December 2024

Dear First Wausau Family of Faith,
I echo these words of Paul to the church in Philippi (Phil. 1:3-6) to you: “I thank my God every time I remember you, constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you, because of your sharing in the gospel…I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ.”

We may reflect on our work in this first season of the Christian year and the final month of the calendar year. Some of it has been good, some not, and some are still unfinished. Though there may be regrets, individually and/or as a church, God can even turn those into good.

Over the past year, we have learned a lot about how to be good stewards of the space God has given us. It was disappointing that the Hmong American Center (and museum) decided not to accept our plan for them to take on responsibility for upgrading the building in exchange for free rent. However, this allows us to maintain more control as we gradually make necessary updates. We are excited to welcome New Beginnings for Refugees, which is moving upstairs over Christmas break. They will use the rooms along the north/south hallway upstairs to teach refugees English and the life skills needed to assimilate into our community. Another non-profit is also leaning toward moving here around the same time.

We continue to pray for the right organizations to come at the right time to use our available spaces. We are grateful that they will not only help with much-needed funds toward the expense of the roof but are also missionally aligned in serving others. Let’s join together in thanking God for what we have learned, the new work that God is doing, and the assurance that God will complete the good work in us.

Merry Christmas!

Pastor Rebecca