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Dear Friends in Christ,
"I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers" (Ephesians 1:16).
Last Saturday, we celebrated the ordination of Mary Ann Harris Siefke at St. Peter Lutheran Church in Blackberry Corners. It was a joyous and sacred event. Within the service of ordination (and consecration) there is the promise of prayer. In the Address and Questions, the one being ordained / consecrated promises to pray for God's people. "I will and I ask God to help me!"
In the Acclamation by the Assembly, the gathered people of God promise to pray for the pastor / deacon. "We will and we ask God to help us!" I am always touched by the strength and the tenor of those powerful promises of prayer. My hope is that the promise to pray continues long past the services of ordination and consecration.
When I am out visiting congregations, someone will inevitably come up to me and quietly say, "Bishop, I pray for you every morning." That promise of prayer is the strength and the hope that sustains me in this office. St. Paul often encouraged the churches that he pastored to imitate him. And while there are some things that I would not want to imitate about Paul, his promise to pray for God's people, is a promise and a practice that I hold dear.
Pastors, do you pray for the people God has called you to serve?
Deacons, do you pray for the people God has called you to serve?
People of God, do you pray for your pastors and deacons whom God has called to serve?
Financial Update
NWOS INCOME & EXPENSE SUMMARY - GENERAL FUND
YTD: February 1 - May 31, 2017
Mission Support is currently 13% below budget. However, decreased expenses more than offset the lost income, resulting in positive net income of $9,069.
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2017-2018
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2017-2018
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2017-2018
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PERCENT OF
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BUDGET
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YEAR-TO-DATE
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YEAR-TO-DATE
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YEAR-TO-DATE
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BUDGET
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ACTUAL
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BUDGET
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INCOME
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Mission Support
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$1,620,000
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$540,000
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$472,176
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87%
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Other Income
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$62,500
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$20,833
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$23,478
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113%
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Total Income
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$1,682,500
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$560,833
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$495,653
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88%
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EXPENSES
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ELCA Proportionate Share
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$826,200
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$275,400
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$240,810
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87%
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Other Expenses
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$856,300
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$285,433
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$245,775
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86%
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Total Expenses
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$1,682,500
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$560,833
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$486,584
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87%
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NET INCOME (LOSS)
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$0
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$0
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$9,069
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A Few Comings and Goings
Search Team #2 for the Director of Leadership Development and Congregational Care position will be conducting interviews this week. Please keep the search team and the candidates in your daily prayers.
On Sunday, July 23, I will be worshiping with the people of God at Faith Lutheran Church in Fremont, Ohio. We will also give thanks to God for the faithful service of Pastor Bob and Jeri Young as he begins a new season of ministry upon his retirement.
2017: The Year of Grace Memory Verse
Ephesians 2:8
"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God"
Bless you,
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