I suppose one might argue such number stretching was all done for the kingdom's sake, of course. Henry's sake too. When the story breaks we'll all be embarrassed that he is one of us, and we'll scold all denominational leaders who stretch the truth for financial or political purposes. Sure, denominational leaders sometimes stretch the truth. They don't even have to tell outright lies to do it.
Statistics provide a dozen ways to make bad numbers look good.
It is simply putting a positive spin on the numbers. Henry might have gotten away with his number stretching if he hadn't gotten into accepting commissions. Once the story breaks most ministers will loudly condemn Henry Lyons' fibs. Local pastors sometimes lie too. Or, about the church that consistently averaged 350 until their pastor retired and the church dropped a hundred in average attendance.