Now that the dust has settled, we wanted to report further on the Gift Days in June 2023.
As a reminder, our 2023 Gift Day season was framed in terms of generosity! God is generous. He wants his people to 'inherit his DNA' of generosity, and for us to seek to foster that culture as a church community. As Senior Pastor Steve said, "These Gift Days are a nudge to get us all into the groove of generosity, even extraordinary generosity: some might start giving regularly for the first time; all are invited to add an offering."
He added, "The founding vision for OCC was not only to be a great local church, but a church that blesses the whole city, the region, and the nations. For nearly 40 years, God has enabled us to be super-generous. Like many churches, we make sure that we give at least 10% of our income to bless others – but then we also do far more than that, [including serving into our city and beyond].… For us to continue to live that, it will continue to cost at least £50,000 more than our regular tithe income alone." (Gift Days 2023).
We know that God has been using the Gift Day season to work in individual lives, to 'grow the muscle of giving'. For example, we shared a couple of great testimonies from individuals, which you should definitely watch if you missed them: Melissa and Nana. If you have such a testimony, we'd love to hear it. Please email the office.
As of today (*so far!), through us as a church together, God has provided £53,487. We committed to give 10% of the gift to see Safe Families started in Oxford (more on that here), so we will retain £48,138 for church use.
For those who like the detail: In addition we will claim £11,723 of Gift Aid. The total (retained gifts + Gift Aid) of £59,861 compares amazingly to our full target of £60,000: we published a gift target of £50,000, plus we expected £10,000 of GiftAid, before we subsequently agreed to give 10% of the gifts to Safe Families.
We say *"so far" because we're not closing the offering just yet. 60% of the gifts came in last week, and so we're just allowing a little more time for anyone, like Nana, who wanted to give but needed God to provide in order for them to give.
If you still want to give to the Gift Days, please visit our Giving Page and either give directly into our bank account (which reduces the fees we pay!) or via the giving form.
Thank you!
If you have questions about the Gift Days or how OCC handles finances, please visit our Gift Days 2023 page and follow the links at the bottom of the page.
