We'll Have to Pray to Make It
December 27, 2007
I was delighted by our church's recent decision to increase our budget by something like 23% for coming fiscal year. Now, there is some context for this. The 2007 budget involved a scaling back, as the church began the year without a senior pastor. In the last six months, our attendance has been blessed with increase. Moreover, by calling me to the pulpit, the actual commitments for 2007 ended up being higher than the budget reflects. But still, our new budget involves a whopping increase. The increase mainly occurs in three areas: 1) the calling of a new assistant minister; 2) deferred maintaince on our building; and 3) an increase to our missions program.
I comment on this for two main reasons. The first is that I have come to the belief that most of our church budgets are too low. Most especially, we are not giving to missions in the way that we should. In the midst of our great affluence, and at a time when the Holy Spirit is moving with such power in so many developing nations where money is scarce, we should be extending ourselves significantly above our current level of commitment. But this is true in other areas: we are not as aggressive as we should be in our local outreach and in other important areas of ministry and mission. We have developed a retreat mentality in which we are all-too-happy to have our own nice church situation, without a zeal for the world lost in darkness.
I comment on this for two main reasons. The first is that I have come to the belief that most of our church budgets are too low. Most especially, we are not giving to missions in the way that we should. In the midst of our great affluence, and at a time when the Holy Spirit is moving with such power in so many developing nations where money is scarce, we should be extending ourselves significantly above our current level of commitment. But this is true in other areas: we are not as aggressive as we should be in our local outreach and in other important areas of ministry and mission. We have developed a retreat mentality in which we are all-too-happy to have our own nice church situation, without a zeal for the world lost in darkness.
