Financial Update

- Matthew 6:21

It is the goal of the OroNaz Finance Team to keep this church family updated on our financial blessings and challenges. Through this expanded Financial Connection we will share biblical teachings that direct the decisions made by the CLT and we hope you can find application to your life as well.

This month we’ll focus on investing money.

For the past six months we have focused primarily on our relationship with money. Now that the foundation of our perceptions has been laid, what does the Bible say about what we actually do with money?

In Genesis 41, we find Joseph’s story giving us our first clue:
“Let Pharaoh appoint commissioners over the land to take a fifth of the harvest of Egypt during the seven years of abundance. They should collect all the food of these good years that are coming and store up the grain under the authority of Pharaoh, to be kept in the cities for food. This food should be held in reserve for the country, to be used during the seven years of famine that will come upon Egypt, so that the country may not be ruined by the famine.” (‭‭Genesis‬ ‭41:34-36)‬

Joseph is viewed as a wise individual in charge of many things, second only to the Pharaoh of Egypt. Joseph was commissioned to set aside portions of their crop in preparation for the famine that would come. In the same way, we should also prepare for the future. If you are currently in a season of abundance, set portions aside for future needs.

We should first set money aside in preparation for emergencies. Financial experts often suggest having 3-6 months of expenses set aside in reserve.

Joseph’s story suggests that we should also set money aside for an upcoming known expense. This may be a small savings account or it could mean to begin saving for college when your children are younger. Regardless, we can financially count the cost and be prepared for what is coming.

Finally, we should also set money aside during our working years to prepare for retirement. Some financial experts suggest setting 15% aside for future retirement‭‭. Ecclesiastes‬ ‭11:2‬ tells us to “Invest in seven ventures, yes, in eight; you do not know what disaster may come upon the land.” As we diversify our investments, we can better overcome the bumps in the road that we may encounter.

No matter the season of life or individual financial circumstance, this Genesis passage is instructing us to set aside a significant portion of our income to prepare for the future. _________________________________________________

We are keeping the church family updated on our financial blessings and challenges. Please pray and/or give as God leads.

April is the 2nd month of the annual budget year that runs March 2024 to February 2025. Thank you for your continued financial commitment; it is a testament to what God is doing in us and through us.

Our Pastor, CLT, Treasurer (Joey McCoy) and Finance Team welcome your questions and feedback. Please email the Finance Team at finance@oronaz.org to start a conversation.

FINANCIAL CONNECTION ARCHIVES: Click the month below you'd like to view.
APR 2022     MAY 2022     JUN 2022     JUL 2022     AUG 2022    SEP 2022    OCT 2022    NOV 2022     DEC 2022     Jan 2023   No FEB 2023 report 
MAR 2023   APR 2023    May 2023       Jun 2023     Jul 2023     Aug 2023    Sep 2023        Oct 2023      Nov 2023Dec 2023Jan 2024No Feb 2024 report

As part of the governments recovery plan to stimulate and shore up the economy during the early days of the COVID-19 Pandemic, the Church Board approved us applying for the Payroll Protection Plan (PPP). Working with our Bank, the church was eligible to receive a $10,000 Grant and was approved for $98,000 in payroll protection, which was a loan with a forgiveness provision. We have weathered this pandemic, keeping our staff employed during this time. The church has followed all of the Federal Government’s provisions for the forgiveness of the PPP, and after submitting it to the Bank, they determined that we would need to repay $10,000 plus a small amount of interest accrued after approval, they determined that the remainder, $98,000, was forgiven. Because we spent the money from the PPP for payroll and mortgage payments, we were able to hold back the money budgeted for these things in a restricted account as they were paid. At the end we had set aside out of our budget the full amount of $108,000. Below we have charted this for you. The amount of interest was $81.45, leaving us with $97,918.55.

With $97,918.55 funds available, the Finance Team discussed that we need to use some of the money to help others, not just for ourselves. The recommendation to the Church Leadership Team was to pay a 10% tithe off the money to help others, and then use the rest in a prioritized spending plan developed last year for extra funds above the budgeted amounts. More on the prioritized spending plan later.
 
The Church Leadership Team approved the Finance Teams recommendation. The  tithe on the forgiven amount was decided to be split in two gifts: the first 5% ($4895.93) was allocated to World Missions (NMI) to give to those in need on the mission field, the second 5% was for the same amount,  and was allocated to Local Missions in our area.
Our World Missions Council (NMI) split their money and gave it to two projects:

• $2,447.97:  Project 1 – NCM COVID - 19 Response:  “As the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues, Nazarene Compassionate Ministries is committed to acting in compassion as we respond together throughout the crisis, including the long-term needs that will go beyond immediate risks and dangers. Together, we can continue to be formed by Christ to respond in love, care, patience, devotion, and boldness.”  More details at: https://www.ncm.org/covid19 [ncm.org] and https://issuu.com/ncm.magazine/docs/covid-19_digital
• $2,447.96:  Project 2 – NCM The Shechem Children’s Home: “The Shechem Children’s Home is a short-term assessment center for children who are survivors of online sexual exploitation of children (OSEC). This is a form of human trafficking where images or videos of children performing sexual acts are sold over the internet. It is a growing problem globally and, in the Philippines, where Shechem is located.”  More details at: https://www.ncm.org/shechem

Our Local Missions designation for the other top 5% ($4895.92) was split into four gifts:

• $1223.98: Gift 1 – Caring for Women Pregnancy Resource Center: Caring For Women is a nonprofit pregnancy resource center. We have helped teens and women in Butte County with free services for over 25 years. The Pregnancy Resource Center offers a friendly, caring and confidential atmosphere. More details: https://caringforwomen.life/index.htm
• $1223.98: Gift 2 –The Axiom Youth Center: The Axiom is a Youth Center in Downtown Oroville Focused on building platforms for success for students to realize and utilize their untapped potential. More details: http://www.theaxiom.org/
• $1223.98: Gift 3 –The Greater Oroville Homeless Coalition: The Greater Oroville Homeless Coalition is housed in the Hope Center to assist in-crisis individuals and families keep their homes. They work to end homelessness one individual or family at a time, whether you are in trouble of losing your housing or if you are trying to find housing. More details: https://www.facebook.com/OrovilleHomelessCoalition/
• $1223.98: Gift 4 –The Oroville Rescue Mission: The Oroville Rescue Mission is a religious non-profit organization which serves the homeless and disadvantaged in the Oroville area and its surrounding communities. It is affiliated with the Association of Gospel Rescue Missions. More details: https://www.orovillerescuemission.org

Prioritized Spending Plan Distribution of Remainder: $88,126.30
Last year as part of our budget process the Finance Team and CLT set up what we are calling the prioritized spending plan where extra funds above the budgeted amount would be distributed as follows: 75% ($66,095.03) was allocated to debt repayment on our construction loan, 10% ($8,812.67) has been set aside for our Maintenance Team to use on the many needs of our campus and buildings, 5% ($4,406.33) has been set aside for Local Compassionate Ministries future needs, 5% ($4,406.33) has been allocated to our NMI team for future needs, and the last 5% ($4,406.33) has been set aside for the CLT to aid our church ministries and their needs.
We have been truly blessed! We will continue to steward God’s finances to the best of our ability. Any questions feel free to email finance@oronaz.org

Joey McCoy, Treasurer and the Finance Team