Erase The Debt is an exciting new step God has called us to take as a church.
To understand this, a bit of history is in order.
Three and a half years ago when I accepted the call to take on Church On The Lake, it was a church literally on it's
knees spiritually, emotionally and financially. You may not know, but in 2001 a man had come into the Church and posed
as a Pastor, but was in fact a con-artist. Through subtlety and deception this man was able to take control of the
churches finances and conduct many illegal transactions which benefited himself, but left the church financially liable. By
the time the church board realized what was happening and took legal action, about $265,000 had been embezzled and
the church was left holding the bill.
Through a difficult legal process, the perpetrator was brought to justice. Because of a lack of sufficient evidence he was
ordered to pay restitution for only about $65,000. Not only did this leave the church with some $200,000 in additional
debt it would be responsible for, but the man's ability to repay his judgement would take years.
You can only imagine what this did to the life of the church. The story made headlines in the two major state newspapers.
The community treated the church like a leper. Many people left the church feeling devastated and discouraged. Those
who stayed wondered if God could ever work through their church again. The members of the church government felt as
though they had failed their people. They too left some years ago. The next Pastor who came after this began the difficult
work of helping the church get back on its feet. After 18 months as pastor he called me and informed me that he would be
leaving and suggested that I come and explore taking the position.
God made it clear to both myself and to the small fellowship that remained that I was to be the new pastor. At the time the
church accountant felt the church would be insolvent within 6 months. God however had other plans. He raised up a new
board and a new congregation and through prayer and faith and giving we began to see the Lord bring increase both to
our attendance and our finances. The restitution payments were but $700 per month, but we relied heavily on it to meet
our obligations and continue to conduct ministry. One of our top priorities was directing any additional funds to pay down
the debt which had been refinanced into the church mortgage before I took the position. The first year we were able to
drop the note by $30,000. We give God praise for this.
Then something unexpected happened. The restitution payments stopped flowing in. I contacted the D.A. and discovered
that because of a probation violation, the man who had swindled the church was put in jail. This couldn't have happened
at a worse time for finances had become much tighter.
Then God spoke to us in a very clear and undeniable way as to what we were to do. Like a spotlight from heaven God
shined down on Matt. 18 and the parable of the unmerciful servant. I'll let you read the parable for yourself, but God
made it clear to us that He was calling us to walk in a greater level of faith and love than ever before. We were supposed
to completely forgive the man of his debt to us. It seemed so against my natural thinking yet my thinking was being
surrounded by such a peace and clarity that this was God's will. My heart had before been resentful of what this man had
done to this church and it's standing in the community. Now all that was being washed out as I realized that God loved this
man and still had a plan for his life. He still had a wife and two children who were living with the pain and shame of what
he had done. Their daddy was going to jail. When he got out it would be hard to get back on his feet, especially with such
a financial burden. Yes, it was his fault he was in this position. But I could not escape the powerful reality that it was also
my fault that I was in the position of deserving to go to hell when Christ died on the cross to forgive my debt of sin.
This was not a decision I could make alone. Both the board and the church as a whole had to vote before any legal
action could be taken to forgive the debt. I prayed and asked God to give the same clarity to others as he did to me. In
the following days, in what I can only describe as the spread of an infectious spirit of faith and mercy, both the board and
the church body voted overwhelmingly to obey God's voice and forgive the debt. The proper paperwork was sent to the
appropriate authorities and a full set was also sent to the man with a cover letter telling him of our decision and our
motivation. Some months later, from in jail, he sent a heartfelt letter of repentance and gratitude, which I tearfully shared
with our congregation.
In the midst of this giant step of faith and obedience for us as a church, I began to make a bold request of the Lord. I said
"God, if you would do such a thing for this man through us, what then would you do for us?" I added "Lord, could we not
expect you to forgive our debt as we have forgiven our debtors?" I prayed this because I have come to know God as a
God who rewards obedience and faith with multiplied blessings and I settled in my heart that God is going to somehow
take care of this debt that does not belong to us.
We are not sending this letter because we are in financial straights. We have been able to hire ministry staff as well as
conduct needed renovations and keep all the bills paid with a steadily growing surplus. However, as we have obeyed the
voice of the Lord before, we are now obeying again. We feel God is calling us to lay this story out for all who may be
called to join us in this journey towards total victory. We feel that God is calling us to make 2007 the year we begin to
retire the remaining debt. We believe God wants to show himself strong and to finish this story with a testimony of His
miraculous blessing responding to our sacrificial love and forgiveness.
What we are asking you to do is two things: First, pray and agree with us for this debt to be payed off and secondly, ask
the Lord what He would have you to do over and above your tithes to help with this goal in 2007. We are not putting
pressure on anyone, but we are simply trusting God to speak to those He has chosen to share in what we believe will be
a cascade of miraculous provision for everyone who participates. For it was Jesus who said "Give and it shall be given
unto you, pressed down shaken together and running over- for with the measure you use, it will be measured back to
you." Luke 6:38
If you can help please designate your giving to "Erase the Debt"
May the Lord bless you and your household with all His best.
Sincerely,
Pastor Mark Deckard
Church On The Lake
To understand this, a bit of history is in order.
