By ALLEN TILLEY, DEdMin.

Senior Pastor, First Baptist Church, Carthage, Tex.

(Published in Baptist Progress, July 5, 2006)

Nothing causes more trouble in churches than money. We struggle with not having enough, how to spend it, and how to use it wisely. One of the benefits of having a democratic form of membership in the church (every member having an equal voice and vote) is that it infuses a variety of ideas and perspectives. On the other hand, one of the pitfalls of democratic memberships in churches is that everyone thinks his or her opinion is the only one that matters, especially when it comes to money.

Because we all view financial stability differently, we experience conflict in the church. Some believe that good stewardship is holding onto every penny donated to the church while others believe that good stewardship is spending everything until it is gone. With such drastic differences of opinion, the most despised time on the church’s calendar is the business meeting.

I remember when a friend of mine became the pastor of a church with a reputation for ungodly business meetings. The night of their first business meeting, he paced the floor with nervous anticipation. With just seconds before the meeting started, he took his chair from the platform and placed it next to the pulpit. He reminded the congregation that Jesus promised to be with them every time they assembled, and tonight, he said, “Jesus would be in that very chair.” Since he was new to the church, he asked for help on how to conduct the meeting. The church became deathly quiet. Finally, a little old lady at the back of the church said, “If Jesus is sitting in that chair, preacher, we don’t want to do it the way we’ve been doing it.”

How can these kinds of meetings be avoided? Let me suggest that your church have a budget. Not just a checkbook summary, or a listing of offerings and expenses, or a budget that fills in the blanks after the money is spent, but a real budget. Building a reliable budget takes time and research. To make the task easier, you might want to include someone from your church that has bookkeeping or an accounting background. If no such help is available, you might consider sitting down with a pastor who has a budget, or talking to a certified public accountant. Here are some steps on how you can get started.

Take a Look Back

The best way to plan for the future is to see where you have been in the past. Like people, most churches have spending habits. As you look back on the past year’s expenses, you will begin to see where your money went and for what. Remember the old adage, “Unless you learn from the past, you are doomed to repeat it.” Spending time in reflection will do two things. First, it will cause you to praise the Lord for all the good that was accomplished the previous year. Second, it will help you discover any potential waste that can be cut from your budget.

Set Up Categories

Most of your expenses can easily be divided according to various ministries or accounts, such as education, music, children, youth, associational, payroll, utilities, building fund, savings, associational tithing etc. After setting up your categories, simply place the expense under the appropriate ministry or account. For example, under the education category, you will place expenses for literature, Sunday School, training union, and other Bible studies. Next, total all the categories for a final budget number. Keep in mind that as you set up the categories that you cannot budget more than you receive in offerings. Well, you could, but not for long because you would run out of money.

Prepare Purchase Orders

Purchase orders are simply numbers assigned to purchases as a means of tracking who made the purchase, where, how much, and for what category designation. A purchase order system will simplify the bookkeeping process. The numbers can easily be assigned starting with 001 and the year. At a central location, either with the church’s secretary, pastor, or treasurer, have a log book that requires those making purchases get approval first by supplying the above information.

Have the Church Approve the Budget

Develop a worksheet that lists the anticipated contributions. Underneath the income, list the major categories that will make up the expenses. At the bottom of the form, subtract the expenses from the income, and the balance should come out to zero. Explain the changes you are making in the budget, and what some of the bigger expenses will be in the different categories.

Submit Monthly Financial Statements

To keep people informed, simply prepare a monthly financial statement that has three columns. One column will include the records for that month. The next column will be a year-to-date record (of all that has happened so far in that year). The last column will be the annual adopted budget (as a reminder of the total budgeted expenses). Most people, once that they see that the budget is working will no longer worry about finances. While television evangelists have come and gone, Billy Graham has been the mainstay. One of the reasons for his continued success is that he has always openly reported his contributions and expenses.

Budgeting with built-in accountability will free your church of financial bondage, and it will allow you to focus on the more important duties such as winning souls.