Save the LCMS!

Purpose-Driven / Seeker-Sensitive Methods are Causing Membership Decline

While President Kieschnick is in the middle of transitioning the LCMS into a "Purpose-Driven" denomination the Southern Baptists are actually waking up and realizing that so-called 'culturally relevant' and 'seeker-sensitive methods' are not growing their denomination but are instead shrinking it.

The Christian Post is reporting on statements made by Paige Patterson, the president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. According to the Christian Post:

Weak preaching and cultural adaptability are just two of many reasons Southern Baptists give to explain the decline of membership and baptisms.

"[T]he shallow state of preaching has exacerbated the lethargy of the church and left the lost with no real Word from God," said Paige Patterson, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, in a column in Baptist Press.

"The pastor ought to be the major source of theological understanding and the most able teacher of the Bible,” he added.

"Anemic pulpits create anemic churches and denominations."

Since the release last month of the latest data on Southern Baptist membership and baptisms, both of which declined, Southern Baptists have speculated why the largest Protestant denomination in the country has been seeing lower numbers.

"Well, the time has come to identify the real problems," said Patterson.

Many church leaders have been calling for change to respond to what many identify as a shift from modern to postmodern culture. And the latest statistics showing shrinking numbers has made that call even more urgent. But cultural relevance has led many churches to lose the holiness of God and a thirst to be like God, Patterson noted.

A prominent conservative Southern Baptist, Patterson said he is the first to admit that "dullness and 'Baptist tradition' were too often the rule in our churches." But the suggestion that churches must chase after culture in order to be effective in evangelistic efforts is "misguided," he said.

"The more attune to culture Southern Baptists have become and the more we have incorporated the world into our worship, the more our baptisms have dropped!" Patterson noted. (Emphasis Added)

In other words, adopting Seeker-Sensitive methods viz. Rick Warren's Purpose-Drivenism or Bill Hybels Willowcreek methods will do nothing less than insure the long-term DECLINE of the LCMS.

Strategic Change for the LCMS

Chris Rosebrough from Extreme Theology has a chilling post that all confessional Lutherans need to read and heed. Rosebrough has an MBA from Pepperdine University and the emphasis of his graduate work was Change Management.

In his latest post called Changing the LCMS, Rosebrough claims that President Kieschnick is following the Change Management Process developed by Harvard Business Review's John Kotter.  Rosebrough then shows us where he thinks the LCMS is in the process.

The most chilling aspect to Rosebrough's analysis is that he claims that the VERY NEXT STEP in the process will involve President Kieschnick proposing sweeping structural changes that would grant unprecedented powers to the president. According to Rosebrough, if Kieschnick's structural changes are implemented then there will be no way to 'save the LCMS'.

Click Here to read Rosebrough's analysis.

How Large Was the Issues Etc. Internet Audience?

The Quantcast website keeps traffic information for over 2 million websites.  One of the sites that they monitored traffic for was IssuesEtc.org

The Quantcast traffic stats are VERY revealing.  They show that IssuesEtc.org was receiving over 12,000 unique visitors a month.  That is FAR and AWAY a bigger figure than the 1,600 listeners that Strand claimed listened to the show.

Which leads us to ask a few very logical questions:

1. If David Strand and the LCMS canceled Issues Etc because they wanted to replace the program with one they felt had broader appeal, then why haven't they made the archives of the Afternoon Show available via podcast and the internet? 

2. If they wanted to 'grow' their audience then why have they not aggressively tried to win over podcast and internet listeners?

By refusing to post the archives for the Afternoon Show it is clear that KFUO has literally cut off the vast majority of their listening audience.

 

Strand's explanation continues to make ZERO sense.

A New 95 Theses

Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, the public bulletin board of his day. In like manner, we, Athanasius and Chrysostom, post these 95 theses on the door of the internet. Like the original theses, these are debatable, for we believe that it is through vigorous debate that the spirits are tested and truth is revealed.

In publishing these theses, we do not intend to foment division, but to expose those who are creating division within the body of Christ. We are not addressing any particular church body or person, but invite all who love the Gospel of Jesus Christ to engage in this debate. We do so in the spirit of the great Reformer, Martin Luther, as we implore the mercies of God upon His Church, for the sake of Jesus Christ, the Lord of the Church and Bishop of our souls.

