Wrestling with Change
Reflections by Rev. Nancy Muth
I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? Isaiah 43:19a
Dear Friends,
Change is not always easy or a welcome thing, but it is often necessary. Some unfortunate but necessary changes have been made at The First Presbyterian Church in Germantown due to our current financial situation.
Our church has been blessed by having an endowment that was made possible from gifts given by former members and friends of the congregation decades ago. The monies were wisely invested and grew over time. For more than ten years now we have been relying heavily upon the endowment to fund our church’s ministry and mission. In fact, we have been relying so heavily on these monies that the endowment has been decreasing in value.
Decreasing Endowment
Our Administration and Finance Committee has warned the Session that we need to rely less on our endowment monies by reducing our expenses each year. Therefore, for the last several years our church budget has decreased while the Session has tried to maintain our same level of ministry and mission. In addition to cutting expenses, elders have been discussing ways to increase our income.
Increasing Income
To that end we formed a new non-profit of the church, Creative Germantown Initiative which is now responsible for several of our church programs such as the Concert Series, our basketball and drill teams, Bread and Cup Coffee House and the summer Freedom School program. The hope is that these programs will be more appealing to receive outside funding if they are part of a non-profit organization separate from the church.
This year more noticeable changes have had to be made as a result of decreasing expenses as it was necessary to reduce personnel costs. Therefore, our two church secretaries Kathy Charlesworth and Sally Vaughn, have moved from being full time employees, working five days a week, to working four days a week. This was a very difficult decision for the Session but one that was necessary. This change not only affects Kathy and Sally but all of us.
Sharing the Load
As a congregation we need to step up. We cannot have the same expectations and also we all need to pitch in to help around the church. You will be hearing more about volunteer opportunities in the future. In the meantime, elders will be counting the offering and posting giving (which was a task of Kathy) and David Daugherty will be our newsletter editor (a former responsibility of Sally).
Change is not always easy or a welcome thing, but it is often necessary. Change can also open new doors that can lead to healthy and positive new beginnings. My prayer is that this is so for The First Presbyterian Church in Germantown.
Finally, I ask you to remember Kathy and Sally in your prayers, as well as our church as it moves through these difficult days.
See you in church!
Nancy