LEESBURG — Dr. Randy Casey-Rutland was elected conference treasurer Oct. 5 at the special one-day session of the Dare to Share Jesus 2000 Florida Annual Conference Event, after serving as interim treasurer for nearly seven months.

As treasurer, he said he does not see himself providing the answers to the conference’s financial challenges. Instead, he says his role will be to facilitate discussions and help make improvements in the processes. He said he believes that a combination of strong planning and God’s grace will help the conference meet its challenges.

"I believe that God’s resources are always more than adequate for the task God lays out before us," Casey-Rutland said. "Our task is prioritizing what we do. And when we do that, we’ll see that there’s more than enough resources…"

According to the Rev. Bob Standifer, chairman of the Conference Council on Finance and Administration (CF&A), Casey-Rutland was one of 17 applicants for the position and approved by both the search committee and CF&A.

Casey-Rutland said that while he is optimistic about the conference’s financial situation, there are still many short- and long-term challenges. "We’re not out of the woods yet," he said. "We still have some financial challenges…but they’re not so great we can’t overcome them."

One of the first challenges the conference faces is making decisions about the type and quality of ministry it does, according to Casey-Rutland.

"What we need to do, as a church and the people involved, is look carefully at our priorities and capabilities for ministry and mission," he said. "We need to emphasize those things we do well and separate out those things we don’t need to do at the conference level, those things that churches can do better and more creatively."