Budgeting for a Healthy Church: Aligning Finances with Biblical Priorities for Ministry

by Jamie Dunlop, Tim Challies (Foreword)

Many pastors conceive of the church budget as primarily a financial tool, but in fact it is primarily a pastoral tool. A church's philosophy of ministry is locked into its budget, and so the budget will either stifle or accelerate any attempts to move a congregation toward a biblical model of church health. As such, the church budget is a far more potent pastoral tool than many church leaders realize. Budgeting for a Healthy Church examines each section of the budget in light of Biblical principles to show how a church budget can lock in healthy approaches to ministry. Whereas most books on church budgeting are "how" books, explaining how the budgeting process should work, this is a "what" book, helping church leaders determine the pastoral implications of what they choose to fund in their budgets.

Genres: Leadership, Church, Ecclesiology, Christian, Finance, Nonfiction, Christian Living

176 pages, Paperback

Published April 2, 2019

Reviews

[Brian Pate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. How to let your biblical philosophy of ministry guide your church budget. Practical check lists to help think through different categories of the budget. Very helpful!

[Matt Tyler · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is surprisingly excellent.

[Dr. Z · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really helpful! Wish I had this when I was a new pastor.

[Mark Donald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible work. Highly recommended.

As a pastor I am both challenged and encouraged by this work. It’s both theologically sharp and practically rich.

I’m sure I will return to this time and time again as I seek to both personally and as a church leader seek to show off the goodness and glory of God in how I steward my own personal resources and help lead the church in stewarding what God has provided for his name sake.

[H.b. Charles · Rating 5 out of 5]

I trust 9Marks resources. I do not always agree. But I trust their perspective. Their writings are rooted in scripture. They view everything through the lens of the gospel. And they hold and promote a high view of the church. All of these things are true, as Jamie Dunlop writes about church budgets and finances! I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very helpful resource for thinking about how we view the church's money and how we practice good stewardship (to exalt God's goodness and glory) with what we have. It would be good for all elders and deacons to read this.

[Josh John · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is unlike any budgeting book I have ever read! This book is about something deeper than a mere budget. It’s about the health, values, and faithfulness of a local church. I’ll be getting many copies in the future!

[Caleb Collins · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good introductory book.
If God has called you to ministry, He has also called you to manage that ministry. Pastoral ministry is more than just devotions and deep conversations—it includes real operational responsibilities that you’re accountable for. Dunlap provides some excellent free templates to help you work with your team and staff, offering clarity on how to evaluate dollars in light of ministry goals and how to project-manage your fiscal budget effectively.

[Salvador Blanco · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such clear writing. So practical. Theologically precise. This book should be in every pastor’s hand. The church budget is a pastoral tool.

[John Pawlik · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was awesome. Really clear, super pastoral. Because budgets basically undergird the work of the church, the book ended up discussing all sorts of issues from children’s ministry to the heart behind hiring staff. More people should read this even who don’t want to be pastors! If you desire to serve the ministry of your church and see it flourish, this would be a great little book to read!

[Ben Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was shocked by just how good and helpful this book was!

[Aaron Carpenter · Rating 5 out of 5]

May I give this a 6th star? Simply the best book I've read on the subject (though I haven't read many). The author answers all my questions, but he teaches me to ask better questions, and then he answers those too!

[Elease · Rating 5 out of 5]

My perspective: Going into my first year as the chair of our OPC (orthodox presbyterian) church's budget committee in my role as Treasurer. We have about 200 communicant members and about a $500,000 annual budget.

I'm not a pastor (or even a man!), but I found this book so very insightful and helpful. I was having a fair amount of "in over my head" feelings about chairing the budget committee prior to reading this book. I love managing our household budget, I love all of the bookkeeping and financial work I do, but I've never helped craft a church's budget before...especially in uncertain economic times! Reading this book really put the entire undertaking in perspective, and I feel much more centered and confident as we start our budget process.

The book's intro promises a mix of the practical and the theological. I mean, really, all solid theology is "practical" in the purest sense, but you know what I mean. There are concrete examples for abstract ideas. There are checklists and downloadable worksheets. There are clear and thorough scriptural references. The chapters are very readable in one sitting. I would read the chapter and then the next day write out notes from it to review and solidify the ideas I found helpful. Not all of the book was directly applicable to me, but I'm still glad I read the whole thing. It's heavily addressed to pastors, and while a member of Session has to be on our budget committee, I wouldn't say that our church's budget development process has been particularly spiritual. I'm hopeful that, even as a layperson, I can direct our committee to keep the church's purpose in mind with each line item. The notes I've taken from this book will be very useful.

