Hello! I've been working on this particular post for a while, since I think it's important stuff. I didn't know when the right time would be to share it, but I have a good reason today...
We just got set up with Google a couple days ago so that Ridge Church could receive online financial gifts. I even blogged about it. Unfortunately, there are some issues with Google's Merchant Services and it looks like they will keep us from processing gifts with them any more. (I gave twice to check out the service and it worked fine... What can you do?)
I'm not going to "hate" on Google, since I like Google, I use GMail, Google Reader, Google Apps, pretty much Google everything, and this blog isn't going to be a place to make angry comments about anyone or anything. I will give "props" but not criticisms. My belief is that criticism belongs in a personal conversation, preferably face-to-face. So, let me just say that we're exploring some other options for online giving, and we are committed to making giving easy for all of you who plan on financially supporting Ridge Church!
Fortunately, this ride on the "Steward Ship" won't be a "three-hour tour!" I just wanted to share a little bit about Ridge Church's financial philosophy. (It seems like that should be two "f" words or two "ph" words. English is weird that way.)
Anyway, there are a few "bullet points" that should serve to make our financial ideals clear. Since we are a "church plant" (a new church, from scratch, from the ground up) this kind of stuff is important to share clearly and publicly. We want to be people of the most reliable stewardship ethics. We serve a holy God, and He deserves our commitment to honoring Him with our funds. (If you think about it for very long, you'll realize it's all God's anyway.)
While the Bible is quite clear that greed is a very naughty thing that can lead to big personal issues, and it says alot about personal financial management, it doesn't tell the local church many specifics on how to spend its money! But, that doesn't mean that it's impossible to come up with some solid standards for churches in the realm of financial management.
Tomorrow, we'll talk about some simple Ridge Church guidelines that we are committed to and we believe fit well within the Bible's teachings on financial ethics.
Now, go enjoy your Friday night... Do something fun! :)
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