Friends, I know this might be a delicate subject, but I was just enjoying some whiskey with the ladies on the Steering Committee, and we got to talking about the considerable financial challenges our church faces in the coming fiscal year, and, well, I'm sure you all know we're going to have a heck of a time balancing our budget.
At present, the church is operating with an ongoing structural deficit of approximately $1 million per year. Growing our membership, and being better about making sure everybody tithes at the appropriate amount, is clearly part of the solution.
However, I've looked at the numbers, and I feel it would be irresponsible of us not to include Pastor Zeke's compensation package among the areas where we might employ a little belt-tightening.
For example, he is allocated $6,000 per year for auto lease payments, and his leased Cadillac Escalade is traded in every two years for a new one. And he gets $4,000 per year for gasoline.
What I'm thinking is it would probably be pretty painless for him if, when the lease is up on his current Caddy, which costs $500 per month, we were to trade it in on something like a Ford Fusion Hybrid...
...which can be leased for $300 per month. That right there saves us $2,400 per year just on lease payments, and when you consider the fact that the Fusion Hybrid gets 47mpg vs. the Cadillac's 14mpg, we'd be saving at least another $3,000 on Zeke's gas bill.
And that's not the only savings I can see us realizing in the transportation area of Zeke's expenses. For example, instead of sending him to his yearly golf junket in Dubai, why not have him enjoy some golf courses closer to home?
Anyway, I just thought this was something we should maybe consider. I love Pastor Zeke with all my heart, and I know he works very hard, but I know he also loves this church more than he loves his own life, and I'm sure he would not want to ever feel like his expenses were unduly burdening this fine organization.
At present, the church is operating with an ongoing structural deficit of approximately $1 million per year. Growing our membership, and being better about making sure everybody tithes at the appropriate amount, is clearly part of the solution.
However, I've looked at the numbers, and I feel it would be irresponsible of us not to include Pastor Zeke's compensation package among the areas where we might employ a little belt-tightening.
For example, he is allocated $6,000 per year for auto lease payments, and his leased Cadillac Escalade is traded in every two years for a new one. And he gets $4,000 per year for gasoline.
What I'm thinking is it would probably be pretty painless for him if, when the lease is up on his current Caddy, which costs $500 per month, we were to trade it in on something like a Ford Fusion Hybrid...
...which can be leased for $300 per month. That right there saves us $2,400 per year just on lease payments, and when you consider the fact that the Fusion Hybrid gets 47mpg vs. the Cadillac's 14mpg, we'd be saving at least another $3,000 on Zeke's gas bill.
And that's not the only savings I can see us realizing in the transportation area of Zeke's expenses. For example, instead of sending him to his yearly golf junket in Dubai, why not have him enjoy some golf courses closer to home?
Anyway, I just thought this was something we should maybe consider. I love Pastor Zeke with all my heart, and I know he works very hard, but I know he also loves this church more than he loves his own life, and I'm sure he would not want to ever feel like his expenses were unduly burdening this fine organization.
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