I did buy a copy for our senior pastor (who might end up being that Session representative on the committee this year!)--not to pressure him with "homework," but because I think that, whenever he gets around to reading it, it will help his ministry. I'm also considering buying copies for each committee member (budget committee book club, anyone?!) so that we're all on the same page going into this budget season. Our budget process and budget structure have a lot of growth potential. I'm excited to see where things end up for 2021.

Highly recommend for pastors and for anyone on a budget/financial church committee. I'd even recommend it for anyone who spends money on behalf of a church (at our church: trustees, committee heads, pastors, admin personnel) or who gives money to a church (understand how to pray for the dollars you give, for the wisdom of those stewarding those dollars, questions to ask at budget meetings, etc.). Read it!

[Travis Coffey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book to be exactly what one would expect from 9Marks, Bible saturated and Gospel focused. Rather than a more detailed book of "How to..." and "Best Practices," this book successfully addresses the "What" of church budgeting rather than the "How?" Jamie clearly and effectively defines the church budget and what its purpose for the kingdom is. He doesn't separate the administrative from the ministerial but rather argues that for a church, budgeting is pastoral. The primary goal of his writing is aligning church finances with Biblical priorities for ministry and he certainly accomplishes this well. If you are like me, you will likely walk away from this book blessed, but still desiring to read more on the practical application and best practices that this book doesn't really address.

[Jon Pentecost · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tremendous. It is all too easy for church leaders and members to think of the budget as simply a practical necessity. Dunlop does what he excels in—examining ways our actions and protocols confirm or deny what we extol in the pulpit. Want your church to grow in a healthy, joyful giving, and members in a robust sense of their responsibility for one another and the lost world around them? Your church budget is not the main or most important way to teach that. But it is probably one of the main places where a congregation learns if their leaders mean what they say.

Highly commend to church leaders, or those asking money from churches.

[Gabriel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dunlop dives straight into applications thoughout this book, without neglecting to first mount them on biblical sources and principles. This book appears to consider all the ways that money given to the church can be distributed and used, and it does not stop there - Dunlop also includes budgeting processes of several churches for reference plus a checklist that churches may use in their budgeting considerations.

My biggest takeaway is not about how things can be done practically - but what does being “faithful” and “fruitful” mean, and what are the questions we should ask of ourselves and others, in order to know how faithful and fruitful is our stewardship.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is an approach to budgeting soaked in the gospel and theology. I kept putting off reading it because I assumed it would be a little dry and mostly "practical" budgeting suggestions. Instead I was blown away by the richness of the gospel and the pastoral concerns all throughout. This is a must read for those who work on church budgets. Absolutely incredible. It manages to be practical, theological, and pastoral all at the same time. I can't imagine a better book on the subject.

[Seth Hering · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book and I think it can be very valuable for anyone in a church to read. My favorite idea the author spoke about was approaching a budget as a spiritual item not just an administrative item. There was some topics in the book that I don’t fully agree with but I would still recommend those who plan to get involved to give it a read.

[Josh Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book on church finances! Every pastor, deacon, elder, or church leader would benefit (and also help benefit the church) by reading and heeding the principles contained therein.

Thank you Mr. Dunlop for this book!

[Karsten Harrison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dunlop’s work is theologically faithful, succinct, and practical. This is a worthwhile read for church members and church leaders. The strength of this book rests in special sections discussing common budgetary items and controversial conversations.

[Ben Clouston · Rating 5 out of 5]

There can be a lot of confusion around the church budget (and headaches as well). This book helps clear the fog and teaches the importance and role of a local church’s budget, while sprinkling in some practical advice. I will be back to this book again.

[Andrew Hageman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent content and thoughtful delivery.

"Your congregation's use of money matters mainly as a window into the well-being of their souls. That makes the budget more significant as a pastoral tool than a financial tool."

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stellar. I am so glad this resource now exists.

[David Bruyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very helpful, practical, and pastoral. However, it should have been titled, "Budgeting for a Healthy American Church".

[Tanner B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really theological and practical book. Pastor, lay elder, deacon, member are all parties that ought to read and engage with the ideas of this book.

[Carsten Kates · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finished this for class, forgot to mention. Finished about a week ago.

[Jason Bollinger · Rating 4 out of 5]

great church resource

This book was a really good blend of biblical instruction and practical direction. Really appreciate including scalable and usable resources. Very helpful!

[Peter Vik · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good approach to church budgeting. Dunlop focuses on the theological and ministry principles behind the church budget rather than dealing only in raw numbers.

[Eric Durso · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic.

[Jeremy Mueller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Don't be fooled by the title....it's a better read than it sounds! A church's finances reveal its heart. In this book, Jamie Dunlop helps examine this truth and gives practical, biblical wisdom for how we can align our church's budget with the heart that God has for our church. You'll be helped by this book.