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The stakes are high
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Posted by lward Tue Nov 30, 1999 00:00:00 PST
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0 responses 0 comments On Aug. 19, The Bridge Bible Church broke ground for phase one of construction on its church campus in Southwest Bakersfield. The first phase will be a flexible 400-seat worship facility that will include a cozy café and courtyard for hangout opportunities.  A second building for the kids at the Bridge ministry will also be built.
Before the groundbreaking ceremony, Pastor Jeff Gowling challenged the congregation to remember the Bridge’s mission statement of “Glorifying God by growing up and reaching out” throughout this construction phase. Gowling emphasized that while it is an opportunity “to grow up together” and keep our “arms wide open to the community” the stakes are much higher.
“The glory of God is at stake in what we are doing,” said Gowling.
The property, located at Stockdale Highway and Allen Road, was gifted by our mother church, Laurelglen Bible, in 2003. The gift of this property has allowed The Bridge to begin building much earlier than most church plants.
“It’s a gift,” said Laurelglen Bible Executive Pastor Ed Boschman. “It’s a legacy and it’s meant for the kingdom value of God.”
Since The Bridge’s inception, worship services have been held in classrooms and gymnasium space rented from adjacent Bakersfield Christian High School, with youth groups traveling to nearby Rosedale Bible Church for their meetings.
After the property was prayed over by church elders, children were invited to take a plastic shovel and break ground on their building. Later, members of the congregation took hold of one of four ropes and ceremoniously helped pull an earthmover and break ground on the worship center.
At the conclusion of the ceremony, families were asked to take home a construction stake with the words: “The Stakes Are High” as a reminder to pray for the construction process, but more importantly the people who will be brought into God’s Kingdom through the facilities.
“Ultimately it’s not about fundraising or the building structure itself,” said Pastor Gowling. “Ultimately it’s about lives being changed.”

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