Tuesday, April 10, 2018
Hey Fletch … I’ve heard about the Evangelical Council of Finance Accountability. Is that something that a church can join and how could I find out if my church qualifies? Would they accept my church?
DRF—I’ve served in several churches that were a part of the ECFA. They enhance trust in churches with their Seven Standards of Responsible Stewardship™. Those standards relate to Doctrinal Issues, Governance, Financial Oversight, Use of Resources and Compliance with Laws, Transparency, Compensation Setting and Related-Party Transactions, and Stewardship.
Over the past several years, I have served on one of their advisory groups. This allowed me to see them up close and work with Dan Busby (President) and Michael Martin (Vice President). They are all about honest and forthright standards for church finances and governance. I would strongly encourage your church to apply and be a part of ECFA—it will be a great help to your Board, Finance Team and congregation. Let me ask Michael Martin to respond as well:
Response from Michael Martin, Vice President of ECFA—David, thanks for the chance to chime in here and for your kind words about ECFA. You’ve been such a blessing to the ministry over the years!
Churches are not only welcome to join ECFA – today, churches are the fastest growing membership segment of ECFA, including over 40 of the largest churches in America.
ECFA.church is our new website just for church leaders with tons of free resources (webinars, podcasts, sample policies and procedures, and more). You can also check out testimonials from current members and learn more about the new short form membership application at ECFA.church/Join
