United Church of God
an International Association

Clyde Kilough
Chairman

Roy Holladay
President

Letter From the Chairman
February 25, 2005

Hello fellow elders and wives,

Last August one of the Council of Elders members asked if we ever intended to hold any more meetings in locations other than Cincinnati. Over three years has elapsed since we traveled to a different region, which at one time was the Council's common practice. "Why not?" we concluded. Charles Melear located a very economical facility here in San Antonio, so this round of Council meetings begins today, deep in the heart of Texas, just down the street from the famous Alamo. The main reason for traveling to another area is to be able to visit other churches in the region, which several of us look forward to this Sabbath.

Two days of committee meetings are behind us, and the agenda at the end of this short letter gives you the remaining schedule for this important meeting.

As usual for the February meeting, the bulk of our time revolves around preparing for the next fiscal year's Strategic Plan, Operation Plan and Budget. Along with projects and budgets are personnel concerns and, according to the Bylaws pertaining to corporate officers, at this Council meeting we also have to consider the affirmation of the president. A number of miscellaneous items will fill the remainder of time.

The president, operation managers and their staffs work long hours to prepare these plans and budget for the Council. Now we will thoroughly review the proposals, listen to the rationale, perhaps make some adjustments and eventually approve the package. We'll then put it in the hands of the General Conference of Elders for balloting at the annual meeting in May.

This annual developing of the Strategic Plan, Operation Plan and Budget provides the singular most comprehensive view of all aspects of the Church's work. We do not necessarily expect everyone to be interested in all of the line item details, but we certainly urge everyone to be familiar with the overall scope of our efforts. The old adage that "familiarity breeds contempt" need not always be true—it can also breed a deeper dedication to our efforts to "preach the gospel and prepare a people." When these stacks of papers and plans are put on the table, we don't see them as boring reports, but an encouraging and exciting demonstration of everything the members of the Church are doing to fulfill our commission.

God has blessed us with steady growth for the past few years, and we are grateful to be able to plan for more ahead. As stewards of the resources He provides, each and every member of His Body should want to do more and we want to do better with what we have. We want to be found faithful when He requires an accounting.

So, as we routinely (but never taking for granted) request, please join us in humbly and diligently seeking God's direction every day in all we do. Without His Holy Spirit guiding our efforts, all the physical resources in the world mean nothing. With His power behind us, though, all things are possible.

One last note: If you see an old familiar name on the Council reports, it is because Doug Johnson is pinch-hitting for Don Henson, who was unable to make this trip due to other commitments. Also, this is one of those "loose" agendas, in that it is difficult to anticipate how much time is necessary for the open-ended discussions needed for these broad areas. So if next week's Council reports do not exactly correspond with the agenda, it's because we're allowing a lot of flexibility that focuses on the topics rather than the timetable.

Thanks, as always, for all you do!

Clyde Kilough

Council of Elders Meeting Agenda

February 25 – March 3, 2005 – San Antonio, TX

WEDNESDAY – FEBRUARY 23

Committee Meetings:

• Doctrine Committee
• Education/Ministerial Services Committee

THURSDAY – FEBRUARY 24

 Committee Meetings:

• Strategic Planning and Finance Committee
• Ethics, Roles and Rules Committee
• Media and Communications Committee

FRIDAY – FEBRUARY 25

Opening remarks, approval of past meeting minutes (Clyde Kilough)

Report from the president (Roy Holladay)

Treasurer's operation report (Tom Kirkpatrick)

• Current budget
• Report on first half of fiscal year

Media operation report (Peter Eddington)

• Report on first half of fiscal year

Ministerial Services operation report (Richard Pinelli)

• Report on first half of fiscal year

2005-2006 Proposed Strategic Plan (Aaron Dean)

2005-2006 Proposed Operation Plan (Roy Holladay, Peter Eddington, Tom Kirkpatrick, Richard Pinelli)

2005-2006 Proposed Budget (Tom Kirkpatrick)

[any discussion not completed today will be continued Sunday morning]

SUNDAY – FEBRUARY 27

 Continued discussion of Strategic Plan, Operation Plan and Budget

 Feast of Tabernacles Planning

• Council assignments
• Feast Video (Peter Eddington)

Executive Session

• Ordinations and credentialings

MONDAY – FEBRUARY 28

Complete work and approve 2005-2006 Strategic Plan, Operation Plan and Budget

Executive Session

• Affirmation of president

TUESDAY – MARCH 1

Doctrine Committee (Jim Franks)

• Interracial Marriage study paper
• Updates on other current papers under review

AFTERNOON

Free time

WEDNESDAY – MARCH 2

Miscellaneous items

• Proposed resolution for increasing GCE information for potential Council of Elder candidates (Aaron Dean)
• Revisit resolution regarding Council members commenting on amendments in public forum (Leon Walker)
• Input for presentations for Sabbath and keynote speakers at GCE (Clyde Kilough)

Media Committee (Vic Kubik)

• Proposed amendments to Media Philosophy Statement

Executive Session

• Any personnel matters

 THURSDAY – MARCH 3

 Meetings conclude