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Dear
Fellow Christ Followers,
One seldom laughs very loudly at the age old question, “why
did the chicken cross the road?” That’s because there
are so many versions of the answer. Well, my favorite answer is
funny when applied to the question, but very serious when applied
to the present financial status of Wesley Memorial, regarding our
2008 pledge efforts. The answer that applies both places is, “because
he had to lay it
on the line.” Realistically, that answer is the only answer
that this letter can honestly be about.
Telling it straight. Telling it all. Telling in faith. We all are
part of God’s great and serving church called Wesley Memorial.
We all share in its ministries. First of all, you need to know that
each of you who pledged for 2007 did an outstanding job of fulfilling
your promised covenant to God’s church. We finished well!
God called us to many new
places of service this past year. Increased worship opportunities,
increased local and global missions and outreach, and new Christian
education dreams for children, youth, and adults, have been sweet
manna for those seeking to be fed....Children and parents of children
are coming in large numbers. Youth ministry is growing in numbers
and
spirit-led ministry. We now have four worship opportunities, with
our newest Horizon experiences averaging nearly 300 per Sunday,
while our sanctuary and chapel services average 400 or so. Our newest
worship experience, The Beginning is just two years old, and now
averages around 110 worshippers, with 10-12 new visitors every Sunday!!
God’s church is ALIVE with callings upon our lives. What just
may be missing are our “ears to hear” and “our
lives to commit in total surrender and faith.”
How in the world could we be short on our pledges for 2008? How
could people alive in Jesus Christ ever fall short on anything that
glorifies God? But.....we are! There it is...“laid on the
line.” We are NOT a “We-They” church, even though
we are often tempted to lean that way. What we are... may not be....what
we MUST be...a “We-in-Christ” body who will never allow
anything to hush the winds of God’s Spirit.
Dear sisters and brothers, the “on the line” straight
word is that we are about $121,000 short of where we MUST be. The
church staff and finance teams have done some REAL pruning of the
budget. It is not a budget of waste or haste. It is rather, a budget
of prayer and care! People of faith will always be challenged, but
people of faith must always refuse to let life in service to God
even flicker with symptoms of weakness and death.
It is Lent. There are wildernesses out there lurking to mislead
us and fail us with programs that suffer, staff that may have to
be terminated, and a staggering chaos of mis-direction. However,
a wilderness can be a “God-thing.” For it is there we
are shaped, formed, molded, pruned, and purified. Dear people of
God, we should never fear ANY wilderness. For it is in those times
of bleak and dark threats, that the people of God rise up and cry
out, “in you O God, and in You alone, will I put my trust.”
We need each of us to rise up, find a sacrificial offering to be
made to God’s glory, not
to a church budget. It is called a church budget, but if our eyes
are upon Jesus, it is nothing less than singing, “I want to
be more like Jesus in my heart.” What it really is....is God’s
people worshipping in every dollar we give and use for ministry.
Can
you....will you.....give additional gifts of money or pledges? It
is simply that! We must! We must hear from you by February 22! The
good news was that the chicken made it to the other side after “laying
it on the line,” and TOGETHER and only TOGETHER with CHRIST
can we make it ANYWHERE. Let’s get it done! Questions can
be asked of all of us who have worked so hard on the budget. We
welcome them. We believe in God’s leading and we believe that
this annual financial projection is the ministry of God’s
calling…waiting to be heard and carried out!
Together
we Serve,
The Financial & Stewardship Ministries of Wesley Memorial: Trustees,
Finance and Every Member Commitment
Please
send any additional monies or pledges to Bob Duncan or Deanie Simmons
at 336-884-2204, bduncan@wesleymemorial.org,
or dsimmons@wesleymemorial.org.
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