Church Planting on the Cheap

I remember the shift of thinking that was required when we planted our church after I had been on staff for 12 years at a large established church. It was a little like moving from the Hilton to Motel 6, from steak to ramen, from Tesla to Prius. Bottom line, I had to learn, like every other church planter, how to "live on the cheap". Here's a short article with some creative cost saving ideas for planters from Linda Bergquist.

(HT: Outreach Magazine)

Best Financial Tools for Church Planters: Online Bookkeeping

In my continuing series on Best Financial Tools for Church Planters I am focusing on online book keeping. There are a lot of different options for church's to track finances and I am far from an expert in that regard. I do, however, have experience at managing finances for a church plant and speaking to other church planters who have had similar responsibilities.

The most popular option for bookkeeping has been Quickbooks Online. Below are some reasons this is a good choice for a church planter.

• You can access your books from any computer at any time. 
• There is more accountability because numerous users can access the books
• You will no longer need to run files back and forth to your bookkeeper or accountant
• You can take advantage of all the powerful features Quickbooks offers like syncing with your bank, managing payroll, printing checks, etc...
• You can synchronize your account categories with expense tracking programs like Expensify, which was featured in the last post. 

Below is a recent video review that reviews Quickbooks Online in more detail.

Best Financial Tools For Church Planters: A Financial Oversight Strategy

This is part 1 in my series on the Best Financial Tools for Church Planters. This week we'll explore the need for a financial oversight team (i.e. people who help you in the oversight of finances)

Every church planter needs to have either a sponsoring church, denomination, or an external financial oversight team (or a combination of the three) that is helping them in the management of church finances. One of my first priorities within my district of the EFCA will be to clearly delineate the methods by which finances can and should be managed in various church planting contexts. Here are a few ways in which external financial teams can be established:

Sponsoring Church: At The Vine, we have made the commitment to provide administrative and book keeping services for all of our direct church plants for a minimum of two years. This is proving to be such a blessing as we prepare to launch Redeemer City Church within the next year. Church planters can be quickly overwhelmed by the minutia of church management. By having an existing church provide the financial oversight, a planter is free to focus on the mission of establishing a core and building relationships with those who need Christ in their city.

Denomination: I am still learning how this process has been practiced in our own district, but am aware that church planters in a denomination are often invited to manage their funds through their regional office. The oversight for this model includes office staff and those over church planting within the district. Some of the financial tools available from denominations include seed money for initial equipment needs, zero-interest loans, accounting services, and employee benefits.

External Financial Team: Most church plants do not have the established trust or necessary skills within their core team to manage finances internally. This is why, when we planted The Vine, we established an external financial accountability team made up of former church treasurers at Parkview Church, the church I transitioned out of when becoming a planter. My only concern with this model is that it's too easy for the responsibilities of management to fall back on the planter. When this occurs there is a lack of accountability for the planter and also a greater risk that the planter will become overwhelmed with the details of money management.

If you know of other models or have questions or comments, please leave them in the comments section below.