Hello Church,
It’s hard to believe that summer is just around the corner. Maybe it’s the lingering cold temps this year or just the truth that the days fly by faster the older we get, but for whatever reason I blinked and now it’s May. Around here it also signals the brink of a new fiscal year, and we embark on planning and dreaming and budgeting and reviewing lots of numbers.
With that comes some exciting news and also some not as exciting news – and we’d like to share both.
How about the exciting news first?
Back at the beginning of our budget year, we set a goal of paying off the mortgage by the end of this fiscal year – June 30th. Now, we are 2 months away and are SO close to meeting that goal. Some of you will recall that 9 years ago we refinanced our mortgage of $1,205,000 and today we owe only $99,000! God has provided through some incredible, unexpected avenues along the way, allowing us to get to this point.
Do you know what paying off our mortgage will mean?
We will be DEBT FREE as a church! That is a pretty remarkable milestone for any organization and one worth celebrating! We carry no other mortgages or equity lines of credit, no construction loans, and our credit card account for operating purposes is paid in full every month. Truly debt free!
So what’s not as exciting?
We’ve seen a decline in our overall giving to the ministry fund (the general fund that takes care of everything except special designated projects) year over year for the past 5 years. Right now we are a little over 5% below this time last year. With budget needs based on annual giving of $1.2M, this translates to a $60,000 shortage.
What does this mean for us?
- We are still diligent to maintain operating reserves even when giving is down. These are overseen by the Elder Board and can only be utilized with their approval.
- We exercise careful spending in our ministry areas as we monitor giving.
- It may impact where we are able to redirect what was going to the mortgage. There’s kingdom stuff that we’re excited about and want to keep investing in and partnering with, but when our resources decrease, we sometimes have to say no to things we really want to say yes to.
So how does it all intersect? With YOU. We see God at work through you. We hear the amazing stories of what he’s doing and how you are leaning in as you listen to his voice. We believe in what he is doing through this place and that it’s worth giving to.
Would you pray with us for God’s provision in this area? And would you be willing to ask how he might want you to invest in what’s happening here?
- Are you new to partnering financially with a church and would you consider taking a step and investing in this community of faith?
- Have you been faithfully giving here for years? Is God maybe asking you to consider giving more?
- Does trusting him with saying yes seem scary financially? Is there an opportunity to grow closer to him by doing so?
- Do you feel like you “should” give but it’s hard when so many good causes vie for your resources?
- Do you wonder if we even really need your gift or if it makes a difference?
We would love to talk to you about questions like this. But more importantly God would like to talk to each one of us about these questions. Our goal is not to convince you of any “right” answers. We really do trust that God desires to speak to each person individually, where they are, in his time. He is gentle and compassionate with all our questions…yes, even the ones that deal with money.
We are so thankful for you and your participation here! If you do have questions you’d like to discuss, please reach out.
Are you are ready to partner with us? Great, you can click here to give!
Adria Robinson
Executive Director of Operations
