Volume 4, Issue 3, September 1999

Building Construction Begins

Slowed by a busy construction season in Highlands county, actual construction on EBI’s building began in July. Since we are planning for a second floor someday, we first had to construct a 3’ wide by 2’ deep footer down the middle of the warehouse space to support the second floor. Taking out the old concrete was a “jarring” experience for a few days. Now a new loading dock is done, the inside framing is done, the second floor trusses are in place, and the electrical and air handling systems are being installed. They are working on the drywall. Anticipated completion date is some time in October. We still need to raise about $32,000 to meet our goal.

New Accounting System Installed

Beginning with July, EBI has a new accounting system. Changing systems is never fun, even when it is an upgrade of the previous one. It is even worse when you do it at the end of a fiscal year. We thought that it would allow us to make the transition and start the new year with a clean slate. WRONG! The transfer of data seemed to go flawlessly. We still have not noticed any missing data, but we have found some extra bits and pieces of information that should not be there at all. Apparently, the old system had hidden these little tidbits in files it no longer used, but the new system found them and brought them back to life. They do not hamper daily operations, but they will be a nuisance until our consultants find out how to get rid of them.

We made this change because the old system was not Y2K compliant. What we did not know was that the old system would not let us close the books for fiscal 1999, because when it did, it tried to open a new set of books for fiscal 2000. Our original plan was to continue to run the two systems side by side for a couple more months. Praise the Lord that He led us to get the new system up and working before the end of the fiscal year. Even with the problems we encountered, we have not lost too much time. It just caused a lot of frustrations.

Fiscal Year 1999 – Another Record Year

Income from sales exceeded budget by 26%, while general fund expenses only exceeded budget by 7%. Much of the sales increase came in the sale of our Sunday school materials. Our customers continue to use EBI as a one-stop place to purchase both EBI publications and other Bible study materials. In addition to EBI’s sales income, $68,000 was raised toward the purchase of our building. Praise God for His goodness!

Doctrine of Christ TEE Book in Testing Phase

Five testing sites were chosen to evaluate the content and programming of the new Theological Education by Extension book, The Doctrine of Christ. It has been in preparation for over two years. Missionaries at each of these test sites will teach this course to Spanish speaking nationals using the programmed text. They will then submit an evaluation of both the course content and the programming effectiveness. When this testing phase is completed, the comments will be reviewed, corrections made, and final editing completed. Due to the thoroughness of this process, the publication date will not be until at least January, 2000.

Ministry Enrichment Opportunities

The staff of EBI has become more and more concerned about the resources available to Spanish speaking pastors. For many, the cost of a good library is far beyond their means, therefore, unavailable. As a result, EBI is establishing a Ministry Enrichment Fund, with its sole purpose to provide libraries for these pastors.

To initiate this effort, we have contacted missionaries in most of the Spanish speaking countries, seeking their advice on the best way to administer this program and on the books that should be included in these libraries. The response has been enthusiastic. Most of those who responded expressed a willingness to help in any way they can. Several of the missionaries mentioned that the maximum most pastors could contribute toward a library is 10-15% of the cost, not to exceed $20. Many could not afford anything. Therefore, there is a need to substantially subsidize this effort.

EBI would coordinate the requests for libraries from the various fields. The primary requirements for providing a library for a pastor would be that he is a fundamental Baptist pastor actively involved in the ministry and has a demonstrated need. Pastor’s names would be submitted by missionaries. (There may be several hundred with this need, so a method to determine who gets a library has to be developed.) EBI would then provide a library at our cost, plus shipping expenses. EBI would also coordinate the effort to raise money for the Ministry Enrichment Fund. This fund would be financed by those who share our concern for these pastors. Once the cost for a library is established, we will contact churches and individuals with the details. Pray about this new endeavor.