The elders meeting for July began at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, July 25, 2023, with Vice Chairman Todd Swift leading the meeting and opening our time in prayer. Todd thanked the Lord for his grace and many blessings upon our church and asked for wisdom for the elders as they worked through important issues during the evening.

Mike Holloway read article 13 of the London Baptist Confession of Faith of 1869 regarding the topic of "Sanctification." It was encouraging to consider how God's work in Christ through the Holy Spirit continues to grow and change us over many years as we become more mature in Christ. 

Our financial report for the month was one of mixed results. Giving for the month of June was well below our planned budget for the month, and that moved our year-to-date giving through June to $682,113, which is $87,952 below our plan of $770,067. 

On a more positive note, our monthly expenses were $3,811 under our planned spending, and that brought our year-to-date expenses to $628,323, which is only $2,720 over our year-to-date planned expenses. This leaves our net income for the year at a slightly positive $5,551. Please continue to pray for our finances as we move toward the end of our fiscal year on August 31, 2023.

This then led to a discussion regarding our new budget for the ministry year that begins on September 1, 2023. The fact we paid off our mortgage loan on our facility in June gives us more flexibility as we look ahead to the next ministry year. 

In light of the fact that we expect to have some financial challenges, we set a target budget for the next fiscal year of $875,000, which is a reduction of over $56,000 from our budget this fiscal year. This will reduce our weekly giving needs by over $1,000 per week starting September 1. 

In a couple of other matters, the elders have approved the presentation of some new deacon candidates to the congregation during August. The specific date has yet to be determined. 

Also, we are planning to replace the vent socks in the auditorium. That work should start on a Monday in mid-August and should reduce the sound of the HVAC system in the auditorium. No Sunday service disruption is expected from this installation. 

The meeting was closed in prayer at 8:20 p.m. Our next meeting is scheduled for August 15, 2023.