Important Financial Update

August 5th, 2026

As we look back at this last fiscal year (July '25 - June '26), we first want to acknowledge that we, as a church family, gave over $3.8 million to support the ministry of New Heights Church, making this the second-highest year of giving in our church's history.

That is worth celebrating!

Because of your generosity, disciples were made, thousands of people were served in Northwest Arkansas, and ministry continued in at least 22 countries around the world. We are deeply grateful for your faithful investment in God's Kingdom.

At the same time, as we closed our fiscal year on June 30, 2026, we finished with an operating deficit of $310,772, meaning we spent more than we received in General Fund giving during the year. This deficit resulted from both lower-than-anticipated giving and spending that exceeded our budget, and we are taking responsibility for both as we move forward.

This is the largest deficit we have experienced, and we take that seriously. Much of the giving shortfall occurred during the final six months of the fiscal year (January–June 2026), and we know this season has been financially challenging for many families. We also recognize our responsibility to steward God's resources wisely, and we are committed to stronger financial management moving forward.

To that end, we have already begun reducing expenses. We are delaying the backfilling of several staff positions, redistributing responsibilities among our existing staff, and inviting some of our members to serve in key volunteer roles so that ministry can continue while operating more efficiently. Our new budget is also lower than last year's, and we are carefully evaluating every expense as we seek to accomplish more with less.

As we move forward together, we're inviting anyone whom God leads to participate in what we're calling Above & Beyond Giving.

This isn't about replacing your regular General Fund giving. It's an opportunity for those who are able to make an additional gift that will go directly toward eliminating last year's deficit and strengthening our financial foundation for the future.

We know many of you also support missionaries and other ministries beyond New Heights Church in addition to your General Fund giving. While it is impossible for us to fully gauge how much is given to these Kingdom endeavors outside of New Heights Church's General Fund, we believe it exceeds $1,000,000 annually, and we are thankful for your commitment to God's work both here and around the world.

Please know that your General Fund giving to New Heights supports the infrastructure for many of those workers and organizations as well. Again, we thank you for your giving and pray that God graciously provides for each of you as you support His work here and around the world.

Your fellow servants,

Jim, Lee, and Cary
for the Elders and Staff