Better pay up....LOL
 

Megachurch Pastor Rick Warren Asks for Urgent Donations

LAKE FOREST, California — Evangelical pastor Rick Warren appealed to parishioners at his California megachurch Wednesday to help fill a $900,000 deficit by the first of the year

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,...est=latestnews

You gotta love the Church.....I don't think God ever wanted any of the churches to be 900,000 in the hole.....

Re: Better pay up....LOL
 

We have the same kind of meetings at our church--on a much smaller scale of course. It takes money to maintain a large assembly--and the congregation should share that expense. (All things in common, remember?) If you want the perks of attending a mega church, then don't complain about the cost.

Re: Better pay up....LOL
 

I don't want to come across as being cold hearted here, but I don't have a lot of compassion for these kinds of pleas.

We've been through very tough times here building our Church. I'm the pastor, and one year we had a huge drop in attendance. I had quit my secular job right before all this happened. The bottom fell out financially. So guess what; I had to go get a JOB!!! :eek:

We cut back, we made changes, and we did everything possible to keep the ship afloat, EXCEPT, beg for more money.

I'm still working today, running my own Insurance Agency and will do this most likely until I retire. In fact, my wife and I enjoy doing secular work (she works at the office), and I think this helps the Church to know we will take care of ourselves in the event times get tough again.

Rick Warren has a best selling book(s), a HUGE congregation, and a BIG budget. Stop begging, and start WORKING! People have a hard enough time making ends meat, and the last thing they need is another guilt trip.

JMO :newyear

Re: Better pay up....LOL
 

Wah wah!

I have to agree with you on this, it is not God's will for them to run a 900,000.00 deficit. Bad money management!

I think we are seeing the end of the cycle of the "purpose drivel works"

:D

Re: Better pay up....LOL
 

Ah, but there is a purpose in a driven life... the purpose is paying off that deficit!

I agree. Budget correctly and plan ahead-if things start to go under, don't wait til you're almost a million in the hole! (Oh, wait, or $10 trillion, either...)

Re: Better pay up....LOL
 

Doesn't his church support a lot of missions and do alot of other things that cost real money?

I think maybe he could put some of his own money into the pot to balance thinigs out for the church.

I don't think his church just exists, doing nothing to affect the world around us so I am not offended by his asking.


When you think about it, it had to be a very humbling experience for the man.

Re: Better pay up....LOL
 

Hmmm.....I don't see this as begging. Saddleback has made significant cutbacks and they're still short. I see it as asking the congregation to help with the shortfall. Rick Warren takes no salary from the church and donates 90% of his income. He also totaled up everything he'd ever been paid by Saddleback and gave it back. They make a monumental impact in thousands of lives and I think the 900k request is a bargain. I'm going to send them $100. Their request for 900k is going out to a membership of over 40,000 so proportionately, it's not that much.

I've been to their services and they make no issue of the offering, contrary to the true begging I've seen very frequently in churches.

So I have no problem at all with their request.

Re: Better pay up....LOL
 

I did not know he takes no salary from his church!

WOW!!!

I didn't know that he donates 90% of his income!!!


Maybe he shouldn't donate so much of his income so that he can help his church out when necessary.


Hopefully the members of his congregation who are able, hopefully they will step up with some cash quickly to help keep the vision alive.

Re: Better pay up....LOL
 

Thanks for the update on Mr Warren. Did not know this.

I do know one thing for certain, though. The money issue with Big Religion is a sore subject with a great majority of people in America (Not too sure about other Countries). Mega Churches that relish in lavish Cathedrals, total state of the art technology, and a payroll that may compete with large corporations, leaves many in a quandry over why they need more.

My personal experience is, our Organization is constantly begging for more money. I say begging, because that's about the only time I get a call, and this is no exageration. 14 years pastoring and the emails, regular mail, and personal phone calls are enough to make one sick. I get hammered with one offering after the next.

It's gotten to the point that I've finally cornered the brethren who call me and ask them, "Is this the only time you call me? Asking for money?"

So maybe this is why I have a chip on my shoulder. Sorry if I come across that way. After 30 years of seeing Pastors get a special plaque and a pat on the back, getting their Churches to the top of the list because of how much they gave, while the Bible clearly states that giving is a secret experience, makes me tired of these pleas.

Things get tight, and bills pile up. Welcome to the Family!! Join the people who have lost their jobs and their homes. I've got people in our Church who came from from other churches where all they did was fund raisers. Every service they were selling something, and the asking never ceased. Begging is what it became, and these folks got completely burned out. I also came from a Church were the Fund Raisers became a constant nag on people, and some left the Church because of it.

I was on the verge of bankruptcy 5 years ago. I almost lost everything. But I refused to put that burden on people who have a hard enough time getting by. Through my difficulty, I have learned much about prayer, myself, and that God loves me even if I have nothing.

What about all the people in Church who give because of the guilt trip we lay on them? What about the $119,700,000 his books have brought in (Warrens income on his books)?

Sorry Bro, but I just can't grasp the need. Keep your $100.00.

Good film we just watched; Luther. Great film that deals with this subject.

Happy New Year!! Thanks for the Christmas Card! Blessings to your family.

Re: Better pay up....LOL
 

Really... it's kind of hard to slam Warren considering the way we've all been running our country for the last 80 years.