Pastor Tim’s September Message
As we enter the fall season, I have some exciting news to share. We have received two substantial financial gifts recently, one from Larry Twisdale and the other from Suzanne Zeok, which will significantly impact our ministry here at St. Philip. One major facet of this is that we now have an endowment for the first time! The idea of an endowment was first broached by Finance Committee member Bruce Trant perhaps a year or more ago. My guess at the time was that it would probably not be established until after my retirement. Boy, have I never been so glad to be wrong! Between Larry and Suzanne’s gifts, we now have an endowment of $250,000, which is the amount you need to begin utilizing it. We could not thank Larry and Suzanne enough for their generosity and investment. Praise God for them both!
Apart from the endowment, the Twisdale gift will also go towards Families Together (one of our three main Outreach partners) and a Marketing and Branding campaign for our congregation. Towards this end, a Task Force (chaired by Don Alexander) has recently been assembled to begin visioning about how visible, accessible, and hospitable we truly are. The Task Force encourages you to take the survey concerning our congregation (what we do well, what perhaps we could do better) in our weekly E-news or monthly Epistle newsletter. Your perspective will be greatly valued.
One thing that I must emphasize is that neither of these gifts is going to be for anything in our annual budget. Therefore, we must not grow complacent in our own financial giving, thinking that these gifts are going to meet the budget. They are not.
We must remain vigilant in our financial giving and pledges to meet our budget. Please correct any statement to the contrary that you may hear.
Speaking of finances, I have some more good news. A member has just stepped forward with a $5,000 matching gift to go towards our budget. I am not sure, but I suspect it may have been given to try to remedy our recent $29,000 deficit. We were doing well this year, but then we had a very low income for the month of July. To be clear, the matching funds apply to anything you give above your normal, pledged giving. We thank and praise God for this member’s generosity.
Pastor’s Wednesday Bible Study resumes on September 16 at 10:30 am and 6:45 pm! We will begin by studying the Old Testament book of Ruth, one of two biblical books named after women (the other being Esther). We encourage everyone to attend and participate, as we always have thoughtful reflection, meaningful conversation, and wonderful fellowship. This is the perfect opportunity to increase your biblical literacy and deepen your friendships within our community of faith.
Our annual Stewardship Fall Campaign begins on Sunday, September 20! Our theme this year is “Where Your Heart Is,” and our supporting scripture is John 7: 38: “Out of the believer’s heart shall flow rivers of living water.” We will have a series of inspirational “Temple Talks” given by congregational members over a few weeks, and we will conclude the campaign with Celebration Sunday on October 18! We give thanks and praise to God for your faithful discipleship in this congregation.
Sharing the Love of Christ,
Pastor Tim
