One of the biggest issues facing our elected officials in Washington is health care.
And it is pretty clear that no one has a good answer for this very complex problem.
The cost of providing health care for employees has been a big ticket item for decades.
And while medical cost trends have decreased since 2007, health spending averages still hoover between 6 and 7 percent – with a projected 6.5 percent increase for 2018. Read the Full Article →
I recently had a reader ask about a sick leave policy.
This reader had a church employee who was unexpectedly dealing with a serious health issue that would require a lot of time away from work.
Since the church didn’t have an existing policy they were scrambling to write one to cover the sick leave.
Her story was not unlike a lot of churches – policies and procedures are written on the fly when the need for a policy arises. Read the Full Article →
Churches exist with a common mission – and that is to help people.
Because of this, churches and church leaders are often exposed to the less desirable aspects of human behavior – the neglect or abuse of a child.
Most churches have a children’s program.
And, whether that is children’s ministry during Sunday services, Mom’s day out or Vacation Bible School – kids and church go hand-in-hand. Read the Full Article →
Church employees wear many hats – many of which require spending money.
Whether that spending is from the petty cash drawer to pay a delivery person, purchasing flowers for the auditorium or buying supplies for children’s church – spending is attached to many employee and volunteer job descriptions.
When I first joined the work force it was very difficult to spend the organization’s money. Read the Full Article →
True church growth is a result of a positive church experience, members inviting family and friends as well as a reputation that is spread by word-of-mouth.
Many people will visit a church several times before making a decision to call that church home.
The challenging part, particularly for churches of a few hundred people, is that visitors can sneak in and out without anyone even knowing they were there. Read the Full Article →
Churches love when they get visitors because they know that visitors are potential members.
However, visitors need help taking that step toward membership.
And while not all churches have official membership, those that do experience is an increased engagement with members.
This is because when congregants attend a new membership class, they have a better understanding of the church’s history, why it exists and what it hopes to achieve. Read the Full Article →
There is a common phenomenon in the church today.
People get offended, conflict arises and people leave the church.
Very often this is the result of mis-communication, or no communication.
Church members are human and when there is a gap in information, people tend to fill in the blanks. And, oftentimes what they fill the gap with is inaccurate or untrue. Read the Full Article →
When new people visit your church they spend the first couple of weeks or even months evaluating what you do, what programs you offer, and if the church culture is a good match.
They want to know that there are programs available to meet their particular spiritual and social needs.
Many visitors hesitate making the commitment to membership because they may not understand the process or what they are committing to. Read the Full Article →
The summer giving slump is a dreaded time for Pastors and church leaders.
Fully Funded did a survey and asked churches of all sizes and denominations, how they handle the summer slump.
The answers were varied from “waving the white flag of surrender” to “taking out a loan” to “doing nothing” – reflecting the desperation of some of these churches.
So, what is a church leader to do? Read the Full Article →
Any organization that provides health care as an employee benefit has felt the sting of rising health care costs.
Depending on the size of the organization, and the census of employees, those annual increases can be very high.
In 2016, the average annual premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance were a staggering $6,435 for single coverage and $18,142 for family coverage.
And, in 2017 it is projected that employer premiums will increase an average of 6% more to insure their employees. Read the Full Article →
