Give

I remember our first small group in the fall of 2005. Sixteen of us gathered in a house just south of 173rd and Harrison. Waves were made that night. Lifetime friendships were formed. We all grew closer to Jesus.

In September 2006, WE launched our first worship service at Russell Middle School and, a year later, moved to Millard West High School, our home for over a decade. WE purchased 23 acres of land on Harrison Street in 2012, moved into our building in 2018, and expanded our facilities in 2023. Those were all wave-making moves.

The dates, places, and structures are a small part of our story. The Water’s Edge is a family. A church that makes waves. A church where countless people have found a place to belong. A church where people are meeting a God who forgives and accepts them. A church where people give and serve. A church that is impacting our city and the world.

In these twenty years, WE have purchased land, done all the necessary things like utilities, grading, and parking, built our original building, and added an expansion. The costs of these projects have been roughly 12 million dollars. All this while experiencing significant growth as a church, partnering with multiple non-profits around Omaha, planting a church in Cuba, and doing extensive mission work worldwide. WE have made a lot of waves together.

Our remaining debt at the end of 2024 will be $1,730,000. Most of this debt is from the unanticipated construction inflation experienced while building our expansion. The new building is a wave-maker. It’s beyond a blessing to our church and community. It’s only been open for 14 months, and WE couldn’t function without it.

WE have a big, wave-making goal—to be debt-free on our 20th birthday in the fall of 2026. In doing this, WE will accomplish something few churches have been able to do: buy land, construct buildings, and be debt-free within two decades! Accomplishing this goal glorifies God and sets The Water’s Edge up for success as a wave-making church for the next twenty years.

Becoming debt-free will allow us to save over $400,000 per year on principal reduction and interest and invest those financial resources in ministry and missions. The neighborhoods around the church are growing rapidly. WE are the closest church geographically for all these new residents. WE have an amazing opportunity in the next twenty years to make waves like never before.

I encourage you to read the pages of this book. To read about the waves of our past and the wave-making vision for the future. To learn about this initiative to fund ministry and missions for the next two years and become debt-free by our 20th birthday. And I invite you to pray about your financial participation and go where your best prayers lead you.