Common Mistakes Pastors Make With Church Finances (2024)
| by John Brummitt
Many pastors spend years digging into the Scriptures, caring for the members of their congregations, and learning new ways to share the gospel with a lost and dying world. However, few pastors spend much time researching business management skills and financial management. It isn’t really in their vocation to do so, yet we often times saddle our pastors with these responsibilities.
Many times, pastors do a fine job of managing the business side of the church or develop a team to help them with that side of things. Yet, it is also common for church finances to be mismanaged. Five common “management styles” that develop with pastors can cause major problems in a church:
Ignorance is Bliss. We see this most often when churches have a finance team in place. The pastor believes–and often the finance team believes–that the pastor should be completely hands-off. “We will take care of the money. You just focus on the Word.”
This really is a nice thought, but the leader of any company should know about the finances of the organization he manages. While the pastor doesn’t have to know how much every person tithes on Sunday, knowing whether or not the church is tracking on meeting the budget is crucial when it comes to planning and ministering to the community. If your leader doesn’t know the financial picture, it could put the church in financial trouble or kill momentum when the finance team has to terminate a project due to lack of funds. Pastors need to be informed about the finances of the church.
Lone Wolf. On the flip side of being completely hands off is being 100% hands on. This is where the pastor is given the church checkbook and is allowed to treat it like his own personal account. He has complete control over all finances. Usually, this management style is pushed upon pastors at first. Perhaps no one else is willing to take on the responsibility, so it falls to the pastor out of necessity. Complete control of the checkbook leads to other problems; corruption, distrust, questions, etc. Being a lone wolf does not make you corrupt, by any means, but not having checks and balances to protect the pastor and the church is a mistake.
Dictator. Some pastors don’t have complete control of the finances in terms of writing checks, but not a penny of the church money is spent without his approval. The biggest problem with this style is that many opportunities are missed, and ministerial needs are never met because one person makes all the financial decisions. This situation is true whether it is a pastor or layman in the “dictator” role. Whether church, home, or business, two heads are better than one. Don’t handicap the ministry of your church by limiting financial leadership to one person.
Church Mouse. This is probably the most common financial management style for pastors. Have you ever heard the phrase, “as silent as a church mouse?” Many churches struggle financially because the pastor has adopted this style. Some churches have adopted the belief that money is evil, and if a pastor asks for it he is just looking to line his pockets, that he can’t possibly be a man of God.
The truth is money is a necessity to survive in this world. The church is not exempt. The love of money is evil, not the money itself (1 Timothy 6:10). We should be talking about money… often. It is one of the most common themes in life and one of the main reasons we work. A good portion of Scripture deals with how we handle and interact with money. It is important to allow the members of the congregation an opportunity to support the Lord’s work.
The Clandestine Agency. The CIA is a clandestine agency that is known for the deep secrets its agents keep. The church should never be a clandestine agency when it comes to money. Tell the congregation everything, no matter how small. If someone questions why or how funds were used at the church, an answer should be provided. This doesn’t mean that everyone will always be kind or understanding about the answer given, but confrontation should not be avoided. The more a clandestine style is adopted, the more distrust and questioning will arise from the congregation. Distrust usually presents itself through the withholding tithes. Not only is the church hindered, but also the person withholding the Lord’s portion, who is no longer fulfilling his or her Christian duty.
If you or your pastor have fallen into one of these styles of management, it is never too late to address it. Remember, the ministry of the Lord is bigger than one person. Ultimately, you want to protect yourself and the church from any questions or doubts. The church needs to be managed properly to have the greatest impact on the world around it.
If you would like more help or information on setting up proper management styles for your church contact our office. We offer a wide range of services over church finances.
The pastor may have some involvement or authority in the church finances. However, for the protection of his reputation and the church's resources, there should always be good segregation of duties.
The pastor may have some involvement or authority in the church finances. However, for the protection of his reputation and the church's resources, there should always be good segregation of duties.
Small church expert Karl Vaters says, “While 45 to 55 percent of budget going to staff is healthy for mid-size to larger churches, the range is much wider for small churches.
Most pastors in the United States face financial challenges and don't have access to or aren't familiar with resources to help them. In fact, 90% of pastors feel some level of financial stress, according to the National Association of Evangelicals.
In a non-profit organization, such as a church, the board is the bearer of this fiduciary responsibility and therefore should properly oversee all operations, including finances, to protect the members of the church.
When offering plates are emptied, have at least two tellers present. Ask them to count and bag offerings on church premises. Designate a teller to record the money received. Ask another to review and initial the record.
One of the most common answers given to this question is the “80 percent rule,” which says a church is too full when average attendance exceeds 80 percent of sanctuary seating.
This is a primary role of the church board to take care of the compensation of the pastor. A starting point for any church board in the area of compensation is to talk about and cultivate a spirit of generosity. This comes naturally for some boards.
If you are a senior pastor, don't be caught without all the information. Having access to the giving records gives you the knowledge you need to make better decisions, invite those who may be able to help lead, and have a different conversation with those who may not yet be ready to lead.
To successfully sue a church on the grounds of intentional infliction of emotional distress, it must be proven that the church's conduct was intentional or reckless and that it caused severe emotional harm.
How long should a pastor serve the same church? The Bible doesn't answer that question. The average length of service for pastors in Protestant churches in America is down to about four years. For that to be a true average, think about how many pastors must serve far less than four years.
Pastors who lack confidence to deal with pastoral demands may experience high levels of stress which may lead one to experience burnout (Maslach, 1993; Maslach et al., 1986; Maslach et al., 1981).
Unhealthy churches tend not to be interested or centered upon the Lordship and centrality of Christ. They are places of personality, leadership in control for personal agendas, and/or seeking trends contrary to the agenda or call of God's Word.
If, in the judgment of the group assembled, the person is not repentant, they are empowered to remove the errant member from further attendance at any fellowship meetings.
How the church should handle its money. Those who lead in spiritual matters should also lead in financial matters (Acts 4:35,37; Acts 11:29,30; 1 Timothy 3:3,8). Money should be handled in such a way that is defensible against any accusation (2 Corinthians 8:21). Money stewards should be trustworthy people.
II Corinthians 9:6-9 states, “Consider this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each must do as already determined, without sadness or compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
When a pastor misbehaves, his church has the responsibility for correction. When a pastor is doing a good job, his church is also responsible to affirm him, support him, and facilitate further effective service. The time to put this process in place is when relationships are strong.
Generally speaking, your pastor DOES NOT want to see the giving records, but they believe they need to see the giving records to lead well. Very few pastors that I've met want to see the giving records out of curiosity or to schmooze the big donors.
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