When Crossroads Christian Church in Corona, CA, accumulated $500,000 in debt — in addition to falling behind on their mortgage payments — financial ruin and foreclosure seemed imminent.
Read More >People of faith are renowned for their charitable generosity. Amidst what economists are calling the “Great Recession,” giving to religion is the one subsector of charitable giving that grew in 2008. While charitable giving as a whole decreased from 2007 to 2008 by 2 percent (-5.7 percent when adjusted for inflation) and individual giving dropped 2.7 percent (-6.3 percent when adjusted for inflation) contributions to religion increased by 5.5 percent (+1.5 percent when adjusted for inflation).
Read More >Remember when it was easy to manage church finances? Income approximated expenses. New programs were launched to meet people’s needs. Lives were changed; more people came, and expansion became necessary; capital campaigns followed, which met or exceeded expectations. Then the bottom fell out as the economy plunged into a recession unparalleled in our experience.
Read More >In recent years the issue of corporate financial accountability has become increasingly important, even for churches. As a result, more and more churches are providing annual financial reports to their congregations. Unfortunately, many of these reports are simply based on business financial reporting models and therefore may not convey the church’s finances as clearly as they could.
Read More >The pastor of “Hometown” Community Church noted in a casual way one Sunday that the pledges for the new worship center and classroom buildings were coming in only at a 50 percent rate.
Read More >When Blackshear Place Baptist Church offered a family finance program, 1,200 people signed up, and trimmed thousands in personal debt.
Read More >Bad weather, vacations and illnesses can cause parishioners to miss church services during the year. While some people will make up their missed donations, many won’t. That’s where electronic giving, or e-giving, can help.
Read More >No doubt as investors or participants in an employer’s 401(k)or IRA retirement fund, many congregants are used to perusing financial statements that affect them. They may or may not understand the fine details, but many a financial advisor has remarked at how good people can be at getting to the bottom line.
Read More >One of the most significant stewardship responsibilities for a church is managing debt. Churches weigh the decision to incur debt very carefully, and are typically highly focused on the details of the loan.
Read More >Taking on a building project of any kind just now, in this recession, be it new construction, expansion or refurbishment of an existing space, brings added scrutiny from all parties involved — pastors and staff, volunteer leadership and congregations at large.
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