1. When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said “Repent,” He willed that the whole life of believers should be one of repentance.

2. To “repent” means to be contrite for one’s sins and to trust Jesus Christ and solely in His completed work for one’s forgiveness, life, and salvation.

3. Those who describe the Christian life as purpose-driven deny true repentance, confuse the Law and the Gospel, and obscure the merits of Christ.

4. Impious and wicked are the methods of those who substitute self-help and pop-psychology for the Gospel in the name of relevance.

5. This impious disregard for the Gospel wickedly transforms sacred Scripture into a guidebook for living, a pharisaic sourcebook of principles, and sows tares among the wheat.

6. Relevance, self-help and pop-psychology have no power to work true contrition over sins and faith in Jesus Christ.

7. Like clouds without rain, purpose-driven preachers withhold the proclamation of the forgiveness of sins won by Christ on the cross and enslave men’s consciences to the law which they cleverly disguise as so-called 'Biblical Principles'.

8. By teaching tips for attaining perfect health, debt-free wealth, and better sex in marriage, the purveyors of relevance undermine true fear, love and trust in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

9. They are enemies of Christ, who distort the Word of God by tearing verses from their original context in order to use them as proof texts for their self-help, pop-psychology agendas.

10. Injury is done the Word of God when it is used as a source book for practical, relevant “life applications.”

11. In the name of relevance, our Lord Jesus Christ is reduced to a life-coach whose “gospel” assists and motivates people to achieve the objectives of their self-centered delusions of grandeur.

12. Apart from the Holy Spirit, the seeker cannot understand the things of God for these are “spiritually discerned” (1 Cor 2:14).

13. The natural man does not naturally seek the Gospel. “I was found by those who did not seek me; I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me” (Is. 65:1)

14. The true Seeker of men’s souls is our Lord Jesus Christ who came to seek and to save the lost by His death on the cross (Luke 19:10).

15. The truly “seeker-sensitive” church proclaims God’s wrath against our sin and His mercy for Jesus’ sake.

16. The preaching of Christ crucified is a stumbling block to purpose-driven pragmatists and foolishness to church growth consultants.

17. The true gold of the Church is the Most Holy Gospel of the glory and the grace of God.

18. But this treasure is a stench in the nostrils of fallen and sinful men because it exposes man’s complete lack of ability to save himself by his own religious efforts.

19. On the other hand, the fool’s gold of self-help is preferred by sinful men, for it creates the illusion of moral progress and a life that is pleasing to God apart from repentance.

20. The gold of the Gospel is the net by which Christ would make us fishers of men.

21. The fool’s gold of self-help is a snare by which purpose-driven purveyors of relevance attempt to capture the riches and approval of men.

22. The church is holy sheep who hear the voice of their Shepherd.

23. How can sheep hear the voice of their Shepherd when false shepherds preach self-help and pop-psychology?

24. Purveyors of purpose-driven relevance are not shepherds of men’s souls but wolves in sheep’s clothing.

25. Purveyors of relevance claim that self-help, life-applications and biblical principles are the means to reach the unchurched because they meet people’s felt needs.

26. Yet a person’s greatest need is one he does not by nature feel, namely the need for the righteousness that comes from God through faith in Jesus Christ.

27. The true means by which fallen sinners are reached is the preaching of Christ and His sacraments. (Romans 10:17)

28. The true need that mankind is seeking but does not know is justification by grace through faith for Christ’s sake.

29. Since justification is through faith and not through works, natural man neither seeks it nor desires it.

30. Therefore, the teaching of justification by grace through faith is neither seeker-sensitive nor relevant to a world that naturally seeks self-justification.

31. To be in the church is to be union with Christ through faith.

32. Regardless of the number of people in attendance, the church does not grow unless men are granted repentance and faith by God through the action of His Word.

33. Scripture clearly teaches that the means by which God grants faith are the the hearing of the Word of Christ (the Gospel) and the water of Holy Baptism.

34.Therefore, even if a congregation, through their own marketing methods and business prowess were able to draw 100,000 people every Sunday, if the Gospel is not heard and the sacraments are not administered according to the Gospel there is no church and the true Church of Jesus Christ has not grown by a single soul.

