Christ United Methodist Church
YTD through May 2010 Highlights
2010 Receipts: We received $424,969 in May versus a budget of $553,256, for a giving deficit of ($128,256). Our year-to-date giving totals $2,578,930 versus a budget of $2,883,842, for a deficit of ($304,912). Last month our giving deficit was ($176,655), so we lost substantial ground in May.
A deficit of $300,000 has always been our “magic number” for corrective action. This year we have reached that number faster than other years.
How to read this chart: This chart represents the cumulative actual giving for the year versus the cumulative budget. The darker horizontal baseline (at $0 on the y-axis) represents giving that equals the budget. If the 2010 line is above the baseline, then our giving exceeds our budget. If it is below, then our giving is less than our budget. 2007, 2008 and 2009 data is shown for comparison purposes.
The Rest of the Financial Statement. Our net operating deficit ballooned to ($395,808), which is $201,249 worse than we have budgeted. Last month our deficit was ($274,667). As we have said in the past, this is a reflection of the tight budget we have in 2010. We missed our giving budget by $128k, and our operating deficit grew by $121k.
Our operating expenses are favorable by $130k through May. However, we are only able to absorb giving deficits in the same amount as our expense cushion. This year’s deficit is greater than our cushion. Any net deficit to the budget will require us to cut expenses to make it up.
Receipts deficit to budget (includes program receipts) ($331,337)
Expense favorable variance to budget $130,088
Net operating deficit to budget ($201,249) *need to cut expenses
by this amount
The following is a brief summary of major variances in actual expenses versus the budget.
- The Staff Parish Relations accounts are under budget by $46,000. This is attributable to lower than expected employee expenses (i.e. staff expense, relocation expenses, minister spiritual growth, training, travel and entertainment) and the open clergy and student director positions that have been open through April. We now have no open positions, so the favorable variance should not grow substantially over the remainder of the year as it has in past years when we had multiple open positions.
- Facilities expense is under budget by $35,000. Most of this is due to lower than expected utility expenses.
- Food service expenses are $9,000 over budget, but food service revenue offsets the higher expenses so there is no budget impact.
- Most ministry budgets are on target. Missions expenses are over budget by $19,000, but this is a timing issue that will work out over the next few months.
Cash. In May we received $453k for operations, and our expenses totaled $570k, for a cash deficit of $117k. Our cash position (including temporarily restricted funds) deteriorated from 32 days cash on hand in April to approximately 27 days in May.
What Is the Finance Committee Doing About Giving? Last month we published a list of things that the Finance Committee and the Staff have done to increase awareness of stewardship and our financial condition. The list includes:
- Preached sermons on giving and stewardship.
- Had live and video testimonies from faithful givers.
- Had a “reverse offering,” giving money to people in a worship service with instructions to spend it on Kingdom work to get their giving juices flowing.
- Written lots of letters to givers.
- Published giving data in the bulletin.
- Devoted an entire issue of Tidings to stewardship.
- Held Crown Financial studies small group and Sunday school classes.
- Had a Crown Financial seminar on site.
- Had the Finance Committee go to Sunday school classes to give financial updates.
- Had the Administrative Board Chairperson give financial updates in worship services.
- Developed a Stewardship Devotional Guide to help members read Scripture, mediate on and pray about God’s stewardship principles.
- Mailed a copy of The Treasure Principle to every household.
- Put our financial statements on the web.
- Visited donors.
- Introduced the Kroger/Schnucks/Bensinger’s Incentive Program to help pay for church-sponsored trips, retreats and ministries.
- Reminded families to teach their children to give by adding $1 to the collection plate.
We have to keep giving and stewardship in front of the congregation. The two times we didn’t, in December 2006 and suspending the pledge drive in 2009, we experienced decreased giving.
Here are some things in the works for 2010 (in addition to what we are already doing):
- We have already begun producing a video highlighting all of the ministries we support through our members’ giving so they can see their money being used to build God’s Kingdom.
- We are considering re-introducing Crown studies in small groups and Sunday school classes.
- We brought up an old idea for a potential love offering that was a “mini-T3” campaign. The general consensus, although not unanimous, was this is not the time to introduce a campaign of this nature. We need to promote the budget, not special projects, to improve the health of the church.
Special Funds
Balances as of May 31, 2010
Special Funds:
|
Community Life Fund
Pastor's Discretionary Fund
Missions Fund
Music & Worship Fund - Traditional
Music & Worship Fund - Contemporary
Student Ministry Fund
Recreation Fund
Marston Benevolence Fund
Bouknight Fund for Church Improvement
Children's Ministry Fund
Prayer Ministry Fund
Total Special Funds
|
|
$ 20,146
$ 2,640
$ 41,928
$ 17,406
$ 7,944
$ 24,581
$ 9,801
$ 20,389
$ 19,900
$ 10,061
$ 5,827
-------------
$180,624
|
Clearing Funds: Balance should be zero at year end -or- program ceases when funding runs out
|
Administration Fund
Children's Music
Disabilities Fund
Miscellaneous Clearing
Missions - Agency Funds
Missions - Christmas Project
Missions - VIM - Youth
Missions - VIM Accounts
Missions - Zambia Missionary
Recreation - In His Steps
Incentive Fund
Sunday Night Worship Fund
T3 - Leadership Training in 10/40 Window
T3 - Support CUMC Members in Missions
T3 - Home for Binghampton Ministry
Total Clearing Funds
|
|
$ 5,471
$ 4,396
$ 16,664
$ 66,305
$305,040
$ 30
$ 4,273
$ (9,321)
$ 2,811
$ 20,251
$ 20,235
$ 1,382
$131,155
$ 97,500
$ 90,000
-------------
$756,190
|
Endowment Funds: Endowed funds, the income of which can be used for the specified purpose of the fund.
|
Capital Property Maintenance Endowment Trust
Grant Scholarship Fund
Nellis Scholarship Fund
Total Endowment Funds
|
|
$ 1,001,336
$ 187,956
$ 11,646
---------------
$1,200,938
|
A person’s giving is between him and God, no one else.
We should keep in mind that the Lord Jesus gave His life not primarily to secure a private relationship with each of us, but to make for Himself a church of people consecrated to Him (Ephesians 5:25). And this church shares a mutual responsibility for the spiritual growth of its members (Galatians 6:1-5), including our use of money. There are more than 2,300 verses in the Bible about money and possessions, and 15 percent of everything Jesus talked about was this subject. So it is an important part of spiritual growth and discipleship.
God doesn’t need our money, but He does want it because He wants our hearts. He knows that our hearts follow our money (Matthew 6:21). And as it turns out, giving to God is actually in our own best interest. We should give to God not because He needs it, but because we need it
(Philippians 4:17).