Letter to all church members
January 2012
At the start of this New Year we wanted to take time to thank you for your support of Christ Church, to explain how your financial support is used, to share the good news of how the church is growing and the implications of that growth on our budget.
We have been richly blessed at Christ Church to have so many members who have faithfully and sacrificially given to fund the ongoing work of this church. We thank God for each and every one of you. Despite the current economic situation in this country, with God’s providence we have nearly balanced the books in 2011. We have seen a 9% reduction in general income, partly due to the government reducing the amount we can claim under the gift aid tax scheme. However, a generous legacy and the use of a small amount of our reserves have covered the shortfall.
God is richly blessing our ministries at this time. We are seeing:
- A growth in numbers attending Christ Church! To continue to support this we have increased the budget for welcome suppers, hospitality and refreshments.
- The need to invest in existing and new leaders of ministries for the future. We are in the process of recruiting a curate and the first Growing Leaders course starts this month to equip and grow capacity within our leadership.
- The launch of Messy Church. The successful pilot has shown that there is a real desire for families to hear the gospel in an environment where they feel comfortable. We have committed time, talents and finance to this project, initially for one year.
- Demands on our infrastructure, especially in the office. The computer is now 8 years old and is becoming a hindrance, as it is running out of capacity, speed and reliability. We need to address this in 2012 as well as provide a computer for the new curate.
- The need to continue to maintain and improve our buildings. Thankfully, the necessary expenditure required in 2012 (but no more) can be funded from the remaining reserves held following the works to the church roof.
The PCC believes that it is right to continue to respond to all that God is doing through us and, in faith, has approved a budget for 2012 that currently does not balance. With our projections of income based upon the pledge forms that were returned in November and our historic trends, plus the reality of ever increasing costs, we anticipate a shortfall in income of £9,000 for 2012 (about 5.5% of donations).
So, how does Christ Church currently spend its money?
It might be helpful to know that it costs £565 per day to run the church and all of our current ministries.
Our expenditure can be broken down into the four areas shown in the chart. The highest proportion of our money is spent on mission.
We therefore need your help in continuing to grow our mission!
- Please pray about the following:
- Ask God to provide for our need to increase income by at least 5.5%.
- For the PCC as they exercise their leadership and stewardship role.
- For wisdom for Sam Rich, the treasurer, and the finance team.
- Lay before God how you may respond to the need to increase regular giving.
- If you are a taxpayer but haven’t completed a gift aid declaration then please do so, as this will increase your giving to us by 25% without any cost to you. (If you are unsure about this, please check with the treasurer).
- If you are new to Christ Church, or have not previously committed to support the church’s ministry, please prayerfully consider if you are able to do so.
To help with all of this, we have revised the booklet “Principles of Financial Stewardship” which is full of useful guidance to understand the biblical principles of giving. You will find free copies in the leaflet rack at the back of church.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact any of us and we will be happy to help. If you are in a position to increase your giving, or wish to start giving, then it would be of great help if you could let the treasurer know.
May we thank you for taking the time to read this letter and for being a part of the exciting things that God is doing in and through Christ Church.
Yours in Christ,
John, Mary, Bruce and Sam