Edwards Financial Updates

April 2006

Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders. 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12

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As the dust settles and we are getting down to the nitty-gritty of parish life we are thankful that, at least for the moment, we do not have the burden of having to raise finances hanging over our heads. However as the year marches on I am beginning to realize that by the second half of the year we will have to once again raise awareness of our needs. Whilst the pledges of ongoing support have kept us afloat, we have not received many new supporters this year, so the once off gifts given last year are being eaten into. Please pray about this. I am pleased to say that our plan of buying a house instead of renting one will save our fund a significant amount of money. Whilst we are drawing down on some of the “housing allowance” to pay our mortgage, it is not nearly the same amount it would have been if we had rented a house. Please tell others about the ministry here in Broome, and they too may catch the vision.

Of special need for the church (not us personally) is to replace the aging and now deteriorating (just about dead) data projector. This has been an essential tool for ministry here not only in the Sunday services but also for running outside and extra events. We will need to replace it before May when we will begin our Introducing God AV presentation outside. Replacement cost for the data projector is about $3,400 . The church has also taken on a volunteer administrator / receptionist and needs a new computer and office furniture for this position. Estimated cost is around $2,000 . Please consider if you could help out the church for either of these needs. Donations for these items can be sent to “Broome Anglican Church”, PO Box 158, BROOME, WA, 6725.

February 2006.

Psalm 148 Praise the Lord .Praise the Lord from the heavens,praise him in the heights above. Praise him, all his angels,praise him, all his heavenly hosts. Praise him, sun and moon,praise him, all you shining stars. Praise him, you highest heavensand you waters above the skies. Let them praise the name of the Lord ,for he commanded and they were created. He set them in place for ever and ever;he gave a decree that will never pass away.
The pledges have been steadily flowing in and our funds bank balance at the Diocese is encouraging. Unfortunately some budgeted amounts have already blown out – for example our relocation is going to be about $1000 more then expected (higher transport costs). We have also realized that we have not budgeted for some expenses like flights and accommodation each year for official Diocesan functions and further deputations – please let us know if you have any creative ideas about this. The Lord is merciful and we are confident he will suitably provide. The provision of a house for the first 5 weeks has also saved the fund a significant amount. A generous personal gift was a considerable help for our personal budget in our holiday travels over Christmas. Again, a huge thank-you for your support. If you have any questions about the ministry in Broome or its finances please do not hesitate to contact us or the Diocese of North West Australia.

December 2005

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given,

and the government will be on his shoulders.

And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

(Isaiah 9:6)

Praise God that he already has provided a significant proportion of the funding required for us to minister in Broome in 2006. In addition to this many have pledged ongoing support in either, weekly, monthly, six monthly or annual amounts. When these pledged amounts are taken into account then it is with much overwhelmed excitement that I can say we have now reached the financial needs of the diocese to put us into ministry in Broome for 2006 and have begun to reach into our needs for subsequent years! PRAISE GOD. We have always trusted that the Lord would provide, but did not comprehend that he would be doing this through the enormous sacrificial giving of our ministry partners. We know that many have done without to be able to give to this ministry. This spurs us on in our hopes for Broome. Might God be given the glory in all that he does in this ministry!

November Update

Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things;

his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him.

The Lord has made his salvation known

and revealed his righteousness to the nations

Psalm 98:1-2.

We continue to be astonished that so many have been so generous with their prayers and money. We praise God daily for his provision. Our fund now stands at just under 60% of what is required to keep us in ministry in Broome for the first year, and we know that there are others who wish to help!

One of the major expenses for the church in Broome is the cost of housing. To rent a 4 bed house costs around $20,000 p.a. The one that the current Assistant Minister is in has just had its rent upped by $1040 p.a. and it only has 1 small living area, making it difficult to have a meeting with anyone when the family is at home. I am hoping that I can have my study in the church hall but I am told that it is very uncomfortable in the summer.

As the Psalmist says, it is the Lord who works salvation for all nations. We are honoured to be a part of His team, and look to Him daily for all that is required for his mission.

October update

Praise God for his goodness and mercies as he continually reminds us that it is his mission and not ours. The Lord has touched people's hearts and wallets and our funding continues to grow. Due to some very generous giving our kitty now stands at $15,300. This equates to a little over 20% of our needs for the first year. Please continue to pray for the fund raising. I (Lachlan) am going to preach and be interviewed at a couple of churches in Perth over the next few weeks. Bishop David is also preaching at a number of churches in the Eastern States over the next month or so. It is a very humbling thing to walk, cap in hand, into a church particularly if you don't know anyone in the congregation. Pray that we may be wise about how to do this sensitively. A few people have asked us what we will do if we do not raise all the funding we need. Friends, we are going to Broome no matter what happens in this regard. It may mean that Bec or I need to work part-time in secular work to support the ministry. We are confident that the Lord will provide.

September update

A huge thank you to all those who have already contributed to our financial needs. To date we have received mostly once-off donations which have amounted to a little over $9,000. A good start, and somewhat relieving to have this in the kitty. We have had a number of people also pledging monthly amounts. Some of these automatic deposits have already begun, helping to contribute to the money already in the kitty, and some will begin in the new year. The monthly pledges are what is going to keep the ministry going in the long term (and keep our anxiety levels down). We are hoping that over the next few months more people might commit to a monthly donation so that we do not have to worry come the new year. I had an interesting thought - If 100 people gave $2 per day then we would meet our budget!! (Now we just need to find 100 friends!) Again a huge thank you. Your contribution will be for God's work in his kingdom.