Today’s post is the third in a 4 part series about structuring your church for growth.  If you missed the other two, you can find them here: Part 1 (by-laws) & Part 2 (church governance).

While the first two topics (by-laws and church governance) are areas where some churches are tied by denominational mandate or tradition, today’s topic addresses an area where every church has options: the budget.

Most of us in church leadership are familiar with the old quote, “show me your checkbook and I’ll tell you what’s important to you,” but too often we fail to strategically do the same analysis with our own church budgets.

Without serious attention, your church’s  budget can become bloated and confusing, often doing a poor job of allocating your resources toward the fulfillment of the vision.

I make no secret of how much I’ve learned in the area of church finances from Steve Stroope (co-author of Money Matters in Church and Senior Pastor of LakePointe Church in Rockwall, TX) over the years.

In their book, Stroope and Aubrey Malphurs suggest – based on studying growing, spiritually healthy churches – allocating your budget something like this:

• 10% – Missions
• 20% – Programming
• 50% – Personnel (staffing)
• 20% – Facilities

This is a great starting point.

Depending on your church’s unique situation, you may need to tweak these specific numbers, but the basics are solid. And the core principle is to have a plan! These percentages will help keep you from getting overextended in one area or another.

One area where you can adjust is personnel.  If you’re a small church you may need to spend a higher percentage on staff, and less in a larger church.  In fact, at The Journey, we aim to spend only about 30% on staff salaries.

We are able to run very lean in this area (and still compensate our staff well – check out ChurchStaffing.com for a good reference on how much to pay) and free up more of our budget to be used in the other areas.

So, how does your church’s budget break down?

Are any of these 4 areas drastically out of line with the above recommendations?

What can you do for 2010 that will help your church be a better, more effective steward of the resources that God provides?

P.S. For a great resource on church finances and more about this topic, check out Improve the Financial Fitness of Your Church (with Steve Stroope).

© Nelson Searcy. All Rights Reserved.

About Nelson Searcy

Nelson Searcy is an experienced church growth strategist, pastor, church planter and coach, consulting with churches around the world. As founder of Church Leader Insights and the Renegade Pastors Network, he has personally trained more than 3,500 church leaders in over 45 denominations through live events, seminars and monthly coaching. Nelson is also the Founding and Lead Pastor of The Journey Church, with locations across New York City and in Boca Raton, FL. Nelson and his church routinely appear on lists such as “The 50 Most Influential Churches” and “The 25 Most Innovative Leaders.” He is the author of over 100 church growth resources and 18+ books, including The Renegade Pastor: Abandoning Average in Your Life, Ministry and The Difference Maker: Using Your Everyday Life for Eternal Impact, and At the Cross with the People Who Were There. He and his wife, Kelley, have one son, Alexander.