Basic HTML Version
amount being received as loans than the preceding year, by last
year, about 12% of all the money we received came in the form of
LOANS, not as REAL INCOME in tithes and offerings. We had to show
these loans on our books as DEMAND loans -- subject to repayment
ON DEMAND. The amount had grown large enough that by the end of
last year it did damage to our financial statement.
Yet we were using 80% of the money received as loans IN
CARRYING ON THE WORK. At the beginning of this year I had to
explain this to you Co-Workers. I asked all who could to turn
their loans into outright donations. Many did. I asked all others
to turn the loans outstanding into 5-year loans, under which we
would be legally bound to repay not more than 20% in any one year.
Again many responded, but many didn't.
As of now I am glad to report that after seven months our
books show only ONE-THIRD as much in DEMAND LOANS on our books as
at the end of last year. We still carry a larger amount on our
books in demand loans than we would like, but we have made very
good progress on this problem in seven months.
I now must once again ask all who possibly can, to cancel
your loans and turn them into outright donations -- and If you
cannot do that, to CHANGE your loan into a 5-year loan. I have
assured you that, if some emergency arises unexpectedly and you
find you seriously NEED more than 20% of the loan returned, we will
do our best to try to return to you as much of the loan as
necessary -- even all if necessary. And I feel we would be able to
do so -- but it will HELP THE WORK greatly If you will change the
loan to a 5-year loan so we are not LEGALLY BOUND to repay more
than 20% in any one year. I will feel we are MORALLY BOUND, as far
as we are able, and I feel you know you can trust us on that basis.
But NOW I COME TO THE CRISIS PROBLEM OF THE MOMENT!
Since we have cut down so drastically on asking for new
loans since the first of this year, we have received VERY FEW such
loans. Co-Workers and Brethren, with a 65% INCREASE in the scope
and effectiveness of GETTING OUT THE GOSPEL in the past 12 months,
we simply CANNOT CONTINUE to keep the Work alive much longer, on
only an 11.03% Increase in funds!
What has CAUSED the cash income to go down from 30% to
11.03% while the outgo to conduct the Work went up 65%? The
answer: THE FACT WE HAD THE USE OF ALL THAT LOANED MONEY LAST YEAR,
and we are receiving SO LITTLE money as loans THIS year!
Now I said we planned, on our budget, a 25% increased
expenditure for this year of 1969. And the financial report I have
just received from our business office shows that, in actual tithes
and offerings -- REAL income, exclusive of loans, our income for
the first seven months of this year has actually been 24.6%
increase over last year! So you see, the ONE PLACE the Work is
being hurt now is in the fact that last year, WITH the cash to use
from the LOANS, we had about a 25% increase, or more, -- THIS year,
with so FEW loans coming in our TOTAL money available for use in
the Work is only 11.03% increase, while we are having to pay out,