Charity…….
We must not only give what we have,
We must also give what we are.
Desire Joseph Mercier
When I was asked to write an article on our Building Fund, this quote came to mind. It is one of 15 rotating quotes that act as a screen saver on my home computer, and I thought it was a perfect description of Advent Lutheran. We are foremost a church of people, individuals who have a common bond and who share the grace of God. I think we would all agree that when we think of church, of Advent Lutheran, we think first of the people in the church and secondly as the church being a place of worship, a physical structure. As individuals, we all have the opportunity to share of ourselves, to reach out to those in need, to lend a helping hand and to offer comfort to those who are hurting. But we’re fortunate to belong to Advent Lutheran where we can do so much more, not only for the members of our congregation, but for the community as a whole and to those individuals who desperately need our assistance.
Most of us are familiar with the many wonderful ministries of Advent Lutheran. But there are outside groups that rely on our “physical church” to offer support to many organizations and individuals. We also assist Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, Alanon, Food Addicts Anonymous, Overeaters Anonymous, Boy Scouts of America, Girl Scouts of America, Spanish Church of Gilroy, Morgan Hill Parent Child Nursery School, Second Harvest Food Bank, Women’s Sprituality Group, Martha’s Kitchen Community Dinner, Good Grief and others that I’m sure can be added to the list. Sharing the church buildings with these organizations is the “We must not only give what we have” part, of the Charity quote.
When we pledge to the Building Fund, we’re not just pledging to have a “physical church” for worship and our ministries, we’re pledging to help those individuals who are struggling with addictions, or who may have their only meal of the day at our church. We’re also helping children grow in a positive Christian environment. Many of these groups pay to use our facility, but some simply can't. This is the “We must give what we are” part of the Charity quote.
Now for the “ah ha” of this article. Our monthly fixed obligations for the Building Fund include $9.443 for the mortgage and $425 to the city of Morgan Hill for our in lieu of loan. In January of 2009, we received $6,647 which is $3,121 less than we spent. This isn't the case every month but based on pledges from our “Here I Am, Lord” campaign it looks like we will take in less each month than we are spending. We're going through some tough economic times, worse than most of us have ever experienced, but Advent needs your help. Something as small as adding $5.00 to your weekly envelope would bring in $2,000 to $3,000 each month. We need to get creative and I would appreciate any ideas you may want to share with me or any of the members of the church council.
Brad Bannister
Stewardship Chair