Financial Resolutions 1

Posted on January 4, 2010 Written by

These financial resolutions are a great way to start the year. I didn’t write these resolutions – Brad Leeper did in www.coop.org (Brad is Generis Senior Strategist and can be reached at brad@generis.com). Here are Brad’s (and mine) financial resolutions for churches for any and every year.

Whether whispered silently in our heads or energetically wrestled through in leadership meetings, economic fears challenge churches. We offer hope and meaning to our communities and a world growing more restless in finding truth. What a terrible price to miss authentic ministry because we lacked financial resources, especially when our neighbors may be driven to their most open spiritual moments in years because of their personal financial stress.
As we move toward 2009, the financial uncertainties force us to ask the most penetrating questions about stewardship that we have asked in decades. Churches can be abundantly resourced during the most challenging times. How can your church position itself to maximize financial resources even in troubled fiscal climates? Growing and courageous churches should consider these 10 issues in preparation for the coming year.
1. A bold vision with meaningful results will rarely be underfunded
Now is not the time to shrink back from pursuing your neighbors in need. Even in the midst of personally challenging time, donors still want to make a meaningful mark on others. Internally, there is always that personal drive to live beyond ourselves and influence others. The church that vividly tells its story and challenges Christ-followers to live beyond themselves attracts financial resources.

 

Evidence shows that in down economic times, many church members do not treat giving as an expendable luxury item. They are inclined, however, to become far more selective in their giving outlets. The church that consistently and creatively articulates a compelling vision and celebrates the successes will attract giving in hard times.

 

2. Conversations about giving must move beyond stewardship toward spiritual formation
Generosity is a spiritual issue of the heart. A person cannot move toward spiritual maturity until he or she understands that “where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Our culture works overtime to convince us that there is no correlation between our faith and our finances. A first-time reader of the New Testament could not miss the plentiful teaching about our faith directly impacting how we live not only now, but also how we build our treasure in heaven.

 

In conversations with pastors, I am constantly amazed at how fearful these leaders are in shepherding people in the area of finances. Spiritual leaders yield far too easily to the myth that is it inappropriate as a pastor to interact with people about their possessions. Certainly, we would not give preference to the rich man as admonished in James 2. But we must not be passive about teaching how the incorrect image of money can prompt wanderings from the faith. (I Timothy 6:10)

 

The last frontier in American Christianity is the conversation about money. Spiritual transformation’s last obstacle is our wallet. Asking for money without the backdrop of spiritual formation will hit minimal financial results. The church that aligns spiritual formation and money will never lack. One cannot help but to give generously if there is a vibrant connection with their faith and finances.

Lead On!
Steve

 

Filed Under: future, leadership, strategy, wisdom Tagged: , , ,

First Impressions – part two

Posted on November 28, 2009 Written by
  • Lawn care
    o Is your grass cut and leaves raked on Thursday or Friday, especially during your growing season? Do your trees have mulch beds? Every three months, walk the entire church grounds with your lawn care provider – let him know your expectations clearly.
    o Dead trees and dead branches are dangerous to people and cars – cut them down. It’s cheaper than a lawsuit.
    o Trees are great – they help the church’s “green” image and provide shade. But, get trees with color (maples, cherries, crepe myrtles) instead of pines – people driving by will notice colorful trees. Avoid oak trees, they’ll tear up your pavement and sidewalks. Ask your city nursery for advice – you might even get trees for free (I did).
  • Flowers and color beds
    o You need to have something in your color beds year-round (unless your winter flowerbeds are covered in snow). Flowers say a lot to guests – get flowers with lots of colors. I guarantee it will get attention.
    o Get rid of bushes in islands because they block the driver’s view as she looks for an empty spot. If you want bushes, put them against the building (and use azaleas or hydrangeas).
  • Marked entrance doorso Are the doors you want guests to enter clearly marked? If you have multiple buildings, how do guests know what door to come in? Perhaps some clearly visible wording over the door like “Main Entrance” will cut through the confusion.
    o Regular attendees may enter through “short-cut” doors. If a guest follows a member into one of those side doors, the guest is immediately lost – not a good first impression. Help guests know which doors to use (and which not to use).
  • Appearance of entrance areao The main guest entrance lobby should be busy with people and signs to convey an image of an active, on-mission church but not cluttered with “funeral parlor” furnishings. Make the first impression an attractive, warm, colorful visual experience.
    o Word of caution – the furnishings in your lobby telegraph the demographic your church seeks to reach. Your grandmother’s furniture, while pretty, will appeal to, well, your grandmother and not 20-somethings. What does your lobby say about your target audience?
  • Welcome desk location
    o Your Sunday morning welcome desk should be visible instantly and not crowded by workers talking to each other about Saturday’s ball game. Get the desk as close to the primary guest entrance door as you can – maybe even out on the sidewalk! If guests don’t know where to go, they’ll go somewhere else or go home.
  • Interior church signage
    o Is your interior signage coordinated? Is it in clear and large print? Is it visible down hallways? Some churches have color signage for different buildings or different age levels such as green carpet and green signs for elementary school classes. Just don’t make the mistake of changing your signage style with every new building.
    o New signage is expensive – but it can have a “wow” effective both on members and guests. Use color – it is very effective in all areas of your church buildings.
Lead On!
Steve
Filed Under: buildings, facilities, future, planning, strategy, young adults Tagged: , , , , ,

