In my sermon on the Third Sunday in Advent, I emphasized that God calls us to continue on faithfully even - or especially - during those times when our hopes are not yet realized. Advent is the season in which we practice this, as we await the One whose coming has been promised, but has not yet arrived. Unfortunately, our church's current financial position also gives us an opportunity to practice continuing on faithfully at a time when our hopes are not yet realized.

I am writing to update you about the church's current financial situation.

First, 2013. We ended the month of November with a slight deficit, and it is not entirely clear whether we will break even at year's end. Donations to the church are often high in December, but we also have a large insurance bill to pay this month. So - if you have been working toward completing your 2013 pledge, or are considering a special year-end gift to your church, please make those gifts now, to help us finish 2013 on solid financial ground. (Donations received by 10am on December 31st will be recorded in 2013.)

Looking ahead to 2014, we are anticipating a decrease in income. When your Finance Ministry compared our requests from all committees - representing their best hopes for ministry in the new year - to our projected income, we were looking at a deficit in the ballpark of $50,000. In order to bring our 2014 expenses closer to our anticipated income, we have had to make deep cuts. I will be taking a 5% pay cut. Other core staff will see their salaries cut by 2%. Virtually every ministry area will see its budget cut. Our missions budget, which funds things like the Interfaith Rotating Winter Shelter, organizations working toward ecological stewardship, and more, will be deeply cut. We do our part to fund a long list of valuable national and international United Methodist ministries, including direct services to populations in need and many resources that benefit congregations, through our apportionments - annual payments to the denomination. We currently plan to pay only 70% of our apportionments in 2014.

These are painful cuts - cuts no one wants to see the church make. And yet, even with such drastic cuts, we are still projecting a $10,000 deficit in 2014. We need to bridge this gap.

I hope you can help.

If you have been intending to turn in a pledge for 2014 but just haven't gotten around to it, please turn in your pledge as soon as you can. If you have already made a pledge for 2014 and might be able to increase it, please consider doing so. Even small increases, when multiplied across the many families in our church, can add up to make a big difference. Or if you would like to make a special one-time gift to help support the ministries you value, please do so.

I want to acknowledge with gratitude that so many of you give faithfully and so generously. I know that there are families and individuals in this church who are truly giving as much as they can - and I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I also know that many of us are in ongoing discernment about what proportion of our income feels appropriate to give away, and where the church falls in the overall picture of our charitable giving. If you are in ongoing discernment about your giving, I hope you will reflect on the value of this church in your life and the difficult position we are in.

I can imagine any number of questions you may have. I have tried not to overload this letter with details. But the members of your Finance ministry would be glad to answer your questions or discuss greater detail with you: Mary Anne Ingenthron, Don Kennedy, Joe Archer, Sarah Williams, John Knight, Jim Cramer, Bill Powell, Lisa Papagni, Celeste Cron (outgoing treasurer), Susie O'Bryant (incoming treasurer) and Zora Fowler and Rita Mt. Joy (financial secretaries). Copies of the 2014 budget, or of any 2013 financial statement, are available to you - just ask. And I am also available for questions or conversation.

As always, we trust that God works through all circumstances and that we will faithfully carry out the ministries we are equipped to do. Thank you for being a part of God's work through the ministries of this church. 

Yours in Faith,

Rev. Kelly Love, Pastor