At Benkorp we believe our calling is to Raise the Standard of Financial Management of Churches and Christian organisations for God’s glory.
The way our churches manage their finances is an extremely important witness for God’s Glory. We believe that Christians are meant to operate at a higher level than non-Christians.
During the 25 years Benkorp has worked with churches we have found that many people undervalue and do not direct enough time, effort or money to the financial management of their church.
There is often a mentality in not-for-profit organisations and particularly churches, that every dollar spent on administration reduces the money available to be spent on the ministry of the church.
However, without good financial management a church is vulnerable to many risks, such as fraud, waste in use of money, embezzlement, fines, cash flow crises and much more.
Time and money well spent in the financial management of a church can:
- significantly reduce the risk of financial problems
- provide more information to manage all aspects of stewardship of resources
- provide support for those in leadership and management of the church.
The outcomes are clear
- better decisions are made
- better use of all financial resources
- the church provides an attractive environment for church members to confidently give their tithes and offerings.
We believe that as we raise the standard of financial management of our churches God is glorified and our churches thrive and flourish.
Here are 5 principals of Christian financial management that people involved in church leadership, should follow:
1. Christian leaders are called to be above reproach
“So an elder must be a man whose life is above reproach. He must be faithful to his wife. He must exercise self-control, live wisely, and have a good reputation. He must enjoy having guests in his home, and he must be able to teach.” 1 Timothy 3:2 and “Since an overseer manages God’s household, he must be blameless–not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain.” Titus 1:7 provide some clear characteristics of church leaders.
Above reproach requires us to be accountable and transparent.
2. Finances operated at an Excellent level
1 Peter 2:9 “chosen to proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.” We should have efficient processes and systems in place and all people trained to use these systems and comply with polices.
3. Plan to Plan
“Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will you not first sit down and estimate the cost and see if he has enough money to complete it?” Jesus said. Luke 1:28.
Annual and multi-year budgets should be in place for the whole church and each main department.
4. Abide by the law
It’s not just about the ATO for BAS and STP. All relevant regulations must be complied, such as:
- FairWork regulations
- Fringe Benefit Tax Obligations for Religious Practitioners
- Obligations in the area of paying for people’s services (assuming there are no taxation liabilities is a significant risk)
- GST obligations
- Reporting Cash transactions
5. All people are to be valued
Much of the administrative and financial management burden in churches is performed by volunteers. Churches should actively care for and value the time and skills of their people – paid and unpaid, staff and volunteers.
In the coming blog posts we will be elaborating on these principles and offering practical guidelines for you and your finance teams to consider.
In the meantime, maybe it is time for your team to consider one of our workshops especially designed for church and organisation leadership teams – staff and volunteers.
We provide a workshop specifically for Finance and Administration for Non-finance people Workshop. Read more about it : https://www.benkorp.com/workshops/
For more information contact us today.