Dear Members and Friends of the RFPA, 

I Corinthians 1558, “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye, stedfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” 

God has greatly blessed our labors by enabling us to publish the Standard Bearer for the past fifty-six years. In August, 1900 copies of the Standard Bearer were printed. We used 150 copies of that issue for Bound volumes. Our business manager mailed 775 copies locally and 764 copies outside the G.R. area, which is a slight increase in subscriptions over last year. Our Foreign subscriptions have been reduced to 117 copies per issue. 

Our Treasurer reports that gifts this year totaled $14,700.96. Of this amount, $8,688.25 was from church collections and $6,012.71 was from individual gifts. Your generous gifts are needed in order that the Standard Bearer be printed and be sent to the four corners of the earth. 

Our continued need of financial support was made known to the consistories of our Protestant Reformed Churches by letter. Emphasis was placed on increasing the number of church collections per year; encouraging, by way of bulletin, support for theStandard Bearer to a greater measure; and encouraging to-be married and young married couples to be subscribers. The letter ended with these words, “We as a Board are confident our people will respond once the need is known. May God continue to bless us as churches as we labor for and to the glory of His Name and to the coming of His Kingdom.” 

The Board has been trying to combat the increase in costs of producing the Standard Bearer. In the month of June of this year we asked Commercial Printing to do our typesetting, at a reduction in cost. 

The Board has also been trying to locate a place in which to store Standard Bearer materials and RFPA publications. We approached Synod of 1980 through the Theological School Committee concerning the purchase of land on which to build. Synod disapproved the request.

Over the past year, our Editor-In-Chief and Department Editors have supplied us with articles regarding God’s Word. These men have maintained, kept, and proclaimed God’s Word of Truth; have been steadfast in refuting, uncovering, and bringing to light false doctrines which have misconstrued, perverted, and distorted the Holy Scriptures; and have purposed, concluded, and determined to adhere to the reformed doctrine of election and reprobation. These faithful servants earnestly contending for the faith once delivered to the saints have written and will continue writing, D.V., by the grace of our Covenant God. 

The Board wishes to thank our business manager, Mr. Henry VanderWal for his devoted efforts and hard work, and to thank the following brethren for their hard work over the past years: Jim VanOverloop, Fred Huizinga, and David Harbach. Thank you brethren for your sincere concern.

The Staff and Board of the RFPA sincerely desire your unceasing prayers and faithful support.

The Board of the RFPA

David Harbach, Secretary