FOLLOW YOUR HEART!
Letter to
Members
__________This
file is available in Rich
Text Format version for editing
Brochure for
Members
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file is available in Rich
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Faith at Work -
Comments
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is available in Rich
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Statement of
Intent
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file is available in Rich
Text Format version for editing
Monthly Giving
Chart
Message from your pastors
More than ever before, our turbulent, broken
world needs to hear the Good News of God's love in
Christ. Our church lives to bring light into
darkness and warm hope into confusion and despair.
Thanks for sharing this vital mission, and
partnering with us to make it possible.
We are privileged to share this ministry with
you at Faith Lutheran Church. We pray for God's
blessings on you and those you love, that you may
find the spiritual growth you seek here at
Faith.
Your pastoral staff
Peter Schmidt
Steven Thompson
Barbara Pyle
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Dear faithful member of Faith Lutheran
Church
One of our own teen-agers said it better than
most of us. She was one of our youth who made the
trip to Appalachia to participate in a national
teen program to help the very poor.
She summed up her experience: This week has
shown me how easy it really is to have God the
focus of your life every day.
She reflects God's message at Deuteronomy,
chapter 8, which says in part: When you have
plenty to eat, bless the Lord your God for the good
land he has given you... When you have plenty to
eat and live in fine houses... do not forget the
Lord your God.
While you look to serve God, your church looks
to serve you. I hope you will tell us how well your
church serves you by completing the questionnaire
on the back of the enclosed brochure.
The Statement of Intent, also enclosed, gives
you and your family opportunity to consider
prayerfully how you will give to God's work. Please
bring this card to church and place with your
offering or return in the enclosed en-velope.
We have only one ministry: to serve God in every
moment, wherever we are, whatever we are doing, as
stewards of the gift of life itself. Thank you for
being such a steward.
Sincerely,
Your friends on the Stewardship Board
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Follow Your
Heart!
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Many of you say that you are fair share
givers.
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Fair share givers know that our church
runs on a budget and are willing to contribute to
cover that budget. Our forecast for the year 2002
is $636,000. Our number of giving households is
1,211 Therefore it will cost $525 per household to
keep our doors open in 2002, with an anticipated
increase for 2003. But fair share givers know that
some need to give more than equal share to make up
for those who may not be able to give. Ability to
give should always be a factor. Follow your
heart!
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You may be a faith-based giver - a spiritual giver - one whose
motivation is to return to God part of that which comes from God.
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You are the ones who know that giving is a
by-product of faith. You understand the concept of
first fruits. And you have many disciplined
ways to meet your first-fruits goals.
Some of you set up a family God account, for
church and good works. Others arrange for automatic
bank transfers to avoid missing gifts that are so
hard to make up. Others simply write a monthly
check. Bless you for your spiritual maturity.
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Some of you tithe, or are inching up to
eventually become tithers, giving 10% of your
income, to church and charity.
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You already know first hand the truism that if
is better to give than to receive. Some of you were
taught that tithing, in itself one tenth of your
income brings back blessings ten-fold. Others
simply find great joy in acting as God's stewards,
taking care of His world in multiple ways, giving
back in dollars, time, talent and caring. You're on
a wonderful faith journey.
If tithing isn't for you now, perhaps if is in
your future. Follow your head! You may want to
begin by inching up! If you want help, call our
church office at 282 3309.
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Some of you are occasional givers. Perhaps,
as in the days of Abraham, you bring the fruits of
your harvest once a year.
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Our blessings come to us in various ways. And we
share them accordingly. It helps if you formally
express your intent so that your chuch leaders can
be wise in their planning. We want to pay our bills
on time without having to borrow, as we sometimes
must do. Follow your heart!
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Other options to make your
dollars speak for you
Sharing a
Legacy.
Receiving an inheritance is a special blessing.
Sharing some of it with your church or charity
makes it a greater blessing.
