March 4, 2009

Editor: Brian Bakeman, 1501 NW 24^th St, Oklahoma City OK 73106

Phone: (405) 530-2067; Email: bbakeman@okumc.org; Website: www.okumc.org

On Sunday, March 22^nd, United Methodist Churches across the country will be taking an offering for One Great Hour of Sharing. This is an important offering to support the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR). This offering is used to support the administrative cost of running UMCOR so that 100% of your designated gifts to them can be used for relief efforts.

UMCOR has played and is currently playing an important role in recovery efforts right here in Oklahoma in the clean up in Lone Grove and many previous tornadoes, ice storms and floods we have faced over the years.

Your generosity for the important ministry of the United Methodist Church makes a huge difference in the lives of so many people here, around our country and around the world.

Later this month, information will be mailed out to the lay members of Annual Conference and it is critically important that every church check to make sure the information on your lay member and alternate is correct with the full mailing address in Brick River. In looking over the information currently in Brick River, it was noticed that some churches have added a new lay member without detaching the previous person and in some cases a name is there without the full mailing address.

Please take a moment this week and check your information in Brick River. If you have questions about logging into Brick River contact Mary Myers at the conference office at mmyers@okumc.org.

The Oklahoma United Methodist Foundation will be hosting Stewardship Focus Day on Friday, August 28^th. This important training event will help the lay leadership and pastors around our state learn about stewardship challenges and successes.

The workshop will feature Rev. David Bell, a nationally known stewardship consultant currently with the Michigan United Methodist Foundation office. David is the author of numerous articles on stewardship and has a clear understanding that the church doesnt have a money problem, it has a giving problem.

I strongly encourage everyone to make time to attend this worthwhile event.

By Rick Carlin

Tornadoes and hail in February could mean we are in for quite a long Spring weather season. In the event of a loss, knowing how and where to file a claim can help speed the recovery process. If any of your church property becomes damaged due to weather please remember that PACT has a 24 hours a day/ 7 days a week reporting telephone number 1-877-8UM-PACT (1-877-886-7228) or you may file your claim on the web at www.zurichna.com.

The information they will need is the church name, site number (GCFA#), date of loss and a brief description. They will also need a contact name and telephone number where they can be reached by the adjuster. Please remember to write down the claim number or reference number given to you at the end of the call. An adjuster will be in contact with you within 24 hours after you have reported the claim.

You should take appropriate measures to ensure your building receives no further damage. Take pictures and keep receipts of any immediate repairs that need to be done.

Please make sure your church also has a safety plan in the event severe weather hits when you are having a church service or function. PACT has a Safety Manual template on their website www.umcpact.org if you need a guide.

As always if you have any questions you may call me at 1-800-460-5678.

The General Council of Finance and Administration of the United Methodist Church has an excellent web site at www.gcfa.org that is filled with great resources. There are two specific resources I want to highlight here and they are the Group Ruling Request Form and the Clergy Tax Packet.

I have had several calls recently from churches needing a form from the IRS saying their church was a tax exempt organization. This form can be easily retrieved by clicking on the Group Ruling button on the GCF&A web site.

As we all start working on our taxes, an excellent resource for you to check out is the Clergy Tax Packet. There is information on new tax limits for 2009, accountable reimbursement policies, moving expenses, travel expenses and great information for local churches on filling out their tax forms.

Giving for apportionments and other missions dropped slightly in February. We collected 9.54% of our total apportionments for the year compared to the average for the past 10 years of 10.13% or a drop of .59%. The Conference Council on Finance and Administration is monitoring receipts in churches to avoid any major surprises at the end of this year. Later this week, we will continue with our survey of select churches to see how their income is coming in compared to last year.

Efforts are under way from everyone in the Conference to conserve spending and to bring to Annual Conference a very conservative budget for next year.

I promise to keep everyone informed as we journey through this year as to how we are doing financially and keeping our commitment to being the church. Its in these difficult times that people need the church to be in ministry with those who are struggling. Please keep the church and those who have been affected by the financial crisis in your prayers.