If Everything Goes Just Right It Will Be Okay.

Operation Market Garden, the attempt to end World War 2 quickly via an airborne invasion of Holland, has been described as a “bad plan, poorly executed”.  Had Operation Market Garden worked it would have ended the war by Christmas of 1944, saving 1000’s of lives.  Only one thing was needed for Market Garden to succeed, everything had to go perfectly.  If any one thing were to go wrong the whole operation would fail.  Something, actually several things, went wrong and Market Garden was a disaster.

A church having a large debt is like operation Market Garden.  If everything goes perfect it will be okay.  The following story is meant as a cautionary tale and case study of the expensive lessons of church debt.  Names are changed but all the details are accurate.

A Dream come True

When the new preacher arrived at Butler Community Church it seemed like all his dreams had come true.  BCC was 6 years old and had an average attendance in the low 60’s to upper 50’s. The church was in a booming suburb, owned 11 acres with a farm house converted to worship space and held about $100K in debt.  Within a one-mile radius of the church, 2,500 homes would be constructed in the next 5 years.

With a full time preacher the church began to grow.  Soon 100 worshippers packed the little farmhouse every Sunday and on special Sundays they had to meet outside because the farmhouse was too small.  The Lord was blessing and the preacher was sure the time to build had come. The offerings were more than covering the expenses.

What was unknown to the preacher was that the church had begun with a very unhealthy start.  What had been described as a church plant was in reality a very ugly church split and no one had ever addressed some root issues. This unhealthy congregational DNA would manifest itself during the campaign to payoff the building debt.

Time to Build?

It was decided that the church should build a multipurpose building with a main meeting room (seating 375) that could also be used for fellowship, sports, and recreation, adjacent to the multipurpose space there would be 5 large classrooms.  Once in the new building the farmhouse would be updated with class, conference, and office space.  With an approach of “Functional but not opulent” construction cost would be about $400K and would give the church a total of 11,000 square feet of useful space.  Total debt would be just under $500K furnished; the cost would be about $45 per sq. foot.  The building would be highly useful, but easy to build and maintain.

Once in the building the growth of the church took off again.  Attendance jumped from about 100 to over 140 in about 3 months.  The church was seeing decisions for Christ and new families weekly.  It felt like this was going to be one of those church- growth, super stories.  At the same time, construction began on a subdivision of 800 homes next door to the church building.

New wine began to burst the old wine skins. 

The operational system of a church of 150 is very different from the operational system of a church of 60.  Stress began to develop between the founders of the church and the new members about the vision for ministry.

Where once a few good ‘ole boys and girls made decisions, the leadership had shifted to a board.  The result was a power struggle.  There developed an effort to get rid of the preacher who had advocated much of the change and who had brought in all these new people.  In protest to the new reality the old guard began with- holding their offerings until they were satisfied.

If this continued, the church would not be able to make the mortgage payments.  In a show down vote, the attempted coupe failed.  But a few weeks later, while the preacher was out of town, the board was pressured to make three concessions to the old guard.  The preacher would be asked to, “Preach sermons that made people feel good.   Not to change anything.   Not to try to get new people, but to take care of the ones we’ve got.”

Unable to accept these terms, the preacher left the church.  He was heart broken.  Not only because he was leaving a ministry he loved and hoped to stay with for the rest of his life, but also because he was well aware of what was in store for this church.

In the months that followed his departure, attendance declined rapidly and a number of ministers came and left. Soon the attendance was back close to 60, there were no new families coming in, and a new minister was called to a part time status.  It was only a matter of time before the death of the church.  Those who remained were faced with the terrible consequences of their decision.  The property was put on the market for the debt and the end had come.

Debt was not the Problem

The ultimate problem with BCC was not debt, but debt became the one thing that kept the church from surviving its problems. Unfortunately, unscrupulous people will sometimes use their financial position to attempt to control the direction of the church. When a church is heavily in debt and not operating with a strong margin it is very vulnerable.  In this case had there not been a large loan, the old guard would have had little leverage by withholding their giving.  They no doubt believed they were doing what was best for the congregation, but they also would rather see the church close than lose their power and control. 

The Danger of Church Debt

The danger of debt is two fold.  First, it prevents us from taking advantages of opportunities that may present themselves.  A church that is operating with little or no margins in its budget may have to turn down fantastic ministry opportunities because it has made financial promises to repay a debt.  There is no way to calculate the high cost of lost opportunity. 

Second, it allows for no margin of error.  While debt is not morally wrong, it is dangerous.  Debt is not a problem if everything goes just right, but, rarely, does everything go just right.  A down turn in the economy, a number of families moving, or an insignificant church conflict can be enough to compromise the whole congregation. 

What is a church to do?

First, if there is a level of debt that is adversely impacting ministry, dealing with that debt needs to be a priority.  While adjustment can be made inside the church’s budget the ultimate and only lasting solution is retiring the debt.  Part of the process is discussing how debt is interrupting the church’s vision and hurting its ministry future.  A stewardship campaign to retire debt can be very effective if it focuses on the ministry of the church in the long term, and not just the current budget cycle.

Second, if a church is planning to expand its ministry by adding building space, renovation, or augmenting staff do so from a strong financial position.  While it takes longer to begin construction when the church develops capital first it allows the church to have a stronger margin and makes it more able to survive difficulties WHEN they arise.

Call Us for World Class Coaching.

If you have plans for a new building or ministry expansion call us and let’s talk about enabling your vision for ministry and securing that vision from a confident position. 

Charlie Crowe

V.P. Coleman Stewardship Services

352-548-4837