Articles on Finance
Offerings. Tithes. Stewardship. Generosity. Giving. Sacrifice. Finance. There are many words that we use to describe the money that is received by the church for ministry use. There are also many facets to the Finance Department as they aid ministries by organizing the necessary funds.
Eight Practices For Effective Online Giving
I’ve spent a lot of time on church websites recently ... like dozens of hours on hundreds of websites! Along the way, I noticed some trends about online giving. Having grown by 21% in [...]
Virtual Currency and Charitable Contribution Guidelines in Federal Tax Law
Charitable Contribution Guidelines in Federal Tax Law for Donors of Virtual Currency Valued at Greater than $5,000 Whatever you may think about virtual currencies, one reality is that a significant number of people have invested [...]
Designing an Effective Chart of Accounts for Churches
There are four basic principles of effective chart of accounts design and they are most prominently applied to reporting elements like travel, supplies, and meals. You can redesign your general ledger accounts to create [...]
Eight Tips for Addressing Inflation Creep
How does a church make a mid-course adjustment to the vision, facility drawings, funding and timeline of a project when costs have increased significantly? Believe it or not, this is a very real scenario that [...]
The Mistake of Borrowing Money to Pay for CapX Expenses
The moment has come where your organization is facing significant Capital Expenditures (CapX), this might be a roof or HVAC replacement. But, you have not established an appropriate capital reserve fund. Your roof won’t [...]
Leadership Lessons from a Bank with a Biblically-Centered Culture
Most banks have a culture of profit. What if a bank took a biblical world view that included profit with the biblical principles of honesty, integrity, truthfulness and fairness? The bank created [...]
Heart Financial Planning: A Summer Check-In For Pastors
Almost every pastor I talk to gives to the church. But, the majority seem to give from duty, obligation, almost joylessly. I can almost hear some of their inner thoughts: The box is checked. [...]
Assessing Church Financial Health Made Easy
Assessing Church Financial Health Made Easy—Even if you are not financially inclined So … you’re an XP (or equivalent) and you’re in charge of (among other things) the financial health and operations [...]
Legacy Gifting: The Heart of Stewardship
The stewardship journey is not only the work of a faithful follower of Christ but those chosen to lead them. The church has a unique opportunity to provide leadership in encouraging the [...]
Cyber Criminals in the Church: A Whopper of a Tale
In today’s world, not even the church is immune to cyberattacks. Our ministries are vulnerable to phishing, data theft, and even extortion. The attorneys will provide examples of damage and recovery from [...]
Fraud and Cybersecurity In Your Church and Remote Workplaces
Churches are reflecting on the past year and how they adapted to the pandemic, including embracing the “new normal” of supporting operations with remote staff. While remote work can provide many benefits [...]
Analyzing Key Financial Indicators: Debt Ratios and Measurements
In this article, you will learn: Why monitoring debt ratios and measures is important. How to analyze different debt ratios and measures to provide significant insight for your church. Recommended benchmarks for debt ratios [...]
State of Giving 2020
Full of charts and graphs, the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability has produced a free 24-page report on the state of giving in 2020. Warren Bird Ph.D., Vice President of Research and Equipping, served as [...]
Analyzing Key Financial Indicators: Cash Flow Ratios
In this article, you will learn: Why monitoring cash flow ratios is important. How to analyze different cash flow ratios to provide significant insight for your church. Recommended benchmarks for cash flow reserves and [...]
Turning to Technology to Fill Collection Plates as Churches Remain Closed
As the pandemic continues to affect the traditional methods of engagement, it’s more important than ever to adopt digital solutions to streamline ministry management and boost donor giving. The pandemic has affected almost every single [...]
6 Key Considerations for Budgeting in Changing Times
There is still considerable uncertainty about the global COVID-19 pandemic and its long-term effects. What will the effect be on your ministry’s future revenues, expenses, and opportunities? How can you best manage continually shifting [...]
The K Shape: Implications for Churches
This intriguing Axios article, America's Two Coronavirus Realities by Dion Rabouin, perfectly describes what I am seeing in most churches and communities in the U.S. In my last ebook, Beyond: The Forward Focus Framework, I [...]
Federal Courts Adopt Pro-Intern Approach
Whether to pay interns or not has been a sticky subject for a long time. Do you know about the recent decisions from federal appellate courts that have adopted a more flexible, [...]
When to Use Outside Experts
Churches used to be able to handle a crisis or major event on their own. The current scenario is complicated by publicity on social media, a tangle of laws and regulations and the prevalence [...]
When Embezzlement is Discovered
The Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability has a downloadable PDF detailing what to do when fraud is discovered.1 When a church discovers embezzlement within the ministry, the following issues should be considered with the assistance [...]
WheatFields’ Report Card on Risk Management
In Fletch’s book, Predators—The Case of the Church Embezzler, uses a fictional case study of WheatFields Good News Church. Executive Pastor Dan Black created a report card to evaluate how the church is doing [...]
WheatFields’ Report Card on Embezzlement
In Fletch’s book, Predators—The Case of the Church Embezzler, he uses a fictional case study of WheatFields Good News Church. Executive Pastor Dan Black created a report card to evaluate how the church is [...]
Red Flags of Embezzlement
This material is from The Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. With its mission of Enhancing Trust, ECFA now certifies nearly 2,300 Christ-centered churches and ministries based on its high standards in financial management, governance [...]
Areas of Risk Management
We have brought together material from Mike Batts and from Brother Mutual to see the scope of risk management. Mike Batts is the managing partner of Batts Morrison Wales & Lee. He has more than [...]