01 - "Expected Receipts" re Church Events via QuickBooks (QBs) - (01)

        By "Expected Receipts" I am talking about Billing and Collection of payments made by participants in/around Church Events.  One Church handled over $1,000,000 during their recent fiscal year and within this total were one  Church Event  that involved over $100,000.  Please go to  5025  for more details about this topic and discover some of important Church aspects as they use the Accounts Receivable features within a separate QBs Company to care for these important fiscal responsibilities.

02 - "Why do we have this Money" or "Imposed Limits" Issues at a Ministry - (02)

        During this past month I have dialoged with various Church Finance people about the general concept of management of "Imposed Limits"  with respect to the Church’s finances.  Please go to 0070  and begin by digesting the contents of this link.        
        First, when you access 0006 you will remember that it is administratively wise to pool all of the money on deposit under your stewardship so you can earn the maximum amount of "Interest Income" on all money on deposit awaiting applicable use for the purposes of your Ministry. 
        In order to effectively do this, you pool your money and  DO NOT  marry up various Balances in your Bank(s) to certain "Imposed Limits" areas of your Ministry.  For example, you do not place all of the Board of Leadership’s money (General Operating or Other Discretionary Money, etc.) in a certain Bank Account (checking or savings) and all of the Donor Restricted Money in another, etc.  
        You manage from the perspective of "Why do We have this Money" “Imposed Limits” information per the following and NOT (I emphasize NOT)  via the "Where is the Money on Hand" information.  When you go to 0094  you will find some more information on this overall topic of two aspects of your fiscal record keeping.  There are the following three basic aspects/categories of "Imposed Limits" as to "Why do We have This Money" at your Ministry as you manage and spend accordingly:   

   DONOR RESTRICTIONS:

            This is money that comes in from constituents/donors who express a Board approved preference (Donor Restrictions, if you please) as to how the Ministry is to use such money in carrying out its exempt purpose.  The Board is at least ethically obligated to either spend the money for this Donor Preferred purpose or, if the Ministry no longer approves of such an effort, they seek Donor approval for an alternative Ministry approved purpose.   

   EVENT PAYMENTS:

            These  Defrayment payments by event participants (which, of course, are not donations)  partially underwrite the event's total costs. Please go to 5023  for more information about such activities.

   BOARD DESIGNATIONS:

            Then there is money that the “Board of Leadership” sets aside (Board Designations, if you please) for certain future aspects of the Ministry's operation.  Such money usually comes from Board discretionary "General Fund" Surpluses, or assessments during the operating year as it flows from this source to the named Board Designation fund, etc.  In most Churches a "General Fund" budget is approved annually by the Board and the Congregation, etc. 
            Staff,  Board,  or certain Departments of the Ministry, sometimes become so possessive of available "Board Designated" money on hand that such money is viewed as "sacred for that purpose only"  and not subject to change.  Sometimes there is merit for the Board to use such money for other purposes and it is essential for all to understand that the Board is in overall control of all of this "Board Designated" money and not any of these other entities. 
            Please note the sample  “Imposed Limits” Breakdown below of $151,910 at a Church Ministry.  The Assets are  $179,718 (which includes a loan to Staff of $16,000) and the Liabilities are  $27,818 --  resulting in  $151,910  of total Net Assets that are subject to "Imposed Limits."  

 * * *  "IMPOSED LIMITS" Breakdown  * * *   

				Donor	Net Event	Board
			Total	Restrictions	Monies	Designations
	3003 · Board of Leadership
	3031 · General Fund Surpluses	$106,531
	3035 · (Expenditures) thereof to date	$ (45,427)
	Sub-total		$     61,104			$       61,104
	3025 · Facility Maintenance. SetASides	$    8,868
	3026 · Emergency Fund	$  27,138
	3030 · Staff Loan was from this source	$  16,000
	Total		$     52,006			$       52,006
	3100 · Donor Restricted
	3132A · Scholarship Fund #1	$    2,301
	3132B · Scholarship Fund #2	$    1,949
	3135 · For Children's Ministry	$    4,101
	3136 · Benevolence Fund	$    3,230
	3137 · Scholarship Fund #3	$    1,154
	3138 · Scholarship Fund #4	$         65
	Total · Donor Restricted		$     12,800	$           12,800
	3200 · Missions Ministry
	3210 · Mission Projects
	3213 · Project #1	$  14,016
	3214 · Project #2 -deficit	$      (784)
	Total 3210 · Mission Projects		$     13,232			$       13,232
	3240 · Missionary Support
	3245 · SetASide fr the GPFund	$  19,780
	3247 · This year's monthly support	$ (18,960)
	Total 3240 · Missionary Support		$          820			$            820
	3255 - Missions carry over fr Earlier Yrs		$     10,731			$       10,731
	3259 - Missions Donor Restrictions		$       7,158	$             7,158
	3260 - Non Missionary - fr the GPFund for:
	3258 · Special Projects	$    1,000
	3262 · Mission Education - (deficit)	$   (1,550)
	3263 · Mission Conference	$       380
	3265 · S-Term Missions	$       760
	3266 - Local Outreach	$       628
	Total 3260 Non Missionary fr Gen Fund		$   1,218			$         1,218
	3400 · Donations from Ministry Groups
	3471 · Adult #1	$       594
	3473 · Adult #2	$       115
	3474 · Adult #3	$         20
	3475 · Adult #4	$    2,893
	3477 · Adult #5	$       830
	3478 · Adult #6	$       430
	3488 · Adult Choir	$       606
	Total 3400 · Ministry Group		$       5,488	$             5,488
	3800 - Self Funding (Deficits)
	3807 · Choir Retreat	$       685
	3808 · Choir Event	$        (51)
	3810 · Women's Event #2	$       332
	3813 · Men's Event	$    1,000
	3821 · Youth Choir Event	$         18
	3850 · Youth Missions Trip #1	$      (175)
	3851 - Youth Missions Trip #2	$       126
	3856 - Youth Mission Trip #3	$   (2,486)
	3809 · Woman's Ministry #1	$       205
	3811 · Youth Events #1	$    4,233
	3818 · Youth Events #2	$      (400)
	3820 · Youth Events #3	$      (474)
	3822 · All Church Fall Small Groups	$       280
	3830 · Church Picnic	$      (886)
	3852 · Youth Events #4	$    3,460
	3854 · Youth Events #5	$      (244)
	3856 · Other Church Events	$       471
	3801 · VBS1 Children	$         66
	3802 · VBS2 Youth	$       302
	3803 · VBS3  Preschool	$      (200)
	3805 · Summer Camp	$       377
	Total 3800 · Self Funding Events		$   6,639		$       6,639
	General Fund (Deficit)		$   (19,286)	$                  -	$            -	$      (19,286)
Total			$151,910	$                  25,446	$            6,639	$           119,825

