On November 8th the Omaha Bible Church Elders met at 7:00 p.m. and opened our time together with prayer for the ministry of our church, for the advancement of the gospel in Omaha and in India, and we prayed specifically for Pastors Chris Peterson and Mike Grimes who were in India ministering the Word to Living Hope Church in Pune, as well as encouraging its Pastor Vineet Sasane, his wife Sayia, and their children.

We continued our study of the London Baptist Confession of 1689, as Pastor Mike Holloway read through and commented on Chapter 31 of the Confession on Man's State after Death, and the Resurrection. We were encouraged to read about the great salvation that awaits us in the presence of our Lord, and we were motivated to be faithful servants of our Lord and Savior in light of the glory that awaits us as His children.

Treasurer Frank Barber reviewed our October financial reports with us and noted our average attendance for October was 361, which was down from 389 in September, although that drop was isolated to one Sunday in October when attendance was much lower than normal. Giving was $62,297, which was below our historical average for October and $7,987 below our budgeted giving for the month, which puts us $14,099 below our planned giving for the fiscal year so far.

This shortfall in giving was somewhat offset by our expenses being $3,483 below budget for October and $12,884 for the fiscal year so far. Pastor Mike Holloway was directed to provide a financial and facility update to the congregation on November 13th detailing the positive way we ended our last fiscal year in August of 2016, discuss the benefits of the refinanced loan on our facility, the upcoming roof project, and our present financial situation. We encourage your continued prayers regarding giving and how the Lord would lead you in this area.

We continued to discuss the opportunity we have in the area of missions in the nation of Malawi in southern Africa. Our desire is to support native pastors who can then be used by the Lord to train other native pastors to minister the gospel and teach God’s Word in their home countries. Pray for us as we seek wisdom in this area.

For the Elders, Pastor Mike Holloway