By Ronald
Kelly
By Ronald
Kelly
The first quarter of 1999 has come and gone. And of course that means our staff has compiled financial statistics for January through March.
The bad news is that our daily average income has fallen well below budget projections.
As you will see from the accompanying chart, daily income for March was only $91,613. Daily income for the year-to-date is $94,672.
Brethren, it is sometimes difficult to report our finances every month. I do not want to give an impression that our members are not giving generously. Just the opposite is true. Many thousands of you are giving with dedication and joy and most liberally.
The last thing I want to do is have someone feel that we don't appreciate the sacrifice so many of you make to support the work of your church. Yet, we are doing our best to keep you fully and accurately informed about financial matters of the church. That requires us to report even the most negative figures.
Therefore as you read these monthly updates I trust you will not be discouraged or feel pressure to give unreasonably.
What can we all do to meet the budgetary needs of the church? Obviously those of us involved in financial planning keep all department managers fully informed.
When necessary, we recommend budget adjustments. The hard part is that almost all budget modifications require termination of employees, and we are down to a minimum number in our work force already.
To ease the pressure, the major solution is that somehow we have to increase our income--or at least stop the ever-changing decrease in monthly income.
What that primarily means is that we need to retain our members. We need to encourage those who might be drifting away. We need to care for those who are hurting. We need to appreciate each person for who he or she is and to help that person in his or her Christian journey. We need to set aside personal feelings about doctrines and traditions and changes as we pray for one another.
Pastor General Joseph Tkach in his May member letter called on each of us to dedicate ourselves to love, serve and pray for each other, especially during this continued time of transition for our fellowship.
Probably the most important contribution each of us can make is not giving more money, it's praying for a brother or sister who is wavering or who has stopped attending.
And more than just praying for each other, actually reaching out to support every precious brother and sister in the Lord.
As we pass through this critical time of financial concern, we ask you to pray for the stability of the membership, church attendance and appropriate financial stewardship. Our loving Father wants us to spend time in his presence as we worship him in spirit and in truth.
We appreciate all you are doing as we move forward in the power of God's Spirit. We have no strength on our own, but depend solely on God, in whom we live and move and have our being.
Copyright © Worldwide Church of God, 1999