What’s a leader to do about money at church?

Leadership at its best is about being present with
those we lead and being less reactive to the inevitable ups and downs
of church life – including the inevitable financial ups and downs. One
important leadership task is to pay appropriate attention to the content
– the bills do in fact have to be paid – without being too distracted
from the process: how people relate to each other and make decisions. In
dealing with church finance, it can be easy to miss the deeper
processes at work because we are so focused on solving the financial
challenges.

Here are two examples: Two churches of similar sizes may face
similar significant budget deficits. In one church, the president of the
congregation gets up and lays the facts out for the congregation. A
small group develops some creative ideas for increasing giving, which
the leadership then implements. The pastor makes a clear case for the
ministry of the church. People are anxious about the financial
situation, but it doesn’t keep them from making appropriate decisions
which are in everyone’s best interest.

In another congregation, whispers about the deficit begin
immediately after the board meeting. The pastor can’t bring himself to
address it from the pulpit. At the congregational meeting, accusations
of mismanagement are made. The treasurer walks out. E-mails are
exchanged frantically after the meeting. The congregation is unable to
bridge the gap, and the youth pastor is laid off.