Strategic Budgeting

Posted on September 29, 2009 Written by

It’s that time of the year – church finances committees racing against the clock and sometimes against the staff and members to present to the church a balanced budget. In most cases, the budget looks similar to last year’s budget with a few changes.

There are many ways to create a budget for the next year

  • Last year plus budget – take last year’s numbers and add or subtract a certain amount or percentage in order to get a figure for this year’s budget. This is simple, quick, and easy. That can be good but you’ve got to realize going into the process that you’re taking the easy way out.
  • Zero base budget – this is more complicated and eventually more satisfying. Start with a clean slate for each ministry area (music, education, administration, missions, etc.). Then, plan and put a price tag on every event and activity you’ll do next year. Don’t leave out anything.
  • Strategic budget – this type requires a lot of financial and leadership backbone. Don’t go here unless you’re ready to lead. Like the zero base budget, start with a clean slate. Then, decide what part of your church’s mission is “that which you cannot live without” – what part of your church’s purpose is so integral to your critical path that should you not do that, your church will cease to exist. After deciding what is number one, then determine number two, and number three, etc.
  • Put everything on the table – remove from the equation all positions and people. Think rationally and not emotionally about what it takes to accomplish your church’s mission and vision. Ask questions such as, “Do you need a senior pastor (or can you show videos from a mega church)?,” and, “How many administrative assistants and ministers do you need to carry out each long-term strategic mission goal.”
  • When you have settled on your number one priority, then determine how much money you need to fund the programs and personnel for that mission. Okay, now set money aside from your anticipated next year’s revenues for that goal. Move on to the second goal, determine what it is and fund it appropriately with personnel and programs. Go to number three, four, etc. Do this until you run out of money (most finance committees can tell you how much money the church will recieve next year).
  • There, you’ve created a strategic budget. The nitty-gritty details of how the budget line items will come about are done through the zero-base budgeting process. That is the second step to creating a strategic budget. Zero-base budgets can be done alone but in the long run it will help the church more if they are done in conjunction with a strategic budget.

Here’s the bad news. The financial leadership teams of most churches and the senior pastors are unwilling to develop a full-blown strategic budget. It requires a lot of time and effort. It may require terminating staff and programs that are loved by members. It can be very painful.
Here’s the good news. A strategic budget of this magnitude only needs to be done every 3-5 years. That is about how often corporate America re-structures its management. Business wants to ensure they are going in the rigth direction for their organization and that they have the right staff to make it all happen. For the in-between years’ budgets, you can rely on a zero-base budgeting process.
After all the behind the scenes work is done, church members will see what are the church’s primary goals, how they are funded, how they are staffed and what programs will be done to make them happen. Members can talk about what their church is doing (and not just “being”) and they can buy into the vision, both as volunteers and as donors.
Oh, how many goals should a church have? Probably no more than a handful (3 or 4) and each goal should have no more than handful of programs. Keep it simple, keep it focused.

Lead On!
Steve

Filed Under: accounting, budget, planning, strategy Tagged: , , ,
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