35. If numerical growth is a measure of God’s approval, then we must conclude that God approves of Islam and the Mormons.

36. If financial success is a measure of God’s approval, then we must conclude that God approves of pornography and gambling.

37. Cancer and crabgrass both grow rapidly, as does the church that obscures the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

38. The purveying of purpose-driven relevance is the theology of glory; the preaching of Christ crucified for sinners is the theology of the cross.

39. The theologian of glory says that the kingdom of God is visible now in buildings, people, and dollars; the theologian of the cross says that the kingdom of God is an article of faith.

40. The theologian of glory asks “How much?” and “How many?”; the theologian of the cross preaches Christ regardless of how much or how many.

41. The theologian of glory prepares people to receive health, wealth, and happiness; the theologian of the cross prepares people to suffer and die in faith.

42. The theologian of glory preaches that God wants to grant you favors; the theologian of the cross preaches the favor of God for the sake of Christ crucified.

43. The theologian of glory proclaims 40 days of purpose; the theologian of the cross preaches daily dying and rising in Jesus.

44. God established the Church to be a “mouth house” of forgiveness not a madhouse of activity.

45. Christ wills that His voice be heard in His Church and not the voice of man when He says, “He who hears you, hears me.” (Luke 10:16)

46. Purveyors of purpose-driven relevance obscure the voice of Christ and so draw the sheep away from the Good Shepherd.

47. Christ saves from sin and death not through the motivation of the sinner to do good, but through baptismal death and resurrection.

48. The mission of the church is not to transform the world but to disciple the nations by baptizing and teaching (Matt 28:19-20).

49. Anyone who preaches a vision and demands allegiance to it sets up a new papacy among the churches.

50. A synod or church body is a human institution that exists by the will and consent of its member congregations and pastors.

51. A synod or church body is not merely an affiliation of churches that agree on a common purpose.

52. A synod or church body is not the Church, properly speaking, but a fellowship of churches sharing a common confession of faith and practice.

53. Synods are not of the church’s essence (esse) but for her well being (bene esse).

54. Synodical leaders are not lords over the churches, but servants of the churches and stewards of their common possessions.

55. Synodical leaders are not called to promulgate visions but to execute the collective will of the synod’s churches.

56. The old papacy arrogated the Church’s treasury of merits; the new papacy arrogates the Church’s treasury.

57. The old papacy said, “As the coin in the coffer clings, so the soul from purgatory springs.”

58. The new papacy says, “As the coin in the church coffer clings, so another program out of debt springs.”

59. The old papacy counted plenary indulgences; the new papacy counts money and people.

60. The old papacy suppressed the Gospel through canon law; the new papacy suppresses the Gospel through constitutions and by-laws.

61. The old papacy was a friend of Caesar; the new papacy is a friend of Mammon.

62. The old papacy bound a man’s conscience for the sake his wallet; the new papacy binds a man’s wallet for the sake of his conscience.

63. The old papacy promulgated infallible dogma; the new papacy promulgates undebatable visions.

64. The old papacy claims to sit on the seat of Peter; the new papacy claims to sit on the mandate of the majority.

65. The old papacy reserved the right to judge doctrine and practice; the new papacy judges doctrine and practice by commissions and committees.

66. The old papacy issued “bulls;” the new papacy issues task force reports.

67. The old papacy had a college of cardinals; the new papacy has high-priced consultants.

68. Just as popes and councils have erred in the past, so synodical leaders and synodical conventions err in the present.

69. A synod that is concerned for the true unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace does not excuse unionism and syncretism.

70. Unity in doctrine and practice means discernible interchangeability in teaching, preaching, and practice.

71. Unity in doctrine and practice does not consist in signing confessional statements, but in word and deed.

72. Worship is doctrine put into practice.

73. As one worships, so one believes.

74. As one believes, so one worships.

75. Christian worship consists in God’s service to us through His giving and our receiving in faith the gifts of Christ’s Word, Body, and Blood, and our service to God by our prayer, praise, and thanksgiving.

76. Worship that is focused principles for Christian living obscures the Gospel of Jesus Christ and His gifts and is detrimental to faith and salvation.