Three and a half years ago when I accepted the call to take on Church On The Lake, it was a church literally on it's
knees spiritually, emotionally and financially. You may not know, but in 2001 a man had come into the Church and posed
as a Pastor, but was in fact a con-artist. Through subtlety and deception this man was able to take control of the
churches finances and conduct many illegal transactions which benefited himself, but left the church financially liable. By
the time the church board realized what was happening and took legal action, about $265,000 had been embezzled and
the church was left holding the bill.
Through a difficult legal process, the perpetrator was brought to justice. Because of a lack of sufficient evidence he was
ordered to pay restitution for only about $65,000. Not only did this leave the church with some $200,000 in additional
debt it would be responsible for, but the man's ability to repay his judgement would take years.
You can only imagine what this did to the life of the church. The story made headlines in the two major state newspapers.
The community treated the church like a leper. Many people left the church feeling devastated and discouraged. Those
who stayed wondered if God could ever work through their church again. The members of the church government felt as
though they had failed their people. They too left some years ago. The next Pastor who came after this began the difficult
work of helping the church get back on its feet. After 18 months as pastor he called me and informed me that he would be
leaving and suggested that I come and explore taking the position.
God made it clear to both myself and to the small fellowship that remained that I was to be the new pastor. At the time the
church accountant felt the church would be insolvent within 6 months. God however had other plans. He raised up a new
board and a new congregation and through prayer and faith and giving we began to see the Lord bring increase both to
our attendance and our finances. The restitution payments were but $700 per month, but we relied heavily on it to meet
our obligations and continue to conduct ministry. One of our top priorities was directing any additional funds to pay down
the debt which had been refinanced into the church mortgage before I took the position. The first year we were able to
drop the note by $30,000. We give God praise for this.
Then something unexpected happened. The restitution payments stopped flowing in. I contacted the D.A. and discovered
that because of a probation violation, the man who had swindled the church was put in jail. This couldn't have happened
at a worse time for finances had become much tighter.
Then God spoke to us in a very clear and undeniable way as to what we were to do. Like a spotlight from heaven God
shined down on Matt. 18 and the parable of the unmerciful servant. I'll let you read the parable for yourself, but God
made it clear to us that He was calling us to walk in a greater level of faith and love than ever before. We were supposed
to completely forgive the man of his debt to us. It seemed so against my natural thinking yet my thinking was being
surrounded by such a peace and clarity that this was God's will. My heart had before been resentful of what this man had
done to this church and it's standing in the community. Now all that was being washed out as I realized that God loved this
man and still had a plan for his life. He still had a wife and two children who were living with the pain and shame of what
he had done. Their daddy was going to jail. When he got out it would be hard to get back on his feet, especially with such
a financial burden. Yes, it was his fault he was in this position. But I could not escape the powerful reality that it was also
my fault that I was in the position of deserving to go to hell when Christ died on the cross to forgive my debt of sin.
This was not a decision I could make alone. Both the board and the church as a whole had to vote before any legal
action could be taken to forgive the debt. I prayed and asked God to give the same clarity to others as he did to me. In
the following days, in what I can only describe as the spread of an infectious spirit of faith and mercy, both the board and
the church body voted overwhelmingly to obey God's voice and forgive the debt. The proper paperwork was sent to the
appropriate authorities and a full set was also sent to the man with a cover letter telling him of our decision and our
motivation. Some months later, from in jail, he sent a heartfelt letter of repentance and gratitude, which I tearfully shared
with our congregation.
In the midst of this giant step of faith and obedience for us as a church, I began to make a bold request of the Lord. I said
"God, if you would do such a thing for this man through us, what then would you do for us?" I added "Lord, could we not
expect you to forgive our debt as we have forgiven our debtors?" I prayed this because I have come to know God as a
God who rewards obedience and faith with multiplied blessings and I settled in my heart that God is going to somehow
take care of this debt that does not belong to us.
We are not sending this letter because we are in financial straights. We have been able to hire ministry staff as well as
conduct needed renovations and keep all the bills paid with a steadily growing surplus. However, as we have obeyed the
voice of the Lord before, we are now obeying again. We feel God is calling us to lay this story out for all who may be
called to join us in this journey towards total victory. We feel that God is calling us to make 2007 the year we begin to
retire the remaining debt. We believe God wants to show himself strong and to finish this story with a testimony of His
miraculous blessing responding to our sacrificial love and forgiveness.
What we are asking you to do is two things: First, pray and agree with us for this debt to be payed off and secondly, ask
the Lord what He would have you to do over and above your tithes to help with this goal in 2007. We are not putting
pressure on anyone, but we are simply trusting God to speak to those He has chosen to share in what we believe will be
a cascade of miraculous provision for everyone who participates. For it was Jesus who said "Give and it shall be given
unto you, pressed down shaken together and running over- for with the measure you use, it will be measured back to
you." Luke 6:38
If you can help please designate your giving to "Erase the Debt"
May the Lord bless you and your household with all His best.
Sincerely,
Pastor Mark Deckard
Church On The Lake
| Church On The Lake • P.O. Box 659 • Ketchum, OK 74349 • 918-782-4474 |