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God is doing amazing things at Otterbein Church! Much has happened since 2018 when we moved into our new worship facility. Lives and families have been transformed by Jesus Christ. We have had the privilege of serving others in Jesus’ name in our community, nation, and world. And God has added many people to our church family. But God has more for us to do and experience at Otterbein. TRANSFORM NEXT is a God-sized vision for our future as we take our next step to reach the next generation for Christ.
OUR TRANSFORM NEXT VISION
Between June 2023 and December 2025, we are trusting God to help us accomplish the following five things:
Add an Addition to our Church Building to Make Room for Our Growing Children & OC Groups Ministries
In the years since we moved into our new Worship Center, our children’s ministry (birth-grade 5) has grown 38%. Because of our growth, we need to add an addition to our facility to help make additional room for our growing K-Grade 5 OC Kids ministry. The two-story addition will be located on the south side of the church building and will include 8 small group rooms and will have the flexibility to be reconfigured easily into 4 larger group rooms. When it is not being used by our children’s ministry, it will be available for our growing adult small group ministry. Construction is scheduled to take place in the summer of 2023.
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Expand & Improve Our Online Church Experience and Digital Ministries
We live in a digital culture! Since the pandemic, we have seen a significant increase in the number of people who join us online (more than 300) for worship services every week. We believe God wants us to do more than just offer online worship services on Sunday mornings. Our vision is to improve what we are already doing and expand our digital ministries to more effectively reach the next generation for Christ.
Construct an Outdoor Stage and Continue to Develop Otterbein Park for Church & Community Use
Our Community Center and Park on Welty Road are great blessings to both our church family and our community. It is used daily and allows us to serve our community in Jesus’ name. As part of our ongoing development of the park, we are constructing a permanent outdoor stage which will enable us to have additional outdoor worship services at the park along with other special events. The stage will also be available for community use. Beyond the stage, our long-term vision is to pave our parking areas and driveways and make other improvements as funding becomes available.
Lower our Mortgage by at Least One Million Dollars to Position Us for Future Growth
In 2018-2019, we borrowed close to 4 million dollars to renovate and add to the building where we currently have our Worship Center and to construct the Otterbein Church Community Center on Welty Road. We currently have 3.3 million remaining on our mortgage. Accelerating our payment schedule for our mortgage will allow us to significantly reduce the amount of interest we will pay while also positioning the church for future growth.
Explore Ministry Opportunities and Programming Changes to Help Us Reach the Next Generation for Christ
While the gospel message of Jesus Christ can never change, the way we communicate the message has to change to reach every new generation. Throughout the history of Otterbein Church, there has been a willingness to take bold steps to reach more people for Christ. This has included new facilities, multiple worship services, service time changes, different kinds of technology, and changes to the music and worship services. In the years ahead, we will continue to seek God’s direction and vision for beginning new ministries and making changes to existing ones so that we can more effectively reach the next generation for Christ.