Providence Baptist Church

Greetings from Redeemer Community Church. I trust that this letter finds you and your church delighting in the glory of God as you treasure your Savior, Jesus Christ. Whether you are experiencing a time of great blessing and bounty or you are living in a moment of testing and sorrow, I pray that Christ is your satisfaction and delight. The lyrics of this great hymn first speak a hard truth to our soul and then follow with an immovable anchor of overwhelming grace: “When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll. Whatever my lot thou has taught me to say, It is well with my soul. . . . My sin, oh the bliss of this glorious thought. My sin, not in part but the whole, is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more. Praise the Lord, oh my soul!” And Paul would tell us in Colossians: “And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This He set aside, nailing it to the cross.” Might our hearts continually be reminded of the cross and moved to delight in the glory of God as we treasure our Savior, Jesus Christ.

God continues to show Himself faithful on our behalf here at Redeemer. Since the last update, God has blessed us by closing some doors while opening new ones for us to pursue. One of our primary requests has been for a worship facility that we would have access to all week long. We were pursuing a location for several weeks that recently fell through. However, God has directed us to a new location within our target community that will meet our needs much better. The new facility requires a few adjustments and some additional build-out, so our goal is to begin meeting at this location by the end of the summer. We would ask you to pray that God would continue to work out the final details according to his will for the lease of 5515 Penn Ave.

 Meanwhile, we have had some good opportunities to reach into our community. There have been numerous opportunities to share the gospel with neighbors and co-workers. The opportunities that the city provides are quite varied and unique. I recently was invited to a tattoo shop to discuss religion, spirituality, and God. It was a unique forum to share the gospel and people were surprisingly attentive. A few days later, members of our body joined with a neighborhood corporation for the “Pick-up on Penn.” It was another good opportunity to serve the community and to share with people about the church and our vision for reaching Pittsburgh. God has providentially used these opportunities to graciously provide a temporary meeting place for our body. We are meeting at the Bloomfield-Garfield Community Center through the end of July free of charge. God blessed through some of these new relationships, and a few weeks ago the director of the Bloomfield-Garfield Corporation offered us the use of this building. Our first Sunday worship took place there on Mother’s Day, and it was a special service for our small body. This move into a third party location allows us many new opportunities to reach into our community. We ask you to pray for us to have boldness and wisdom at the next stage of launch in the life of Redeemer Community Church.

 It is hard to believe that summer is upon us again. While the summer brings with it many new and exciting opportunities for Redeemer, it also brings many new challenges. With the blessing of the building and new outreach opportunities come more financial demands. God has blessed our church with committed members and some generous financial partners. Beginning last June, several individuals, families, and churches committed to join with us in reaching the urban neighborhoods of Pittsburgh with the gospel of Christ. Those finances have helped to partially support Adam and I, as well as meet the early expenses of the church. Many of our financial partners committed to give for one year, and we thank you for your faithfulness and generosity. We trust that God has been honored with the use of those finances, and we celebrate the birth of Redeemer Community Church through the prayers and kindness of His people.

 We are asking our financial partners to prayerfully consider continuing their support of Redeemer for another year. This will allow Adam and me to remain at part-time employment at our second jobs (Home Depot and Starbucks), in order that we might give as much time as possible to the church plant. It will also allow Redeemer to be more aggressive in their outreach and involvement in the community. Finally, your giving will help us meet the cost of the 5515 Penn lease and assist in the many start-up costs that our launch in this facility will necessitate. We understand that many are investing in their own local church and have sacrificed to be part of our ministry this past year. We do not look to take advantage of your generosity, but we ask that you seek the Lord about your part in the building of his church. We are praying that God would give many a passion for the advancement of the Kingdom, and specifically a continued burden and commitment for the work of Redeemer Community in Pittsburgh. We are also asking that God might raise up a few new families and churches to partner with us in this endeavor.

 Some individuals and churches have expressed that they would like to partner with Redeemer by meeting specific one-time needs or giving toward a specific purchase. For those who inquired about specific needs and desire to join with the ministry in this fashion, I will share some of the specific costs involved with our new facility. Since we are in an urban setting and the Lord has opened up a facility on a main avenue in our community, we will encounter some higher and more unique costs. Like almost every building available in our area, there are needs to improve the structure. While there is cost involved is this, we are excited about taking some action to demonstrate our commitment of being a blessing to the community through urban renewal. As we have participated in neighborhood clean-up and other activities, God has opened many doors for gospel witness and a testimony as salt and light. Moving into and reshaping our new space should afford many more open doors for the proclamation of the gospel. There are also other build-out costs we will encounter as we change the space to meet the city requirements for an assembly and meet our own need for classrooms and nursery. These costs are just the reality of church planting in an urban setting, and we gladly take them on trusting God has clearly directed us here and thus will meet our every need.

 Provided is a more detailed list of some of the costs associated with the building. We include these numbers for those who prefer to give a set amount toward a certain need. If you would like to partner with us in meeting one of these specific needs just indicate that to us. You may also just give generally to the building costs if you desire. If designated funds exceed the costs of a specific line item, we will move those funds to the higher cost items.

 Total Expense for Renovation and Build-out: $70,000

            HVAC - $30,000

            Sound/Powerpoint/Music - $10,000

            Bathroom - $5,000

            Nursery Build-Out and Supplies - $5,000

                        -Flooring - $2,000

                        -Sound-proof walls -$2,000

                        -Supplies - $1,000

            Classrooms - $5,000

            Advertising Costs - $3,000

            Signage - $2,000

            Seating - $1,500

            The 412 - $1,500

                        *This is the bookstore/study center that will be open during the week for outreach                                     purposes

            Tables and Chairs - $1,000

            Paint - $1,000

            Visitor Materials - $750

            Dividing Walls - $500

            Bibles - $250

            Plus other misc. costs

 Included with this letter is a giving form. If God would direct you to continue your giving or if you would like to start giving, you can fill out the form and mail it to us, or you can just email us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with the necessary information. Once we hear from you, we will mail you giving slips to keep things as simple and organized as possible. Please feel free to contact us with any questions that you may have.

 Thank you once again for your partnership in the planting of Redeemer Community Church. It is exciting to report that after a year of your prayers and support, God has raised up a small body of worshippers in the city. Also know that we have been faithful to pray for our partners in ministry. We count it a blessing to be able to support and encourage you in this way, and we would ask you to continue to share with us specific needs and ways we can pray for you. I trust that God will continue to strengthen each of us as we go hard after Him. And might we delight in the glory of God as we treasure Jesus Christ.

For the Sake of His Kingdom,

 Dan Valentine                                     Adam Thomas                                     Jeff Joyce

“Proclaiming the Excellencies of Him who called us out of Darkness into His Marvelous Light”