Budget crisis

Had an interesting thing happen at work on Wednesday. I was told that I could spend no more money from my budget for the year. Argggh.

This is a difficult time for this to happen. Here is why: I feel my work is the least valued in whole place, even though it is one of the few places where we are growing in our church and where new life is happening.

For the year I have paced out my spending from my budget (which was reduced 20 percent last year)toward the end of the year. Thus, I am under budget for the year. The church has over 300,000 in various savings accounts, but somehow we are too broke for me to spend my budget.

This is frustrating because I was faithful to my budget. I planned my spending for the year, had spent time getting permission to buy something from a department line item. I had done everything right. I had stayed on budget. Yet somehow I was made to feel like our budget crisis was due to too much spending my budget, specifically the youth budget which is in total--1% of the total budget.

When told this I said, "So the youth group and I are being punished for being on budget when everyone else was over?"

I was told, "Well that will teach you to not blow all your money at the beginning of the year, won't it?"

At this point I wish that they would just tell me that I did a good job but they could not afford my services, and send me down the road.

It feels like I am always being taken for granted at this place. I feel like I keep doing the right thing and getting punished for it.

Poor me. I am going to go eat worms.