77. While Christian liberty allows that worship forms need not be altogether the same in every time and place, unity in faith and practice requires that worship forms must not be altogether different in every time and place.

78. Worship forms serve as identifying banners in the confessional field of battle.

79. Peculiar and novel worship forms obscure the unity of the churches and extol the creativity of the worship leaders.

80. In matters neither commanded nor forbidden in the Word of God (adiaphora), the churches of God are free to change ceremonies according to circumstances, as may be most beneficial and edifying to the churches of God. (Epitome, Art X.4)

81. Such changes must avoid all frivolity and offenses, particularly with regard to those who are weak in faith (Epitome, Art X.5).

82. Where the Gospel is at stake, concessions in ceremony must not be made so as to suggest unity with those who deny the Gospel (Epitome, Art X.6)

83. Therefore, it is contrary to the doctrine of adiaphora to hide the substance of Lutheran doctrine behind a non-Lutheran style of worship.

84. To create and sustain saving faith, God established the office of the holy ministry in the church to preach the Gospel and administer the sacraments according to our Lord’s institution.

85. No one may publicly preach, teach, or administer the sacraments in the churches without his being called and ordained.

86. Those who introduce novelties into the church are the true agents of division.

87. The ordination of women is a novelty that has caused great division in the church.

88. The introduction of worship forms not held in common by the churches is a cause of division and a stumbling block.

89. The church belongs to no man but to Jesus Christ, the incarnate Son of God, and Lord of the church.

90. Woe to the false prophets who cry, “Unity, unity” when there is no unity.

91. Again, woe to those who say, “Peace, peace,” when there is no peace.

92. Again, woe to those who say, “Gospel, gospel,” when there is no Gospel.

93. Blessed are those who say, “Cross, cross,” when there is no cross.

94. Christians are to be exhorted that they be diligent in following Christ, their Head, through all suffering, death, and hell;

95. And thus be confident of entering into heaven through many trials and tribulations, rather than through the assurance of outward peace, unity, and happiness.

KFUO FM Program Director is an Embryonic Stem Cell Research Activist

Jim Connett Program/Development Director for KFUO-FM is on the board of directors for a Hope Happens, a activist group that is pushing for Embryonic Stem Cell Research (aka destroying human embryos in order to harvest stem cells for research).

Connett's activism flies directly in the face of the LCMS's pro-life stand and in light of the fact that Todd Wilken and Issues Etc. had an amazing pro-life record this makes us believe that there is something terribly wrong at KFUO and in the Missiouri Synod.

HT: RAsburry's Res

Political Motives for Canceling Issues Etc. EXPOSED!

Mollie Hemingway has received information that exposes the political motives that are at the heart of the decision to cancel Issues Etc. Said Hemingway:

So apparently there is a “Radio Committee” meeting convening Monday in St. Louis. Some members of the LCMS Board of Directors and some members of the LCMS Board for Communication Services are meeting to discuss KFUO. This meeting was scheduled previous to the cancellation of Issues, Etc.

Apparently the members of this committee were furnished materials previous to the cancellation of Issues, Etc. that include a couple of pages listing anonymous negative comments about Issues, Etc.. These comments include the expressions “abrasive” and “hyper-orthodox” — as well as a comment about the program following its own “political agenda“.

What’s more — not one positive comment was furnished. Not one.

This does not surprise us in the least. We've already proven beyond a shadow of the doubt that the 'business reasons' cited by Strand and Kieschnick are completely fallacious. From day one we've been saying that this was a political assassination. Now evidence is coming to light that proves that is the case.

Click Here to read the rest of what Mollie has to say on this matter.

Are These the People Who Are Really Responsible for KFUO AM's Losses?

Blaming Todd Wilken and Jeff Schwarz for the losses at KFUO would be like blaming the head cook on the Titanic for hitting the iceberg.

Below are photographs of the people who should be held accountable for KFUO's business failings along with some important questions that really need answers.

Dennis Stortz – Director of Broadcast, KFUO-AM/FM
Was he the one shifting KFUO-FM expenses to KFUO-AM books?

Dorothy Kaestner – Development Director, KFUO-AM/FM
How many Issues, Etc. donors did she visit?

