This is why our church refuses to establish an endowment fund and so live year to year on a “faith budget.” If we are doing what God wants us to do, He will make sure we have the money we need. If you start sinking your money into endowment funds, over time that money controls your church, and the pastors realize they can simply live on that money and no longer have to evangelize or carry out the Gospel.
My old church lost over 2/3 of its members over the gay issue, and yet it has enough money to operate into perpetuity, even though they may only get 20-30 people a Sunday. And remember, they also save money by not having to have things like ministry outreach, or children’s and youth programs. Nor is it a problem that they are only down to one minister. So the small number of non-Christians, primarily homosexuals, that have taken over the church can spend more money on promoting the homosexual agenda.
BRILLIANT move on your new church. I’m a Catholic, so there’s no chance of changing the fiscal policy, but I do hope to someday participate in the founding of a college, and we plan to make self-sustaining a high priority for that reason.
Most of the not-for-profit charitable entities simply have to have a charter which agrees that at the demise of the organization, all remaining assets will be contributed to another qualified entity. Thus, watch these liberals drive off everyone down to a “board of directors”, then sell the real estate and contribute the proceeds to “homosexuals for Jesus”.
This is why endowments are a moral hazard. They make your organization (not just churches, but any member-based group) a target for Leftists who want to seize the endowment. This is what happened to the universities.
NEVER have an endowment. Make the organization have to live on donations from the membership. This will drive away the Leftist locusts.