In my last report I said that 2002 was a tough year for the treasurer. With thankfulness I now say that 2003 has so far been easy. The churches continued the rally started in November and as can be seen, the income has kept pace with or is ahead of the expenses. Also the expenses are well within the budget, which makes for a good financial picture. But this does not mean that we can slacken off for the rest of the year. All that the extra income is doing is filling in the gap that was left from the last few years.

A few comments about some of the expense items:

*The bookstore stocked up on books at sale prices so the spending came early. You can also notice that sales of books (Guatemala Income) are above budget.

*Utilities: Billing for electricity is very erratic. In January an unusual bill came for usage in 2002.

*Legal Expenses: Visas for the Everts children are proving to be very costly and time-consuming. It has taken more than a year to get these visas.

Spreading the Gospel in far away places is a big undertaking. It requires faithfulness and sacrifices both from those in the field and from us Òback home.Ó May the Lord find us faithful.