March 17, 2009
Screeching Halt
My thought on the effects of the economic crisis as it relates to churches has been centered on the decline of charitable contributions. Until I read an article about church foreclosures. Its one thing for small community churches to tighten their belt, but it’s quite another thing to sustain sprawling religious campuses. When this crisis hit 18 months ago many churches were in the process of expansion and have huge mortgages. You’ve got to admit that the Lord does have interesting way of putting a cease and desist order on the building of towers and the storing of treasures.
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Gail;
-----There may be something interesting on the flip side of the foreclosure coin. A few years ago I had an experience with a mega-church wannabe storing up cash treasure. Although the leaders would not admit it, they were saving to buy a bigger piece of land upon which to build “for the Lord”. As you might expect, the interest rates of money markets and CD’s were too tame for their taste. They wanted more. So they had about $300,000 socked away with a Christian financial institution which loaned its funds only for church and seminary building projects.
-----These church leaders were quite proud of this arrangement, because, until they were able to start their own project, their money was helping others to build “for the Lord“. And I admired them for the idea. They were serving their purpose and others’ purposes by simply investing their money through this institution. But they were not quite proud enough to be open with the congregation about either saving the money or investing it without FDIC coverage. (Not that the FDIC is sure protection henceforth.)
-----I don’t know how things are faring with this church today; they decided Satan was my buddy and booted me through the back window. But I had told one of the elders that whatever they did, they needed to be honest with the congregation and themselves about both saving the money and subjecting it to the higher risk. I suggested the additional risk was not a problem, as long as attitudes about the money were right. Since it was the Lord’s money being put to the Lord’s use, if the debtors failed to repay their loans so that the institution collapsed, then the church could simply consider herself as having made contributions instead of investments. That drew a big smile! But I don’t think they ever fully informed the congregation. These last few months, I’ve often wondered if that church still has investments, or if it has succumbed to having made a sizable contribution.
Love you all,
Steve Corey
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