Tom Ries – President of the LCMS Foundation
Why did Ries tell KFUO management that he considered Issues, Etc. “destructive”? AND Why was he charging KFUO 40% of all funds raised for the station?

Jim Connett – Program/Development Director, KFUO-FM
Why did the BCS vote to terminate Connett in January 2007? Why and how was this decision reversed? Why is he still working at KFUO?

Ministry Watch Gives KFUO an F Grade

KFUO AM is gearing up for a Sharathon for April 17, 18, & 19. But before you send a single penny to KFUO please consider this fact... Ministry Watch, an organization that rates the 400 largest church ministries in the United States so that people can learn how to be responsible givers, has bestowed an F grade to the radio ministry of KFUO. This is the lowest rating that a ministry can earn.

To give you some perspective on this rating, below is a list of other "ministries" that have garnered an F grade from Ministry Watch.


Benny Hinn Ministries

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

Trinity Broadcasting Network

Creflo Dollar Ministries

T.D. Jakes Ministries

Mollie Hemingway "Here I Blog"

Mollie Hemingway, former member of the Board for Communication Services and the author of the Wall Street Journal article that covered the cancellation of Issues Etc. is now blogging at Augsburg 1530.

Her questions, responses and challenges regarding the cancellation of Issues Etc come from an intimate knowledge of the inner workings of both KFUO and synodical politics.

Pleas be sure to tune in.

Be sure NOT TO MISS her posts entitled Responsorama #2 & Responsorama #3

The Bigger Story the Numbers Tell

Why was Issues Etc. cancelled?

The reason that we've been given is that KFUO AM has been losing money (business reasons).

We were told that KFUO AM lost $620,698. But we were not given any explanation as to why the station was losing money? We were just given a number without a context and we were told that Issues Etc. generated 40% of that loss.

But, as we've stated before, when companies experience shortfalls the first place to look is MANAGEMENT.

The sloppy bookkeeping we brought to light yesterday is just ONE symptom of the greater problem that KFUO suffers from and that problem is failed management.

Look back again at the KFUO financial document and look now at the bigger picture.

The numbers reveal that the management of KFUO AM spent $1.5 million in 2007. Yet the station only broadcasted Focus on the Family, Issues Etc. and a handful of home grown programs.

In the post entitled "These Figures Just Don't Add Up" we pointed out that the costs associated with running KFUO AM were outrageously high. And they are! Look again at the distributed costs.

The question everyone needs to be asking is, "Why on earth does it cost so much money to produce and broadcast these shows"?

When you look back at the AM Station's finances two particular expense lines jump out at you because when combined they exceed the station's entire revenue for the year. They are Personnel Costs ($779,131) and a line called Development Effort ($180,802). The combined total of these two expense lines was $959,993 but the total revenue for the station was only $931,223. So, before a single office supply was purchased and before a single phone bill was paid, with ONLY TWO expense lines, "Personnel Costs" and "Development Effort" KFUO AM was already in the hole $28,710.

Let's look deeper at the Personnel Costs associated with KFUO AM in order to provide greater context.

Here is the AM Station's Employee count for 2007:

4 full-time Announcers
1 full-time Producer
1 full-time Operations Manager
1 half-time Engineer
1 half-time Receptionist
1 half-time LCMS Foundation Development Director
1 half-time General Manager and Broadcast Director
1 half-time Administrative Assistant

The Total Reported Annual Price Tag for this Team was $779,131

Let's estimate some salaries and benefits for this crew. For this excersise we'll leave out the half-time General Manager and half-time LCMS Foundation Development Director.

Here are some good ball park salary figures.

$65,000 + Benefits for Announcers - Total Cost per Announcer being $76,700 per year
$45,000 + Benefits for the Producer - Total Cost for the Producer being $53,100 per year
$75,000 + Benefits for the Operations Manager - Total Cost for the Op. Manager being $88,100 per year
$20,000 for the half-time Engineer
$12,000 for the half-time Receptionist
$15,000 for the half-time Administrative Assistant

Let's now plug in some of these numbers and get a Sub-Total for these employees.

$306,800 per year for Announcers
$ 53,100 per year for the Producer
$ 88,500 per year for the Operations Manager
$ 20,000 per year for the half-time Engineer
$ 12,000 per year for the half-time Receptionist
$ 15,000 per year for the half-time Administrative Assistant
----
$495,400 Sub-Total

That still leaves $283,731 that needs to be divided between one half-time General Manager and one half-time LCMS Foundation Development Director.