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Automatic Bank Transfers
Many of you are pleased with your decision to
arrange automatic bank transfers. It's painless and
failure-proof. And it means that your congregation
can pay its bills in a timely fashion. You may call
the church office for forms. Giving in this way is
truly simple and frees you up from the guilty
feeling you get when you fall behind in your
giving.
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Earning as a family
project.
It can be great fun and a learning project to
counter our materialistic world. Selling clothes at
a consignment store, holding a garage sale, or
finding another project to do together and giving
away the proceeds is a true blessing.
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Isn't It a phenomenon? What you give
never leaves you feeling poorer. We often hear
members say: We give until it feels good.
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Making a
bequest
Probably the easiest of all ways to give is
leaving a bequest. Everyone needs a will, today
more than ever, with blended families becoming more
common. If you already have a will, it is a simple
and inexpensive process to add a bequest to your
church or charity. A new Leave a Legacy project in
our area provides great opportunity for this
choice. Call the church office if you want more
information.
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What If my spouse and I do not agree?
Family harmony always comes first. Some couples
suggest compromising by increasing giving for one
year and evaluating at the end of the year to see
if their increased giving had any adverse effects.
Others with dual incomes choose to make separate
statements of intent.
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Planned Giving
Program
You will want to become familiar with the
options planned giving provides. You know how we
usually say: If it sounds too good to be true, it
probably isn't true. The exception is planned
giving. It sounds too good to be true and is
true. The many options give voice to your dollars
while you are alive or after your death. And the
fax advantages are huge. Call the church office if
you want to know more.
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It's not about how much you
give
nor is it about how you give. It's
about being an intentional giver rather than a
casual giver.
There are so many options. Follow your
heart!
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Please tell
us
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This appeal is for funds for our day-to-day
operations (General Fund). It has no connection to
any commitment you may have made to our building
funds.
Your church is always there for you through
all life's transitions:
baptisms
_____________visitation of the sick
first
communion________funerals
confirmation
weddings______________plus:
renewal of
vows_________a variety
of worship
marriage counseling
________styles and
times
parenting
help__________Christian
education
separation
counseling____fellowship
Do we meet your needs? Are there other things we
should be doing? Tell us on the form below. Pray
that we can meet everyone's needs.
Mail to:
Faith Lutheran Church
127 2nd Ave East
West Fargo. ND 58078
or respond on our Website:
www.growinfaith.org
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How much shall I give?
We're asked that more often than you would
believe. It's not a question that we can answer for
you. It's a spiritual question. We con tell you
what others among you say.
Some know that God has called them to give 10%
of their income to the Lord's work and are thinking
about tithing as an ultimate goal. To that end they
set a plan for inching up to tithing by a certain
year.
Others feel they have reached that state in
their lives and expect to begin their spiritual
journey of tithing now.
Our national church tells us that those people
who are intentional givers, who pray about their
stated intention give an average of 4.6 % of their
income.
It's not about how much we give. It's about
being intentional givers rather than casual
givers.
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It's about my church being there for
me:
____ My church is a satisfactory presence in my
life and meets my spiritual needs.
____ I have needs that could be better met.
Comments:
Name
___________________________________________________Phone
___________
Follow your heart!
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You followed Your
Heart!
Your Comments, in turn, were
Heart-warming!
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These were the first six comments we received
after our Stewardship Board distributed the yellow
Follow Your Heart packets.
1. "For the first time,
we sat down together to discuss what we should give
to our church. Before now we had always just "put
something in the envelope" on the Sundays we came.
Now we read the information in our new yellow
packet and talked seriously about what we should
give. We're happy about our decision, even though
it's a real change for us."
2. "I was surprised to
see that it costs $525 per household to pay our
church expenses. I feel I should try to give that
amount, even though I know it will be a stretch,
but I think I can do it. It was helpful to have the
information in the yellow packet."
3. "We took the
information very seriously and prayerfully, but we
did not agree on how much we want to give, but I
think I know how to work it out."
4. "I'm going through a
deep personal crisis right now and I don't know
what my income or expenses will be next year. I
want to do what's right, but all I can promise to
give right now is my love."
