reach to lower-income families in Ann Arbor, particularly through math and literacy programs. Our medical outreach team has launched new health clinics and educational/awareness programs in low income communities in the past year. Last summer, the single adults started a music and discussion event at a local café in Ann Arbor to better connect with others in their life stage living in the area. In obedience to the Holy Spirit that our church needed to shine Christ into every sphere of society, we started the Transformasphere Movement in late 2007.

Birthing New Churches

From the beginning, we have fully believed that it is during the college years that many people are set on fire for Christ, His church, and His mission. Because of this belief, in the fall of 2006, we launched a team to start a church in the Chicagoland area to reach students at the numerous college campuses. Since that time, the Chicago church has grown and is reaching out to more students and members of the community. In 2008, we will be launching another team to plant a church on the campus of the University of Texas in Austin. Sometime in the near future, we fully anticipate planting an international church, further bringing the Gospel to the ends of this earth.

Building a Transformation Center

In 2002, HMCC's leadership team believed that God would provide a home for our congregation somewhere in the Ann Arbor community in the future. With that belief, the leadership team started to prepare the church spiritually and financially so that if and when God opened up a door, we would be ready to move forward.

In 2007, HMCC's leadership team was approached by some of the leaders from URC about the possibility of selling their building to HMCC. HMCC's leadership team began dialoging with the leaders at URC and started praying about this opportunity. In January 2008, we believed that God was opening this door for us to obtain URC's building and we agreed to move forward with purchasing the building.

We truly believe that God is providing a home for our church and over the next forty days, starting on March 3rd, we will be journeying together through 40 Days to Destiny. During this 40 day period, we will be preparing to move into our new home through prayer, fasting, bible reading, and reflection. In an effort to bring unity to our preparation, we will be working together through a common bible reading plan and joining together in a fasting chain. Just as God prepared the Israelites before allowing them to enter the Promised Land, so we believe that God wants to use this 40 day period to prepare us for our new home.

On April 13th, the end of the 40 day period, we will be having a special pledge celebration to raise funds for our new home. There will be two parts to this special pledge celebration:

Part 1: Miracle Sunday Offering

We will be taking a one day offering to raise funds for the down payment for our new home. Our goal is to raise $100,000 on this Sunday. With a congregation of well over 400 members, we are praying that at least 400 people can give $250 each. We understand that some people might be able to give more and others will give less. But the main giving principle is: "different sums, but equal sacrifice." For those who are not able to attend on this day, you will be able to give online or through the mail.

Part 2: Two-Year Pledge

We will also be taking a two year pledge to raise funds for facility renovations and to make payments on the mortgage. Our goal is to reach $500,000 in pledges over a two year period.

We are on an exciting journey together towards the greater destiny that God has for our church. We believe fully that every promise given by God to our community will be fulfilled, just as He has done so in the past. "Not one of all the LORD's good promises to the house of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled" (Joshua 20:45). We are excited to see where the Lord leads us as we walk in faith and believe in His promises.

Many of you did not have the privilege of eye-witnessing God's power and provisions when we first started our church back in the 1996-1997 school year. It was an honor that God gave to a handful of people. But now, over a decade later, the same privilege and opportunity is put before us. We have the honor of being the first community of believers in HMCC who will witness a transformation center being established in Ann Arbor. We will be able to witness this from a first hand experience, as we pray and prepare to make the sacrifice.

It is amazing to see how many people have benefited from the huge sacrifice that a small group of people made many years ago. God is calling us now to make the same level of sacrifice for future generations that will come after us. Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds" (Jn 12:24). No sacrifice is ever wasted. Every prayer and every contribution to God's work is multiplied to reach more campuses, more communities, more cities and more nations. We must never forget that "we are blessed to be a blessing."

We hope that everyone in our community will find ways to participate and contribute on this journey towards our destiny.