What are the implications on our finances for pursuing what we believe God has called us to?
God has been so good to us in terms of financial provision and answered prayer. Currently we are more or less meeting our monthly budget of 30 000 Euros. We have just over 2 months of ‘reserve’ in the bank.
As we look forward to increased costs (particularly in monthly staff costs but also in necessary equipment purchase, venue hire, etc.) we are looking at a monthly budget of about 40 000 Euros by the beginning of 2016.
Fundamentally we trust God to provide all our needs. He has been faithful in the past, and he will be faithful in the future.
To cover the deficit between what we are currently getting and what we need until monthly giving increases to cover outgoing, we need to:
- Pray like crazy! Praying not only works(!) but it also does something in our own hearts, helping to underline that it is God and not people who ultimately provides for Redeemer.
- As leaders, faithfully lead people into a healthy vision for giving regularly, sacrificially, and joyfully into the local church.
On the 7th of June we celebrated 5 years of being a church and we had a Gift Day giving into the next season. So far approx. 38 000 Euros has been given which is amazing!
What is the Gift Day money going to be used for?
85% of the money that comes in will be focused on helping us build capacity to fulfil what God has called us to in this next season.
Practically, we see the money being used for the following things:
- Extra costs from new staff and interns.
- Extra costs for new sound and visual equipment (so that the people who are sitting ‘behind’ the Perspex ‘curtains’ can see and hear properly).
- Extra costs on venue hire for church events that no longer fit into our office (larger prayer meetings, leaders meetings, special events, etc.).
Of the 15% that we are giving away, we are giving money into the following things:
- 50% set aside for blessing The Hague
- Half of this we have allocated to give to Stichting de Haven. In September we plan to do a specific outreach with them to the women working in the red light district of which you will here more closer to that date
- The other half we have decided to give to the Stichting Straatpastoraat. This is a great organisation that provides care both physical and emotional to the poor and needy in the Hague.
- 50% to support some amazing work coming out of a family of churches we are connected to in Zimbabwe led by Scott Marques. Scott has sent a video message about the gift (see below).
