Every day, we are bombarded with news about the biggest houses, hottest cars, hippest styles, newest restaurants, and on and on. Even young children are subjected to commercial appeals.
The fact is individuals derive meaning and purpose not from the material world, but from their relationship with God. This relationship is enhanced through interaction with the community of faith – the church, which we call the Body of Christ. We draw strength from interactions with other people who share our faith.
An unavoidable fact is the church must operate in this world. As members of Christ the King Church, we must provide for the worldly needs of the talented and dedicated pastors and staff members, maintain our facilities (and service our debt), and help the needy in our community and around the world.
All this costs money. Last month in this space, we discussed how the congregation’s regular giving - an important measure of our stewardship – is not adequate to support our ministry programs and service the debt that we took on to fund our new facilities. Currently, we are transferring about $18,000 per month from the “Bridge to the Future” debt service and debt reduction fund in order to make our monthly mortgage payment.
When the topic of stewardship is raised, many members of the congregation ask, “What should my family be doing?”
As leaders of the congregation, we recognize that families must provide for food, shelter and other essential needs. Also, all of us on Church Council are grateful for the congregation’s generous support of our ministry. In 2004, members provided $1.15 million for the operating budget, the building budget and the Bridge to the Future campaign.
Addressing our stewardship challenge does not require complex solutions: Everyone should give; everyone should give regularly; and all of us should give according to our ability to give.
Each individual or family must make that final decision, giving thanks to God for what He has given us.
Here are some statistics that suggest what we could accomplish if each individual and family decided to increase its regular giving by 1 percent of income for a full year:
Christ the King church’s 330 “giving units” (individuals or families) contributed an average of about $3,500 for the operating budget, the building budget and the Bridge to the Future Campaign in 2004. According to U.S. Census data, that is about 3 percent of the average household income in the five ZIP codes surrounding Christ the King Church.
If that “average household” increased its regular giving by $1,165, or 1 percent of its annual income, and that commitment was shared by 330 families, the congregation’s income would increase by about $384,000 per year.
What would this require from the “average household?” Less than $25 per week.
Now, consider what we would accomplish if all who are able increase their giving by 1 percent of income each year.
Such an increase – $25 per week from each family – would enable us to meet our debt service obligation from regular giving; address the needs of our growing congregation; plan for future growth; and increase support for hunger programs; for missionaries, like Jon Fielder, who is working in an AIDS hospital in Africa; for SEARCH, the Houston ministry for the homeless; for the Christian Community Service Center; and for many other important programs serving the poor – as Christ instructed us to do.
For some members, $25 per week is a burden. But many of our members have resources that would enable them to increase their giving by a greater amount.
Here’s an example: In 2003, many members of the congregation made three-year pledges to the Bridge to the Future campaign in addition to their regular giving. As that commitment is fulfilled, some families have determined that they will continue their regular giving at the increased level.
We suggest each family that is able start with a commitment to increase its regular giving by 1 percent of income. If each family started today, we could have a significant impact on the congregation’s finances in the final four months of the year. Then, please consider increasing your family’s giving next year.
We also encourage all members to give regularly, either through the offering during worship or through Simply Giving, the automated giving program sponsored by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans. The Church must pay its bills each month. However, about 25 percent of its revenue was received in December.
Each week during worship, we acknowledge that our offerings are signs of God’s gracious love. Please consider what we can accomplish if we share what He has first given us.