It is essential that you understand the guidelines included with your Application for Assistance. These guidelines are not intended to burden you further but to assist the Benevolence Committee in discerning legitimate needs and equipping the committee to use God's money wisely.

In order to help you and to meet the requests of others:

• We encourage you to walk with God. That is the main reason we exist as a church. We would love to help you come to know Jesus Christ as your personal Savior or assist you through sound Biblical counseling and discipleship. If you are not part of a church family, we would encourage you to consider membership with First Baptist Temple.
• We will treat you with dignity and respect. Any knowledge of requests for assistance shall be limited to the pastor and the Benevolence Committee.
• We will never give cash. Any monetary assistance that we provide will be in the form of checks or specific gift cards.
• We do not say "yes" without prayerful evaluation. In order to properly evaluate your request, we ask that you fill out an Application for Assistance and return it to the pastor. A personal interview will be required to process your application. Please allow us to verify any information obtained through this process. The evaluation will be completed as quickly as possible.
• We will only provide for basic necessities. We consider food, clothing, rent and utilities to be basic necessities. All other requests will be evaluated by the pastor and the Benevolence Committee. It is not our intention to pay bills that are unnecessary or go beyond meeting basic needs.
• We ask that you accept primary responsibility for your life. Before seeking financial help from the church, we would ask that you exhaust all available resources and turn to your family for assistance prior to involving the church. Upon request, we will provide counseling or assist you in securing available assistance.
• We are limited in our ability to assist you. In order to accommodate the numerous requests for assistance each year, we cannot provide more than $500.00 of financial assistance to any individual or family within a given calendar year. Upon request, we will provide financial counseling or assistance in establishing a workable budget in order to assist you in becoming financially responsible and independent.

We do not wish to see you continue in a bad financial situation; therefore, we request that you complete an Application for Assistance. The accuracy of this information will allow us to discern the best course of action necessary to meet your specific needs. The following information must be completed on your application before we will consider your request:

• The names of other agencies and programs from which you have sought assistance.
• Your present job and family situation.
• Why you chose to seek help from this church.
• How you met this need last month and how you plan to address this need next month.

Thank you for completing the Application for Assistance. Once your completed application is returned to the pastor, we will act upon your request as quickly as possible. All shared information shall be held in the strictest confidence.