If we divide this amount 50-50 then each of them made $141,865 per year working ONLY half-time for KFUO AM. That's a sweet deal!

This is the point where we start asking about that second line item in the expenses, the one labeled "Development Effort".

If you look closely at the station's expenses you will see that both the AM and FM station were charged $180,802 EACH for 'Development Effort' for a combined total of $361,604.

That is the money that KFUO agreed to pay the LCMS Foundation for their fund-raising activities. It should also be noted that the management of KFUO agreed to pay this amount whether or not the LCMS Foundation met their fundraising targets. The fund-raising target for that year was $1,260,000 which meant that KFUO would get to keep $900,000 of the money raised while the LCMS foundation pocketed $360,000.

This now leads us to ask an important follow up question.

Who was paying the salary of the LCMS Foundation Director that worked at KFUO?

If KFUO was paying the salary then KFUO paid even more than $360,000 for 'development efforts' to the LCMS Foundation because KFUO was paying the salary of a Foundation employee.

BUT, if the LCMS Foundation was paying the salary for their Development Director then that means the General Manager of the station was being paid roughly $283,731 a year for being the half-time General Manager of KFUO AM. President Kieschnick doesn't even make that much.

Here's Some further perspective regarding this $283,731.

President Kieschnick, in his letter to the Wall Street Journal, stated that Issues Etc. was responsible for $250,000 or 40% of the losses for KFUO AM.

Yet our calculations show that this questionable $283,731 is equal to 47% of the losses for KFUO AM.

From the moment we first saw the financials for KFUO the Personnel Costs appeared to be inappropriately high. Something doesn't add up and someone needs to take a hard look at the details of these expenses and give a comprehensive accounting of how much each individual member of the KFUO AM team was being paid so that we can make sense of these expenses.

After taking the time to scrutinize these figures, one thing is ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN. Neither Todd Wilken NOR Jeff Schwarz had any say in the decisions pertaining to employee salaries and expenses. Nor were they the ones who struck the deal with the LCMS Foundation whereby KFUO agreed to pay 40% of all the monies raised to the LF.

A careful examination of the financial details of KFUO irrefutably demonstrates that the MANAGEMENT TEAM of KFUO was clearly responsible for the station's financial problems not Issues Etc.

This story is still developing.

Pictorial Perspective on Personnel Costs

In the leaked KFUO financial document the Personnel Costs charged to the AM station are particularly glaring.

If we are to believe that these expenses are accurately recorded then we have to be willing to believe some odd financial facts. The charts below tell the story.

Chart 1

This chart graphically depicts the fact that the AM Station employed 31% of all KFUO employees while the FM Station employed 69%.

Chart 2

This chart demonstrates how if we were to believe the financial figures that we'd also have to believe that 31% of KFUO's employees accounted for 42% of all personnel expenses while 69% of KFUO's employees accounted for ONLY 58% of all personnel expenses.

Chart 3

This last chart is the real 'kicker'.

If we believe these figures are accurate then we have to be willing to believe that the average annual salary at KFUO AM was $97,391 per year (an amount that is higher than the highest paid employee at KFUO AM) while the average annual salary at the FM Station was ONLY $59,624.

Remember: KFUO AM is a ministry station and KFUO FM is a commercial station.

Somebody has some explaining to do.

EXCLUSIVE!! - LEAKED KFUO FINANCIAL DOCUMENT!!

We have come to be in the possession of a copy of a document that details the spending activity of KFUO during 2006 - 2007! This is the same period that David Strand claimed that KFUO AM lost $620,698 and directly tied the cancellation of Issues Etc. to those losses.

The document that we've acquired gives the financial details behind Strand's figure but it also reveals a plethora of accounting oddities and anomalies that completely call that figure into question and even worse it calls into question the entire management team of KFUO including Dennis Stortz, Chuck Rathert, and David Strand.

Furthermore, it completely calls into question the 'business reasons' cited by both David Strand and Dr. Kieschnick as the reasoning for canceling Issues Etc.

