Tight budget taps out church funds_63003

Posted: 6/27/03

Tight budget taps out church funds

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

The Baptist General Convention of Texas Church Starting Center cannot fund any more church starts for the rest of the year.

The center has committed all budgeted monies to support recent church starts. The BGCT funds up to 50 percent of new churches' budgets for a maximum of three years.

BGCT consultants are looking for new avenues of funding church starts through associations and sponsoring churches for the rest of the year. More funds will be available to the center in January.

Funding for this year has been stretched particularly tight for several reasons, explained Abe Zabaneh, director of the center.

BGCT Cooperative Program funds, Mary Hill Davis Offering gifts and income from the New Church Fund all have declined, he noted. These are the primary sources for church-starting funds.

Last year, the staff budgeted for 150 new churches but actually helped launch 264. The ongoing financial commitment to these recent starts takes the bulk of the budget, Zabaneh said.

The center typically commits its entire new church budget before the end of the year, but this is the earliest a shortfall has occurred, Zabaneh said. Last year, the center committed the budget by October.

BGCT staff members have helped facilitate 94 church starts this year, well below their goal of 259 churches. Despite the drop, Zabaneh remains optimistic. He hopes the center will start 150 churches with the help of partners by the end of the year.

Zabaneh encouraged Texas Baptists to give faithfully to the BGCT Cooperative Program, Mary Hill Davis Offering and the New Church Fund.

“Our new churches are very effective at reaching people for Christ,” Zabaneh said. “They're very evangelistic. New churches are a good investment, because not only do they reach people, they give back. The more churches we start, the more churches we have that give to BGCT Cooperative Program ministries.”