A big mistake many churches make is not having enough checks and balances.
“Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves.” (Matthew 10:16, NKJV)
Church accounting isn’t just about checks and balance sheets, it must also include a plan of checks and balances to make sure there is accountability in the financial process. By nature those of us that are part of the inner workings of a church generally want to trust people. Especially other people who are also working inside the church. And we should trust people, but that does not mean that we should be foolish or negligent in providing a plan for accountability. A good shepherd uses accountability and a plan of checks and balances to provide protection not only for the church finances, but also for the people assigned to oversee the church’s financial matters.
My wife Rebecca served as an accountant for a very large church for several years that occasionally dispatched her to other smaller churches that needed help, and for several CPA firms that specialized in church accounting. In that time, she witnessed first hand what can happen when proper checks and balances are not in place. She saw a church where it was eventually discovered that the lead pastor had several secret bank accounts, and he basically treated the church’s money as his own; as evidenced by the excessive improvements made to the parsonage! She saw another church where the treasurer for many years had been embezzling money that reached close to one million dollars!
In the report "The Top 3 Accounting Mistakes Churches Make" we discuss several checks and balances you need to put in place to safeguard your church, and 2 other big mistakes churches make (and solutions). If you are a pastor or you deal with finances in your church, click here to get the FREE report now!
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