During the Red Letter Challenge this spring, Giving was one of the five things Jesus asked of His followers that we spent time on together. When the six weeks ended, several of you came to us with a good question: what does it actually take to run this place?

That is a fair thing to ask, and we think you deserve a straight answer. So each month we are going to put one real number in front of you.

Here is the first one.

How much does it cost to keep the lights on and the air conditioning running at Epiphany for one month?

  • A About $1,200
  • B About $2,300
  • C About $3,400
  • D About $5,900
Click to reveal the answer

The answer is C.

Our electric bill averages $3,448 a month.

That works out to about $113 every day, or roughly $800 every Sunday, or a little over $41,000 a year.

Here is what that number actually buys. It is the lights in the sanctuary on Sunday morning. It is the air conditioning that makes worship in August in Texas something you can sit through. It is every classroom, every hallway, the kitchen, the office, and the lights in the parking lot that get people safely to their cars after an evening meeting.

Nobody puts a gift in the plate thinking about the electric meter. But the meter runs all week, in an empty building on a Tuesday afternoon and a full one on Sunday morning, and your giving is what keeps it running.

If you have ever wondered whether a smaller gift makes a difference: $25 keeps this building running for about five hours. $100 covers nearly a full day.

Thank you for that. Every light that was on when you walked in this morning was on because somebody gave.


A number like this one is only ever half the story. We share it so you can see your gifts at work — right down to the lights overhead and the cool air on a Houston Sunday. But the reason we give was never the number.


“Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give,
not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”
— 2 Corinthians 9:7

Thank you for giving cheerfully. Next month, we’ll put another number in front of you.
— The Board of Stewardship