We want our readers to also know that we've taken great pains to abide by the 8th commandment and that we confirmed the authenticity of this document before we set out to publish it.

You can download the document by clicking here.

What the document reveals is that many of the expenses that were charged to KFUO AM do not make any sense. In fact, in many cases it looks like the AM Station was charged for FM Station expenses. Many of these charges are so blatantly misappropriated that they defy credulity.

What we've done below is point out just some of the accounting 'oddities' that we found. Each line item that we feature shows how much money was charged to each of the stations for that particular expense.

We've also provided brief commentary to help point out the glaring problem(s) with how these expenses were booked.

Kieschnick Authorized $5 Million Line of Credit for Ablaze ** Updated **

NOTE: This is NOT an April Fool's Joke

Yesterday President Kieschnick claimed that Issues Etc. was losing $250,000 per year. In the course of putting that figure into its proper context that we also explained that the Ablaze Fan Into Flame initiative lost $2.2 million during the same timeframe that Issues Etc. lost $250,000.

This lead us to ask, "where was Kieschnick getting the money to feed the Fan Into Flame initiative?"

Answer: Kieschnick was borrowing funds from other ministry budgets authorized a $5 million internal line of credit for Fan Into Flame.

Here is what the November 2006 Board of Directors meeting minutes state:

Vice-President–Finance—Treasurer Tom Kuchta referred to his printed report (IC-1ff, attached to protocol copy of these minutes) and reported on the Synod’s finances as of September 30, 2006, noting a negative budget variance of $4,321,224, with the Board for Mission Services accounting for $3,280,561 of that amount (despite cooperative efforts to adjust expenditures by $1.2 million to operate within budget). He further noted that after Fan Into Flame unmet expenses ($1,070,000), yet-to-be-received Schwan grants ($691,000), and a shortfall in anticipated bequest income ($201,000) are taken into consideration, a variance of $1,363,000 remains due to a shortfall in development revenues.

After responding to questions regarding income shortfalls and Fan Into Flame income statistics and expenses, he reported that he has begun discussions with the Lutheran Church Extension Fund regarding the Synod’s current $10 million line of credit, noting that in previous years other funds (such as human care unspent funds) had been available for the Synod’s use (at present the Synod has borrowed $3 million). He reported that he has considered setting up a separate $5 million line of credit for Fan Into Flame expenses to isolate its expenses from other Synod funds and advised the Board to consider doing so, given the expressed willingness by LCEF to provide. He was asked to bring forward a resolution for the Board’s consideration. Later in the meeting, the Vice-President–Finance—Treasurer brought forward the requested resolution for the Board’s consideration. The resolution was supported and then adopted without discussion, as follows:

To Establish a Line of Credit for “Fan Into Flame” Campaign Expenses

WHEREAS, Cumulative “Fan Into Flame” net campaign expenses approximate $2.4
million; and

WHEREAS, These expenses have been funded with borrowings from the Synod’s
operating line of credit; and

WHEREAS, There is a desire to separately account for “Fan Into Flame” campaign
borrowings; therefore be it

Resolved, That the Board of Directors authorize the Vice-President–Finance—
Treasurer to establish a $5 million line of credit with the Lutheran Church Extension Fund
for the purpose of providing funds for “Fan Into Flame” campaign expenses; and be it
further

Resolved, That all existing borrowings for “Fan Into Flame” be transferred from the
Synod’s operating line of credit to the “Fan Into Flame” line of credit; and be it finally
Resolved, That the “Fan Into Flame” line of credit be for a term of no more than three
years.

In other words, Kieschnick has borrowed authorized the borrowing of $5 million from other sources of cash in the synod to keep the Fan Into Flame initiative alive BUT he couldn't find $250,000 to support the worldwide Christ-Centered Cross-Focused ministry of the Issues Etc. radio program.

These meeting minutes also show that Kieschnick had already been engaging in borrowing funds from other ministry budgets prior to November 2006. The meeting minutes state that a $10 million line of credit had been established to borrow from "unspent human care funds" and that Kieschnick had already gone $3 million into that line of credit BEFORE the decision was made to establish an additional $5 million internal line of credit for Fan Into Flame.

This story is still developing.

