Budgeting for multiplication

If you have a vision as a pastor to make church multiplication a priority, it’s best to begin budgeting from the start of your church plant. Whether that’s to launch another church or become multi-campus, it’s a challenge to budget for it. Even though setting aside money in the budget to multiply can be difficult, it can be done. Danny Parmelee asks Lee Stephenson how he has done it and what advice he has for pastors looking to do the same.

0:19 Danny introduces the episode’s topic, which is including church multiplication into the church’s budget.

0:53 Danny asks Lee how he practically budgeted for church multiplication.

1:09 Lee admits intentionally budgeting for multiplication is difficult. With one church he planted, they started right away with 2% of the budget going to multiplication. The second time he planted, he increased the percentage.

2:22 Danny asks Lee the specifics of how the budgeted money was tracked.

3:10 Lee explains what budgeting that amount looked like and what his next budgeting goal is for a multiplication initiative.

3:58 Danny inquires how Lee’s church determines who qualifies for financial help in ministry.

4:29 Lee shares what they do if someone outside their church is asking for church planting financial help versus someone from within the church doing the work of multiplication.

5:13 Lee shares that his church launched another congregation in October.

5:52 Danny asks Lee if he lets the congregation know part of the budget goes towards multiplication.

6:17 Lee addresses how he speaks about multiplication, whether it’s through meetings, one-on-one conversations, or commissionings.

7:46 Danny wonders if the people in Lee’s church can give directly to the multiplication fund or if it’s all 100% through general giving. 

8:15 Danny asks Lee to give church planters advice when it comes to budgeting for multiplication.

8:41 Lee compares waiting to start a multiplication budget to waiting to start a family until you can afford it. If you wait until you can afford it, it’s never going to happen.

9:07 Lee speaks to the importance of sharing a vision of multiplication with key leaders and staff.

9:35 Danny shares that it can be easy for a church planter to lose the vision of multiplication as they get into the day-to-day of leading a church.

10:10 Lee emphasizes that pastors need to be intentional in budgeting for this important vision.

11:05 Danny says it seems counterintuitive that churches that give away money and resources grow at a faster rate than those who do not.

11:17 Lee encourages church planters and pastors to be intentional to make a difference with more healthy churches.