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Preparing for the Financial Impact of COVID

By New Churches Team

The financial impact of COVID-19 is on everyone’s mind. How can we prepare for the coming months and years? What will church look like, and how do we need to adjust our financial structure for the future?

Three Waves of Financial Challenge

The first wave of financial challenge is the challenge caused by the disruption. That is what you are experiencing right now. The more people you already had giving online, the easier you walk through the first wave of challenge. 

The second wave is reconsideration. People are thinking through if they have enough money to give to the church. 

The third wave is job loss. Millions of people have lost jobs, and this will affect their ability to give. By the time we get to that third wave, you sort of know how your church is going to be affected. 

The New Normal

Some particularly generous people have stepped forward, but we are also learning what the new bottom is and what the new normal is. Once you have that information, you can begin to refigure your finances. Some church plants will experience that their sending churches will stop providing resources. Job disruption impacts your mother church and your church. But that doesn’t mean your mission is done and there are some ways to manage these financial impacts. Consider if becoming bivocational would allow for margin in the budget. 

Gospel Work Doesn’t End

Huge disruption does not end gospel work, it sometimes propels gospel work. Churches were planted during the Black Plague, in the aftermath of 9/11, and during World War II. We still have work to do, no matter the financial impact. The gospel will always be needed.

Compare the Numbers

Review your funding numbers before coronavirus and begin to compare what you are currently receiving. This will help you determine how much ministry you can fund. Also, there are people in your church that have money now that didn’t before, and people who had money previously that don’t anymore. There may be new streams of generosity that can help fund your mission. Be sensitive to the right timing to begin these conversations. Let people know how the church has been impacted, so that they can give when they are led to do so by the Lord. 

Adapted from the New Churches Q&A Podcast Episode 491: Preparing for the Financial Impact of COVID-19. Click here to listen to more church planting, multisite, and multiplication tips.