A New Jersey oceanfront pier reopened this weekend with a design that inspires hope after being demolished by Hurricane Sandy in 2012. The new cross-shaped design, built by private donors and owned by the nonprofit Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association, symbolizes hope while also being the best design for the new pier, giving more people access to the waterfront. Known as God’s Square Mile, Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association has owned land bought over 150 years ago. Now the non-profit is giving anyone who wants to access to the beauty of God’s creation at the Atlantic Ocean’s edge.
“The more we thought about it [and] prayed about it, [the more] the inspiration came for the present design,” President of the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association Michael Badger told Fox News.
The idea was to provide more access to the “ends” of the pier, thus the cross shape with three ends so more people can enjoy the overlook and view. After its destruction in 2012, more than $2 million have been raised to reconstruct it and now it’s the organization’s gift back to the community. The 500-foot long, 24 feet wide pier took seven months to build and opened this past weekend with a special ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Badger shared, “It’s functional, but it became obvious to us that it is in the shape of a cross — and how fitting it is for our Christian mission. So this is just a culmination of a design process that sought to create an optimal pier — and we do see the blessing of God’s hand in this.”
The distinctly Christian mission was shared at the dedication this Saturday as Badger pointed people to the first passage of Scripture in Genesis 1 – “In the beginning God created.” Badger encouraged those in attendance to thank God for his beauty, his wonders, and the Lord Jesus Christ and closed with a special dedication of the purpose of this new pier, “This pier is dedicated to the glory of God and to the creating of opportunities for spiritual birth, growth, and renewal for all. Amen.”
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