From the Minister - Dr. Laurel Hallman

Sunday, October 2, is Commitment Sunday, the day we bring our pledge cards to church to fund the church’s 2006 operating budget. I am always moved by this worship service in which we re-commit ourselves and our resources to the work of this incredible congregation.

I was lucky enough to watch my parents when they came home from work and then drove off to the polls to vote. At the time, I thought it was a rather mysterious but important act I was witnessing. As an adult, it has never has crossed my mind to miss an election.

In the same way, I knew my parents pledged to their church. It was mostly my Mother’s doing. When I was old enough, I received a little box of envelopes for my weekly offering in children’s chapel. Giving to the church is as natural to me as breathing. I know that many in our church have not had that family experience. Some are even surprised to find themselves in a church, much less asked to support one.

Everyone who is here, and certainly everyone who has joined our church, knows that its ongoing strength and vitality, the values we represent, the very real work in the world we do, depend on our collective generosity. Before Sunday, October 2, sit down with your family and talk about the church. Talk about what it means in your lives. Talk about what would be missing from your life and from our city if our church didn’t exist.

Look at the DVD that you will receive in the mail from the church. Think of the people who are here. Then decide what you will pledge for the coming year. (I use 5% of my income as a guide: that’s half of the biblical tithe. I give the other 5% to other institutions and causes I value.)

On Commitment Sunday, come — join with the rest of us as we, too, pledge ourselves and our resources to the work of our
church in the 2006. You will be glad you did. We hope you will all respond enthusiastically.
We encourage you to consider making your contribution by automatic bank draft (Electronic Funds Transfer) or automatic charge to your Visa or MasterCard account. Paying by either method eliminates the need for you to write weekly or monthly checks and provides the church with a steady income stream. Contact Tim Lozon in the church office (214-528-3990 ext.102) for information.