03 - Accounting for "Self Funded Events"  at a Church via QuickBooks (QBs) -  (03)

        Let's suppose that you use QBs and you follow my recommendations found in  0601  about Fund Accounting QBs Method #1. Further,  your Church has concluded (largely due to the different operating years that Brad points out within  3444)  that the best way to account for Self Funded Church Events monies is to account for them as SPFunds.  This means that all such transactions flow through the QBs Equity accounts and not via the usual QBs Income and Expense accounts.  
        In  5025  we discuss how you can set up separate QBs Companies that allows you to have Self Funded Church Events operating fiscal years of your own ..... plus also have the means of reporting operating expenses using the needed "Actual to Budget" QBs feature.

Links that are via Jim Bramer

            Debt and Ministry                                         http://www.bcidot.org/all/0126-02.html                    
            Finance Committee  Perspective                   http://www.bcidot.org/all/0029-01.html

This Month's previous Editorial - "For What It is Worth"-  Written in April 2001 

            Sacredness of the Annual General Fund Budget   ----   http://www.bcidot.org/fwi/0910-03.html

Current "Ministry Finance" Truism

    Below are a couple of my Ministry Finance precepts/beliefs/principles, or  "rules of thumb". Please go to  0069  for a complete TRUISMS list. 

    FUND RAISING vs GIVING TO YOUR HOME CHURCH  -- At your Home Church (where you are probably a member, etc.) you have a spiritual responsibility to financially support the Ministry.  You need to make a financial commitment to this "Body of Believers" as a function of your overall stewardship of this world's resources.  Within this context, many of us think in terms of a "Tithe of our Income,"   To remind you, your Church leadership is not "Fund Raising" per se (like some Ministries find it necessary to do). but they are admonishing us in our walk with the Lord "to make money promises and keep them" in this area of our lives --- just like we need to have victories in all aspects of our spiritual sojourn.  

          Prayerful Thot :

     This "Blogger" like monthly endeavor (99) allows me to share some personal comments/thoughts as to Ministry Finance issues plus matters concerning Righteous Personal Finance for Christian people.  Please go to  0200  for further explanation and links to earlier JIM's JRNLs.  The four digit links  xxxx  and some  "Click Here" herein come from www.bcidot.org sources. 
    If you would like to receive the next monthly JIM's JRNL during the first week of the subsequent month,  please join the following Yahoo Group:   ---- http://groups.yahoo.com/group/JIMsJRNL/.    Caution --- the non  www.bcidot.org  web links that I reference herein do NOT necessarily imply my endorsement.  Further, if any of these links do not work, let us know which one at LINK@bcidot.org.  Lists of our  www.bcidot.org  articles (or Web Docs), can be found at 9703.  9704  9705.   and  9706

 Probable "Ministry Finance Lingo", or "Frequently Used Vocational Terms" used herein, appear below:

            BLVR =  Someone who has accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, CBA = Church Business Administrator, CBAer;  CMS = Church Management Software/System;  CPA = Certified Public Accountant;  GAAP = Generally Accepted Accounting Principles/Practices;  GPFund or GPF = General Purpose Fund; MFTeam or MFT= Ministry Finance Team;  QBOE = QuickBooks Online Edition;  QBooks or QB = Quickbooks; RPFin  = Righteous Personal Finance , SPFunds or SPFs = Special Purpose Funds

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Click Here and go to a list of earlier JIM's JRNLs - Contact JimRetCPA@bcidot.org

This document was updated last on:  February 01, 2009