Giving Tuesday

You might have noticed that your email inboxes, social media feeds, and maybe even your snail mailboxes are full of messages from your favorite non-profits and organizations encouraging you to consider them on this day that has become known as Giving Tuesday.  The Tuesday after Thanksgiving became known as Giving Tuesday back in 2012 with the purpose of creating a "global generosity movement unleashing the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and the world."

This idea that generosity can transform our communities and world is not a new one to folks of faith. The prophet Malachi said this:

Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in my house, and thus put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts; see if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you an overflowing blessing. -Mal 3:10

Much like the invitation of Giving Tuesday, the Prophet Malachi helps us hear God's call--and how good is God that we are invited to participate in care for the world and the ministry of the church? This was a favorite verse of our dear friend Dick Scheetz. Dick was a believer in the principle that giving is a gift, one that overflows with blessing, and he was always inviting everyone he knew to give more--including the church! Dick knew that this was not just a call to individuals, but as a community as well. 

HPC responded to this invitation by allocating 11% of the church’s tithes, offerings, and income to missions. For the 2021-2022 year, that is projected to be approximately $41,000. This money will be allocated by the Generosity Ministry and includes both giving to Mission partners, allocating funds for Benevolence and Special Needs, and for the Pastors Discretionary Fund. At the November Session meeting, the Session voted on a set of guidelines to direct the way we allocate funds. Click here to see how we are developing the website to offer clarity on these practices.

This $41,000 for mission giving is not the cap on the way we give. We give generously through the time of our staff and through the use of our building. Financially speaking, 63% of the budget goes to staff and 20% goes to building.

This past weekend we used our building to host approximately 30 people from the Chubby's Project and HPC community who were looking for a place to celebrate Thanksgiving. We then took the overflowing blessing of leftovers and made an additional 30 Thanksgiving meals for those who regularly receive deliveries from the Chubby's project.

When it comes to staff, this year we allocated our funds to build up our staff who are dedicated to caring for the children and youth in our community. Deborah Jodrey has not only worked to build up our weekly Youth Lunches for HPC youth but also to design and develop the Hopewell Youth Collective, with the goal of serving all the youth of Hopewell and all the churches of the Hopewell Council of Churches. Additionally, Katie Rosenson has helped us jump feet first into offering Godly Play during worship. The blessings of this of this work are on full display each Sunday as our youngest lead us in the Passing of the Peace--a few of whom are pictured below.

We are currently half way through our church's fiscal year and up until this point we have received $191,521 through tithes and offerings (not including designated gifts), and we have had $201,326 in expenses, creating a gap of $9,805. Consider what God could do through you if we not only fill the gap--but continue fill our storehouses to overflowing. We say "continue" because (as many of you know) we received a substantial bequest from Alex and Eunice Sharipen. At the recommendation of the Sharipen Bequest Taskforce, Session has tithed 12.5% of this fund, dispensed a portion on amazing projects like updating the Sanctuary and starting the Hopewell Youth Collective, and set up an endowment which will continue to fund big projects that promote new ministry through HPC. For more on this, click here. We hope that the recently started projects we have grown to love and our general operations can continue to be sustained through you.

So again we ask you to dream with us about what God could do through you if we not only fill the gap--but continue fill our storehouses to overflowing!

Barb Pauley, Chair of Financial Stewardship
Pastor Melissa