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additional offerings, over and beyond your tithes and regular
offerings for the Gospel Work.
For this SPECIAL BUILDING FUND I have to ask you to simply
squeeze it out of money you would not, otherwise, have sent in for
God's Work -- by sacrificing something you would have spent on
yourself or family, as an added, EXTRA offering IN ADDITION to
tithes and regular offerings for the Gospel. Now please
UNDERSTAND, I am not asking you to go without food or needed
clothing or necessities of life. I don't mean that at all. But we
are in a time of prosperity and high living standards in the United
States, and nearly every one of us does spend money on pleasures,
and things we don't really need -- and all such of us can -- if we
allow the living CHRIST to make our hearts willing -- give up some
of these things, and send in, EVERY MONTH, an added SPECIAL
offering marked specially for THE SPECIAL BUILDING FUND.
I realize some of you may be on small and limited pensions --
or public welfare aid -- or something of the kind -- and you are
not in the category described in the paragraph above. Some of you,
I surely realize, are UNABLE to contribute to this special fund.
If so, no explanation is necessary. If you can't make this extra
contribution, we'll understand -- and just ignore it.
But to all the rest of you, we must realize that those who
CAN, need all the more to be as generous in this as God makes
possible -- for those of us who CAN must make up for those who
CAN'T! I am simply asking each of you to do, as YOUR PART in
the glorious and great Work of God, WHAT GOD HAS MADE POSSIBLE.
Now we have to plan our budget A YEAR IN ADVANCE. It is VERY
IMPORTANT that we KNOW a year in advance HOW MUCH we may allocate
for the BUILDING FUND.
In just a few days, the contractor firm we have selected to
build the dining hall on the Pasadena campus, will expect me to
sign a binding contract covering progress payments for the next
year or fifteen months. I MUST KNOW WHETHER I CAN DO IT, or
whether, because our Co-Worker family will not back me up, I must
refuse, and then take in fewer students next autumn. For the past
two years we have been able to accept only one out of every SEVEN
students who apply for admission. THAT STOPS THE WORK OF GOD!
Jesus Christ has never forsaken this Work -- AND I KNOW YOU WON'T!
Our architects are now writing up the contract, according to
terms verbally agreed to, with the contracting firm selected to
build the new buildings on the English campus. The first unit of
buildings is to begin March 15, and the company is guarantying in
this contract completion by March 14, 1966 -- exactly 12 months --
allowing us 16 months for progress payments, and with NO INTEREST
for the four months they will carry us AFTER completion.
I MUST KNOW WHETHER THIS SPECIAL BUILDING FUND WILL ALLOW ME
TO SIGN THESE CONTRACTS!
These contractors expect me to BIND ourselves to these
payments. But I DO NOT ask YOU to bind yourself with a real pledge