Tithe & Love
Offerings to God
“Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.” 2 Corinthians 9:7 KJV
TREASURY
Texas Conference of Seventh-day Adventists PO Box 800 | Alvarado, TX 76009
TEX AS CONFERENCE
By Randall B. Terry
T
he mission of the Texas Conference Treasury Department is to safeguard the resources God has entrusted to us. The Treasury team is charged with the sacred duty to administer the tithe. Leviticus 27:30 NIV tells us, “A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the Lord.” This is a very daunting task that the Treasury team undertakes to honor on a daily basis. The past two years have been full of ups and downs. We have learned new phrases and adapted to different circumstances because of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite all this, we have continued to further the work here in the Texas Conference. Through the faithfulness of God,
10 | THE FLAME |
Biennial Constituency 2021
our Texas Conference constituents and modifications made by our administration and Executive Committee, we finished 2020 stronger than we started. It is always exciting to see church membership grow each year. Often with that growth, additional staffing is desired. The key to making that happen, though, is realizing that the Texas Conference pastors, office staff and a portion of our teachers’ salaries and benefits is covered by tithe funds. If tithe returns are low, that requires a reduction in the budget, which in turn results in a reduction in staffing. Since roughly 80 percent of the conference’s budget is employee salary and benefits, you can see where substantial budget reductions are required.
