Financial Pressure In The Ministry - What To Do, What To Do...

The topic we pastors love to hate: finances and money. It’s funny, isn’t it, that Bible College pastoral programs contain no financial courses, and that even Seminary level ministry curriculums have not one class on finances. And then they throw you into a church business. What a dirty trick!

C’mon Pastor, you know I’m not lying. You know how true that is. If you had by some chance worked in business or finance before moving into the pastoral ministry, then you might have some background in understanding a church budget, but you would be an exception to the rule.

Everything you learn about church finances must be learned outside of the academic preparation provided for pastors. It must be learned in the trenches.

Since the economy did its nose-dive in 2008-2009, many churches have been under serious financial pressure. If you’ve lost families because your church has changed pastors or programs or ministry philosophies, you might also be in a financial pinch. There are a myriad of ways that your church could be facing pressure financially, which means that you as the pastor are stressed financially.

There is a reason we count bucks in the offering plate, and butts in the seats – every Sunday morning. We all need money to support our ministries and people to carry them out.

This week on the podcast we are talking about church finances. What do we do if they are running low, and putting us in deficit? What happens if we have to lay off staff? What happens if we ourselves don’t get paid? How can we increase offerings in a way that aligns with integrity?

Pastor, if you have plenty of money in your church, listen this week to learn about philosophy of finance in a church, and how to budget. Or, just listen to be encouraged and receive good sound teaching and advice on the topic.

That’s this week on episode #71 of the 200churches Podcast: How Do I Manage My Church Finances?