Churches? funding needs served by AG Financial Services Group

Assemblies of God Financial Services Group, located at 1661 N. Boonville, is the umbrella group of the denomination's financial services. The financial services group serves the 12,000 As-semblies of God churches in the United States and all 35,000 of their ministers, according to Randy Barton, president of the Assemblies of God Financial Ser-vices Group.

The group is comprised of the Min-isters Benefit Associa-tion, which is the retirement fund; a trust department, which manages its own trusts and the assets of affiliated organizations; the Assemblies of God Foundation, which handles planned giving; and the Assem-blies of God Loan Fund, which handles the majority of the lending for Assem-blies of God churches across the country. Assemblies of God Financial Services makes loans for a variety of reasons, in-cluding acquisition, construction and remodeling. The group also provides ministers' insurance.

Barton started the Assemblies of God Loan Fund in 1992, he said, and the Assemblies of God Financial Services Group was formed in 1998.

In September 2001, the departments that comprise the group came together in the Boonville location. Barton noted, though, that not all of the group's em-ployees work from that office.

"The need for quality financial services existed," said Barton, a tax attorney and credentialed Assemblies of God minister.

Prior to 1992, the loan fund was run by the Springfield-based General Council of the Assemblies of God.

Barton said the downturn in the economy hasn't had an effect on how much is being borrowed or the number of churches borrowing from the loan fund.

He said that when the General Council was in charge of the loan fund, $30 million was loaned out annually, but that amount has increased.

"Last year, the financial services group lent out $270 million," Barton said. "Our loan fund has been extremely successful. We're offering a product churches need and want."

Barton said the financial services group can pay above market rate for its ministers' retirement account because "we have this large pool of church loans."

During 1999, the Assemblies of God Financial Services Group had combined assets of $82.5 million, Barton said, which represents an increase of $104 million in one fiscal year. The group also offers a stewardship program to the people and churches it serves. Barton said the 128 employees of the Assemblies of God Financial Services Group all are involved in stewardship education.

"We train them, as well as our volunteers, to encourage stewardship in our churches," he said.