BCS Vote of No Confidence

In one of our earlier posts we pointed out that Todd Wilken and Jeff Schwarz should not have been the ones held responsible for the losses at KFUO AM. Instead, the management of of KFUO AM should have been the ones held responsible (that's the way things work in the real business world).

It turns out that the Board for Communication Services (BCS) shares our sentiments. In fact, according to the Reverend Joel Brondos, a former member of the BCS, in April 2007 the BCS had a vote of NO Confidence for the KFUO management including Dennis Stortz and Chuck Rathert.

The details of this vote of no confidence can be read by clicking here.

This leads us to again ask, if the decision to cancel Issues Etc. was a business decision then why were Todd and Jeff blamed for KFUO AM's operating losses rather than management?

It is not hard to see that if KFUO's management had carried out the recommendations of the BCS then it is highly likely that KFUO's financial outlook would have improved significantly.

Blaming Todd and Jeff for KFUO's financial problems is like blaming the Enron scandal on the company's receptionist.

Finances Etc.

It's time for some financial perspective.

In his letter to the editor of the Wall Street Journal, President Kieschnick claimed that Issues Etc. loses $250,000 per year. Let's assume that he is telling the truth and then ask ourselves, "What does that figure actually mean?"

Interpreting financial figures is a lot like interpreting the Bible. In order to properly understand a figure it needs to be put into its proper context. The proper context for this figure is the overall budget for the entire LCMS. Those figures are available to the public. Click here to view the minutes for the May 2007 Board of Directors Meeting. On page 10 of this pdf you will see the departmental breakdown for the entire budget.

What you will discover is that the KFUO budget for both the AM and FM stations comprises ONLY 3% of the entire synodical budget. Then with just a little math you will also be able to calculate that the Issues Etc. budgetary shortfall of $250,000 comprises less than 1% of the entire synodical budget. (one quarter of 1% to be exact) Below is a graph that puts this into perspective.

Here is some more perspective: At the February 2007 Board of Directors meeting, LCMS Treasurer Tom Kutcha highlighted the fact that the 'Fan into Flame' initiative experienced a $2.258 million dollar shortfall in 2006 alone. Here is what the meeting minutes state:

The Treasurer then called attention to Fan into Flame pledges, with discussion following regarding related fundraising costs. The Treasurer reported that the LCEF line of credit authorized by the Board at its November 2006 meeting is now in place but may not need to be used, given other dollars available to the Synod from other sources. In response to a request for more information and after additional research, the Treasurer reported later in the meeting that expenses for Fan into Flame to date total $4.133 million and that revenues to date have totaled $1.875 million, leaving a net shortfall at the present time of $2.258 million.

Below is a graphical comparison of the 2006 Issues Etc. losses and Fan Into Flame's 2006 shortfall.

This all leads us to ask some very important questions.

Why is Issues Etc. being treated like its losses are intolerably high? When compared to other initiatives that are losing millions of dollars per year, Issues Etc's losses seem very low in comparison.

Isn't KFUO AM considered to be a MINISTRY instead of a business?

When was the last time that KFUO AM operated 'profitably'?

And while we're asking questions, we may as well ask whether or not President Kieschnick intends to sack the people responsible for losing $2.2 million on the 'Fan Into Flame' initiative? Are they going to be held to the same standard as Todd and Jeff were?

Kieschnick said that KFUO AM accumulated a $3.5 million deficit in a the past 7 years. But, 'Fan Into Flame' accumulated a $2.2 million deficit in ONLY ONE YEAR. Therefore, wouldn't it make more business sense to discontinue Fan Into Flame rather than cut Issues Etc?

This story is still developing.

Issues Etc. Bootlegged Download Logs!!

Through one of my sources I have been able to acquire a bootlegged copy of the October, November & December 2007 download logs for Issues Etc.

Download Issues Etc. Download Logs

This proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that David Strand GROSSLY UNDERSTATED the figures pertaining to Issues Etc. audience size.

And we've also learned from our source that these download logs DO NOT reflect downloads that were generated through iTunes and other podcasting services. AND these logs DO NOT reflect those who listened to the show via WMA.

Also missing from Strand's figures are the Arbitron ratings for the Nationally syndicated Sunday Night edition of Issues Etc.

The Synod is not telling us the truth!