By Ronald
Kelly
By Ronald
Kelly
As has been the case in recent months, the regular donation income is coming in at a fairly predictable clip.
That's the good news, and I once again want to express my appreciation for the dependable giving pattern so many of you are practicing. The not-so-good news is that regular donations, not counting festival and special offerings, are falling four percent below our budget projections.
That means we had projected mail income of $14,350,552 between January and August. The actual income for that period was $13,710,436, or a negative four percent. And while that might not sound like too much, it relates to $640,116 less than we have budgeted.
Other sources of income have been a little higher than projected, so our total income for the year now stands at $20,238,171, which is one percent under budget projections.
Last month I mentioned that our financial planning team, which includes some of our district superintendents and field pastors, is working hard to create a new model for church finances once we have sold the Pasadena property and have relocated to a much, much less expensive facility.
As we work on that new financial model, our goal is to provide a means by which local congregations will have funds available for local evangelism and outreach, perhaps better meeting facilities, and other uses local administrative teams will determine. The amount of funds available will be based, of course, on the amount of total donation income each congregation contributes, minus their share of corporate overheads and fixed expenses.
For example, once a congregation has reached a certain minimal level of donations, contributions in excess of that amount will be available for local determination and use.
What we are working on now is the level of donations necessary to establish an appropriate base level of income that will then allow funds to be available at the local congregation level. Those base amounts will be determined by a formula that takes into consideration donation amounts from 1999 and 2000. The number of members on a local church roll and regular attendance might also be part of the equation.
When we presented this potential model to the district superintendents, they were excited about the possibilities for congregations to have funds available for local outreach and evangelism. They wanted to present our models to their pastors right away. However, the models were not fine-tuned enough to present an actual financial picture.
In the meantime, we are plugging in real donation amounts from each congregation and creating levels or types of congregation for determining base amounts.
I wanted to discuss this new financial plan with you now, hoping it will encourage you to realize we are moving ever closer to our goal to provide local church funding. I also hope you will realize that the amount available for local use will depend on your donation amounts as a congregation.
Your pastor receives a monthly report showing the amount donated by the congregation. He receives only total amounts, never what individual members or families contribute. That report shows how much the congregation donated for the current month vs. the same month one year ago. It also shows how much the total for the year-to-date is compared to the same period the previous year. It will be important for congregations to have that information so they will know what base amounts are necessary before local funding is possible.
For the Month For the Year-to-Date
Income
Donation Income $ 1,796,497 $ 15,955,592
Other income 205,974 4,282,579
Total income 2,002,471 20,238,171
Expenses 2,721,528 22,686,623
Net loss to bank reserves $ (719,057) $ (2,448,452)
Copyright © Worldwide Church of God, 2000