Donations for the first quarter are just over $4.4 million—down 12 percent from last year. Needless to say, these negative numbers are not what we hoped for.

We also compare income against our projected budgets for income and expenses. While it is not fun to project income in negative percentages, reality dictates that we must.

For the past several years, income has steadily decreased, although each year, the rate of decrease has been smaller.

When we combine all the various sources of income: regular donations, festival offerings, estate donations, grants and bequests, and investment revenues, we had projected income for the first quarter to be $6.2 million. Actual income was $5.8 million—a decrease of almost seven percent.

I imagine many of you might say: "I don’t understand why income is down. I am giving as much, or more, than I did last year." Unfortunately, not everyone is giving at the same level as last year.

An even greater concern is those who have stopped giving altogether. For example, in the first quarter of 2000, we received donations from more than 17,700 households. In the first quarter of 2001 we received donations from 15,700 households. In other words, 2,000 families who contributed last year did not donate at all during the first quarter of this year.

This column is not the place to analyze why so many are choosing not to donate. Some are hurting for a variety of reasons. When people hurt, or they become disenchanted with their fellowship, one of the first things to go is their money.

So let’s all pray together that God will heal the wounds of those who are hurting. And with that healing will come the joy and thrill of participating in the work God has called us to do individually and in the Worldwide Church of God.

For the past few years, some of our negative income figures were offset by larger-than-expected estate donations. However, estate donations for the current year are not up to past amounts. Therefore balancing income and expenses has us feeling like we are in a high-wire act. The nice thing about that metaphor is that we are confident God has provided a safety net. So while we delicately walk along the wire, we don’t fear falling off.

As all of you are well aware, our ability to implement any financial changes is dependent on the successful close of escrow on the Pasadena campus. Sadly, that process now seems likely to continue into the middle of summer or even longer. To say our patience is being tested would be an understatement. But patient we must be.

I often take courage looking back on many tests and trials we have endured. In so many of them, when all is said and done, we see why things worked out the way they did.

When we were going through the trials, we probably cried out frequently, "How long, oh Lord?" Later, however, we saw more clearly that God was working all along and had a purpose in the time as well as the manner in which the problems were solved. No doubt this will be the same.

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