Increasing our RPM's

I sent this out as part of our volunteer newsletter yesterday, but not all my readers are able to volunteer.
So I though you might be interested to read this brief financial update from Connections.
But we warned, I do share the details.
It's God's church, it's His money, so I figure, why not just let people know where we stand?
So here you go...

Connections had the blessing of starting with a strong level of giving by a small group of people.  We hoped that we'd see a natural upswing in giving as more people got on board. 
More people have gotten on board.  Between our two worship services we have been over 200 people each week.  But giving has not gone up in the past several months.

This means two things:
First, it means that many people are not taking seriously the bible's teaching on giving.
Second, if the people of Connections do not give, then Connections is limited in what we can do.
(God is not limited, just us.)

Where does this leave us? 
The good news is that we can continue doing what we are doing.
The bad news, we can not add staff, more programs or a ministry center if giving does not increase.

And folks, I do not want to be a church that is done growing, done doing things, and ready to level off.
Moving forward and advancing God's work is just too much fun!

So I'm going to go back to the same challenge I issued to that small group before we even launched Connections:

We need more RPM's!
RPM's (Rotatations Per Minute) are how we guauge the power of an engine.
RPM's is how we'll get more power as a church.

RESOURCES- PRAYER- MINISTRY

Follow the logic here:
RESOURCES: When we invest in something, we care more about it.  I don't care about your car, I didn't invest it.  However, I maintain and care for my car, because I paid for it.  The truth is, we care more about church when we invest in it.

PRAYER: When we care about someone it comes naturally to pray for that person.  So if you invest in church, you'll care for the church, and you'll be more prone to pray for the church.

MINISTRY:  When we are praying for our church, teh church will be blessed.  But more, we will be compelled to engage in the ministry of the church.  Of this simple fact I am convinced.

So my challenge to you as we come into the final stretch of 2009:  
Increase your RPM's at Connections.

Our budget per week was set at just under $3350.
Our average has been $2573 per week.

If 100 people start giving $10 more a week we can get to our goal and move forward with all our plans!

And that's how I'd prefer this happen- a higher commitment by the many, not the few.