Advisory from the Board of Elders on “General Building Fund”: A New Designated Fund

“Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver” (2 Cor 9:7). Since the inception of this Church, we thank God for the cheerful giving of His people in buying property for the work of the Lord. Funds were successfully raised for the purchase of the land in Kamoi, Kenya in 1992, to buy our first Church resource centre in 2003, the Ethiopian Building Fund in 2008, the industrial unit at 33 Ubi Crescent for Gethsemane Media Centre (GMC) in 2019 and the gift towards the building of the Church and Bible College in Cherrapunji in 2023. Currently, we are raising funds for the building projects at Cebu, Pangasinan and Vizag. As the Lord enables us, in time to come, we may have other overseas projects and also procure property in Singapore to either expand GMC or to purchase land for a Church building. Historically, our building projects have been classified as restricted funds. These are funds with restrictions placed on the purposes to which these funds may be used. All charities have an obligation to ensure that donations subject to restrictions are applied or utilised within the specified purpose intended by the donors. This is a legal requirement per Charities (Fund-Raising Appeals for Local and Foreign Charitable Purposes) Regulations 2012 (‘the Fund-Raising Regulations’). 

Financial regulations governing restricted funds have increased over the years. These regulations are good for upholding donor intent and fostering trust, maintaining financial transparency and ensuring legal compliance. However, this can give rise to challenges as exemplified in the following scenarios:

1. Currently, we have building projects in Cebu, Pangasinan and Vizag. We pray that all these building projects will be completed smoothly. However, the health of Pastor Reggor in Cebu has highlighted the problem that can arise when the mission Church’s Pastor is stricken. Can we continue with the building project when we have no godly man of God to lead the work? Also, in a hypothetical scenario where a doctrinal issue arises within a mission Church, there is no recourse for the restricted funds for the purchase of land in that mission area to be used in other areas. These funds will either need to be sent, returned to donors or reassigned with the permission of the charity administrator which are all difficult situations to handle.
2. God can enable the work in one mission area to progress faster than another area. For example, if the Holy Spirit enables the work to progress in Vizag much faster than in Cebu, there is no possibility to channel funds from the Cebu building Fund to Vizag to meet urgent financial needs. We will then need to raise funds for Vizag, although there may be a million dollars unutilised in the Cebu Building Fund.
3. God can open new avenues of work to us which will need to be undertaken rapidly. We will then need to raise funds, and there is an increased financial burden on the Church to meet this new work, although there are unutilised funds in multiple restricted building funds.
4. Obstacles in obtaining government and other regulatory licences overseas can bring a building project to a standstill over a prolonged period. The monies placed in the restricted building fund can likewise be “stuck”, in layman’s terms, over a long period as well, which is undesirable, especially when there are urgent financial needs in other building projects.

Administrative challenges and issues also arise in having restricted building funds. They are:

1. Surplus in any restricted fund cannot be easily dealt with. There is a need for timely and efficient utilisation of restricted donations to avoid the practical difficulties of contacting donors when there are surplus funds. Any unutilised restricted donations must be returned to the donor unless the donor has agreed for the funds to be channelled to another purpose within the charity. Locating donors can be difficult when the restricted donations were collected many years prior to the completion of the project, or when there is difficulty in identifying the individual donors. In such situations, the charity needs to communicate with the Commissioner of Charities to see how the surplus can be used. 
2. There is a necessity for a clear understanding and definition of what these restricted funds can be used for. The scope of use of the restricted fund must be clearly defined. If the definition of use is unclear, allegations of misuse of funds can occur. For example, in our restricted building funds, the money can be used not only for the purchase of land, but it can also be used for construction, renovations, professional fees, government fees, taxes and other miscellaneous related land and building matters. The intent and purpose of use of these restricted funds need to be clear in the minds of all donors to prevent misunderstandings, as some may think, for example, it’s only for the purchase of the land or the construction costs of the building.

In light of the above problems, as God enables us to have more building projects, both overseas and local, it behoves us to make sure that our financial controls remain stringent yet flexible to meet the challenges. Designated funds are funds internally earmarked by the organisation’s management committee for specific purposes. This is in contrast to restricted funds, which are dictated by the donor (external). Designated funds are set aside and used only for specific purposes, but unlike restricted funds, they can be redirected or redesignated by the management committee of the organisation within the charitable objectives of the charity. Building projects are usually started under the leadership of the BOE with the affirmation of the congregation, hence the building funds can be classified as designated funds (internal). There is proper accounting of the funds, and yet it gives the flexibility to the BOE to administer the funds where they are most needed.

The current restricted building funds will remain status quo, but beginning 8 Feb 2026, the BOE intends to have a new designated fund known as the “General Building Fund”. In Acts 11:29-30, we read “Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Judaea: Which also they did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul.” Church members of the Antioch Church entrusted their gifts to the Elders in Jerusalem to decide on how to distribute them. Like the Antioch Christians, may the congregation affirm its support to the BOE by entrusting their gifts to the designated fund “General Building Fund” to grant the BOE the flexibility to redesignate and redirect as needed. However, if the Holy Spirit guides you to be specific in your giving, please do so and it will be distributed accordingly. May the Lord help the BOE to administer all the funds received from His people wisely for the gospel work which He has entrusted to us, that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ will be exalted and magnified in all corners of the earth. Amen.