Recently, on a Sunday morning, someone said to me, “So, I heard that this building is totally paid for.That‘s great.”

Yeah, that would be great! ’if it were true.But it isn‘t.I‘m not sure where the rumor originated, but Gary Haverdink (director of ministries and operations) said he‘s heard it several times recently, too.Additionally, he wondered if it may be that people have drawn that conclusion based on our church‘s practice of not asking for money very often.So, perhaps our decision to not be a “fundraising church” has somehow communicated that we don‘t need anyone‘s money and everything is magically paid for?

So, let me correct any misunderstandings.While it is true that the old building was totally paid off, and the property that the building sits on was totally paid off, we do have a mortgage on this new building.The decision was made because the elders (leaders at our church; see the first chapter of Titus for more details) thought it wasn‘t worth it to stay crammed in the smaller building and basically to decide not to grow anymore for several years while waiting around to save up the money to buy a new building with cash.They didn‘t think that paying interest was worse than the idea of not reaching out to any more people in the meantime.So, we applied for a mortgage and built the building.

Why does this matter?Well, I guess I wanted to let you know that the truth is we rely on your support.And just because we don‘t ask for it constantly, that doesn‘t mean that we don‘t need it.So, as the pastor, I‘m trying to walk a fine line here. On the one hand, I am happy that we don‘t pass an offering plate (see the article below for some reasons why), and I‘m happy that we don‘t have little devotionals during each service to remind you to give, and I‘m happy that we don‘t sponsor big fundraising campaigns.All of that is intentional.We hate the fact that there is a conception out there that, “all those churches are interested in is your money!”We have asked for money so rarely at Good News that I am pretty sure no one would accuse us of that.However, perhaps the other side of the coin is that some of you don‘t think we ever need it.So, the purpose of this article is to correct that, if it‘s an issue.Buildings, staffing, air conditioning, lighting, plumbing — all these things cost money.And if you are one of the people who regularly uses them, we‘d love for you to contribute.

So, that‘s it.I just wanted to make that clear, or remind you if you needed to be reminded.We believe the mission of Good News Church is a good one, and it is a mission that must be funded.We want to glorify God by teaching, training, and helping people to love God, each other, and people who don‘t know God yet. Thank you - all of you - who have supported us these past 4 years!