A Debt Free Church (by Stephen Simpson)

As you know, our church is opposed to going into debt. Pastor Osborne has often told us of the strange looks he has received when telling people outside our church of our "Debt-Free" stance.

Here are some thoughts I've had about our Debt-Free Church:

• A Debt-Free church sets a good example for its members. If a church borrows money for something it wants but can't afford, what message does that behavior send to the members of that church? It encourages them to borrow money to buy things that they want but can't afford. In contrast, our church is teaching us that saving money actually works. When something is needed, we save up for it and then pay cash.
• A Debt-Free church fosters a Stress-Reduced Workplace. Guess how many staff meetings I've been to where we sat around wondering if enough money will come in to pay the mortgage payment? ZERO.
• A Debt-Free church demonstrates Godly contentment. A patient church is a content church. Our church demonstrates contentment with what God has provided. We have refused to get ahead of God's plans.

I praise God for a church that teaches me not only from the pulpit, but also through its actions. Are you thankful that your church is debt-free?

Sacrificial Giving (by Stephen Simpson)

This coming Sunday is April Faith Day. Our Capital Campaign will come to a close. Most of you know that for the past three years our church has been raising and saving money in order to build and expand our facilities. You may recall the desserts that we held three years ago. Pastor Osborne gave presentations and asked us to consider making a pledge towards the campaign. One thing that stuck in my brain was the concept of sacrificial giving. Pastor explained that gifts toward the Capital Campaign were to be extraordinary gifts. They were to be gifts over and above our regular giving.

At the time of those desserts, Nicki & I were very newly married. We both worked full-time jobs. We prayed individually and together about what God would call us to pledge. God brought both of us to the same amount. We agreed on that grand total and decided to break it down into equal monthly contributions, in addition to our regular tithes. We were certain that it was going to be a huge sacrifice; it was definitely stretching our "budget."

Fast forward three years to the present time. Much has changed! We have been blessed with two girls and have moved into a larger house. Nicki went from her full-time job, to stay-at-home Mom, back to working a few hours a week. All this means our "budget" was stretched even more than planned. I'm sure many (if not most) of you have also experienced some significant life changes these past three years.

This month, by the grace of God, we were able to send in our final monthly contribution. PRAISE THE LORD!! We have been so excited to look back and see what God has been able to accomplish. We certainly could not have done it on our own! But, as I have thought about our pledge, I have thought again of the concept of sacrificial giving. I have asked myself, "Was our pledge a sacrificial gift?" What did we have to sacrifice? What did we give up in order to give more? I can honestly tell you that our pledge truly felt like a sacrificial gift. There were times when we worried about how we would meet our monthly commitment, and it felt like we were sacrificing tremendously. But, if I'm honest, I can't really look back and provide a list of the specific things that we sacrificed. We never went hungry, and we were able to pay all of our bills. In fact, we were even able to pay off some of our debts early. We never ran out of clothes to wear. We still went on vacations. There were still Christmas presents under the tree each year, and we still exchanged birthday presents.

My point is this, God has blessed us tremendously. He has provided above our needs! I don't know about you, but I feel like I have truly grown spiritually through our giving. I look forward to the next Capital Campaign because I want to grow even more. Maybe next time I'll come closer to the true meaning of sacrificial giving.

The Stewardship of Resources (Pastor Osborne)

(from Pastor Osborne)

Stewardship of Resources is serious business and God's will is that we give it serious attention. This demands that we have the right perspective on our resources and that is possible if we have the right focus on our Source. Everything we have, every earthly source, comes from a heavenly Source. God is our faithful Supplier and it is His plan that we be faithful stewards.

Our tangible resources fall into two categories: monetary and material. All resources, whether monetary or material, are the result of God's favor and blessing, not one's personal achievements. Therefore, we must consciously dedicate those resources to Him.

Regardless of the amount of money you have, it can be stewarded in a wise and profitable manner. There are three things to do with money:

1. Give it cheerfully to accomplish God honoring purposes.
2. Spend it reasonably to meet personal needs and fulfill God honoring personal desires.
3. Save it strategically in order to extend value and to keep meeting God honoring needs in the future.

Some have been blessed by God with a lot and some have been blessed by God with a little, but we can all give generously, joyfully, and sacrificially.

Stewardship Month & April Faith Day 2009 (by Pastor Osborne)

(Author: Pastor Osborne)

We have traditionally made the month of March our Stewardship month. Stewardship month ends on the first Sunday of April which we call April Faith Day. April Faith day is the one sacrificial offering Faith Baptist Church receives each year. Every year we give large gifts to Missionaries or Missionary projects out of our april Faith Day offering. This year we celebrate the blessings God has given to us. Our Capital Campaign draws to a close at the end of March and if all the pledges come in and the property in Lake Wales sells at its appraised value we have a projected total of $2,427,572.44 to the praise of God's Glory. We want to celebrate God's goodness by giving two gifts this year.

• A $10,000 gift to missionary evangelist Patricio Oliva who is doing an incredible work for our God in South America. Patricio along with his interpreter Melody (Dooley) Priest has been in our pulpit and been a great blessing to our people

• A $10,000 gift to Jared Malcolm who is our Faith's 100 Missionary to Brazil. Jared, along with a team of 20 from our church will be traveling to Brazil on June 7 to finish building the house that Jared will be living in (pictured here). this gift would finish the work on the house and furnish it as Jared stays in Brazil to assist the missionaries and Brazilian people by providing a quality working camp facility.
  

With great joy we can sing To God Be the Glory great things He is doing here at home and overseas.