If you Build it, They Will Come
First came the whispering voice, “if you build it, he will come.” Iowa farmer, Ray Kinsella, and main character of the movie, Field of Dreams, accepts the soft voice as a sign to transform his corn field into a baseball diamond. Ray plows his crops in hopes that infamous players in baseball history will join him at the plate. Home-towners think Ray is out of his mind building a baseball field that may never be used, but Ray continues to pursue his ambitions.
One of the most frequent questions I receive while coaching churches at The Banquet Network is, “Should we invest in this if we don’t currently have individuals in our church that will use it?” My answer used to be, “Maybe.” Maybe wait until a person with hearing impairments needs the sign language interpreter. Maybe hold back on the Braille Bibles until someone asks for one. Hold off on ordering the noise cancelling headphones until you have a child who will actually use them.
I’ve been working with Faith Christian Fellowship Church since January of 2021. A mother in the church reached out to The Banquet Network and asked us to help make accommodations in her church for her child who has vision impairments and her mother who is in a wheelchair. The mom asked the church leaders to get involved and finally managed to get a group together. This group of believers came eager to learn. They absorbed and applied the information they received at our training sessions. Even today, they say, “Remember, Allie said...”, when most of the time, I’ve forgotten what I have already shared with them. In each meeting, they thoroughly and compassionately think about the needs of their congregation and community.
In June, I hopped onto our zoom meeting, prepared to guide them in the direction they were heading. Except, this time, one of the church group members took the lead. She went through the agenda and listened to everyone’s ideas and suggestions on the direction they wanted their church to go. Each time a question was presented, I unmuted my microphone with an answer ready. But this time, someone else in the group provided a response. When I realized the Lord was showing me how He was using this group for His glory, I sat back, listened, and watched as the group discussed the process of building ramps for their front entrance and fellowship hall, how they would make their website more accessible, where they were going to order gluten-free condiments for communion, and how they were going to propose the need for a disability ministry to the church session. Then, one of the group members said, “Our philosophy at this point is, if you build it, they will come.”
What an astounding statement. “If you build it, they will come.” I shifted into thinking about what this statement really means. It means to purchase the ramp when no one in your church currently has a need for it. Order the large-print Bible in case an individual with a vision impairment walks through the doors, and have those noise cancelling headphones ready for the child who might react to the rising volume of music during worship.
Why invest in any of these things when there is not a single person in your congregation who will use it? Because it shows you are prepared to love and welcome the individuals and families affected by disability who walk through a church door for the first time in a long time. What a beautiful and unique way to share the gospel. By anticipating the needs of others, we are following the path of Jesus, who provides for all our needs, known and unknown, seen and unseen. In Him, we find our greatest need of salvation satisfied by the blood of Jesus.
Despite the oppositions of unbelief and an impending monetary crisis, Ray Kinsella follows his aspirations, takes a leap of faith and builds the baseball diamond. Without spoiling the movie, I’ll leave you with this, when churches ask if they should invest in something that may not be used immediately, my response is no longer a “maybe” ...because if you build it, they will come.
By: Allie McCarty