5. "I don't think we
needed to spend money on a packet."
6. "I've been inching up
to tithing and find great joy in it, but I think I
should arrange for an automatic monthly bank
transfer to keep my gifts timely."
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Thanks to the urging of our Stewardship Board,
many of us took a new look at our giving to our
church. Be more intentional was their
message. It's not so much about how much you give
as about being intentional in our giving . . . .
giving prayerful thought to our giving as an
expression of our Christian faith.
Their responses to the first six comments:
Comments 1 and 2: We appreciate your
candor and your serious commitment to being
intentional.., to evaluate the place of Christian
giving in your daily lives. Bless you for following
your hearts and for understanding the true nature
of our appeal for intentional giving.
Comment 3. As we stressed in our Follow
Your Heart packet, family harmony always comes
first. Bless you in your compromise with each
other.
Comment 4. We didn't quote you very
specifically, so that we protect your privacy. We
were inspired by your gracious expression. We wish
you had identified yourself so that we could reach
out to help you in your crisis.
Comment 5. Many, many of our members do
not need reminders to be good stewards, but others
tell us that they need useful information that can
help them make a decision about their Christian
caring. We want to assure any of you with the same
concern about costs, that all the thinking,
planning and production was done by volunteers,
with no professional costs involved. Carol
Hakanson, president of Brokerage Printing, was good
enough to get us the materials at a significant
discount. We are lucky to have Carol as a member of
our church. She gives us a discount on all our
printing and provides us with invaluable advice on
our communications.
Comment 6. Right on!
You can still make a Statement of Intent and
place it on the offering plate. It's in your yellow
packet.
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This statement of intent is in support of our
day-to-day ministry in what we call our General
Fund.
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Thank you for being an
intentional giver
Your participation will inspire others of us to
be more intentional in all of our giving,
reflecting our understanding of God's love.
You may want to keep this form in your checkbook
to remind you of your automatic bank transfer, or
to remind you to write your check.
Monthly amount:
year 2002 $_______ year 2003 $________
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Faith Lutheran Church
127 2nd Avenue East
West Fargo, ND 58708
Phone: 282 3309
website: www.growinfaith.org
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This request for your Statement of Intent is
for 2002 and 2003, and is in support of our
day-to-day ministry.
You will want to take that into consideration
when you express your intent, recognizing that
normal inflation rates will probably prevail.
Please bring this form to be consecrated and
placed on the altar on November 17/18. If you
cannot be present please mail it to the address at
the left. We will see that it is put on the altar
in your name.
- your Stewardship Board
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Statement of Intentional
Giving for 2002 and 2003
Name(s)
Phone:______________ e-mail
address_________________________
I intend to give $______ per month for 2002 and
$_____ per month for 2003
Please send me information about automatic bank
transfers____
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___ Please have church staff call about
special needs in my family.
___ Please have church staff call to help
me arrange automatic bank transfer.
___ Please send some information about
including my church in my will.
___ I will pray for the mission of my
church.
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How much shall I give?
Some of you ask us that
question.
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Some of you are very sincere in asking the
question. Nevertheless, we can't give you an
answer. It's a spiritual matter in which you
measure the relationship between God's goodness to
you and your ability to give.
For whatever help it is to you, data from our
Synod office indicates that persons who prayerfully
consider and declare their intent to give
contribute an average of 4.6% of their income.
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Think of us this way, as servants of
Christ and stewards of
God's mystery.
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It's not about how much I
give...
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It's about being an intentional giver.
Intentional givers
- gratefully consider their daily
blessings
- prayerfully consider their need to give and
their ability to give
- organize themselves to give on a timely
basis
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Feel free to follow
your heart!
a message from your
fellow members of
Faith Lutheran Church.
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The earth is the Lord's
and all that is in it.
Psalm 24:1
If you want help, call your church office.
Faith Lutheran
Church
a welcoming place
282-3309
www.growinfaith.org
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Giving fulfills a deep
spiritual need.
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