Far More

It has never been easier for a church to go it alone: start its own
ministry, launch its own fund, build its own platform. So why do Alabama
Baptists keep choosing to cooperate?

For 101 years, Southern Baptist churches have sent a portion of what they
receive through the Cooperative Program to fund missions and ministry they
may never see firsthand. Jay Stewart directs the Office of Cooperative
Program and Church Financial Resources at the Alabama Baptist State Board
of Missions. John Ashworth is president of The Baptist Foundation of
Alabama, an entity that receives Cooperative Program support and sends
gifts back to it. Together they walk through where a CP dollar goes, what
it is and isn't, and what cooperation makes possible that no single church
could do alone.

In this episode:
— How a Cooperative Program dollar is divided between Alabama and SBC
  ministries
— How CP giving differs from the Lottie Moon, Annie Armstrong, and
  Myers-Mallory offerings, and from associational giving
— How the Foundation stewards its CP allocation and returns gifts to
  Kingdom causes
— A 1980s estate gift that still helps fund Camp of Champions
— Why "two are better than one" is both Biblical and practical
— The accountability built into the CP family, in both directions

CHAPTERS
00:00  Why cooperate when going it alone is easier?
00:50  Two guests, two seats
01:40  Meet Jay Stewart
04:28  What the Office of Cooperative Program actually does
07:16  The Cooperative Program in a nutshell
09:36  Where a CP dollar actually goes
11:23  CP vs. Lottie Moon, Annie Armstrong, and Myers-Mallory
13:17  Where your local association fits
14:58  What does the Foundation have to do with CP?
15:47  What the Foundation does with its CP allocation
16:49  Why your church is a stakeholder in the Foundation
17:29  A 1980s gift and Camp of Champions
19:15  Created by Alabama Baptists, for Alabama Baptists
20:17  What Jay sees from the state seat
21:38  "Two are better than one"
24:27  Why Alabama leads in CP giving
27:45  Why Ministry Grants go to CP-giving churches
29:33  What "part of the CP family" tells a church
33:06  Vetted leaders, built-in accountability
34:12  Accountability runs both directions
36:17  What would stop if churches stopped giving
37:47  A church that grew from 20 to 120
39:01  The third strand in the cord
40:21  Closing

The Baptist Foundation of Alabama has served Alabama Baptist churches,
ministries, and individuals since 1940. More resources for more ministry.

Learn more about CP from Alabama's Cooperative program website.
alabamacp.org

Learn more about the Baptist Foundation of Alabama at tbfa.org
Subscribe to Ministry Ledger, our monthly newsletter: tbfa.org/subscribe

DISCLAIMER: The information discussed on this podcast is for informational
and educational purposes only and should not be construed as specific
investment, legal, or tax advice. Listeners should consult with a qualified
professional before making financial decisions.

Far More is produced by The Baptist Foundation of Alabama. More resources for more ministry.

Most churches have money sitting in reserve somewhere. Fewer have ever asked
if where that money is invested lines up with what they believe.

Jason Herbert serves on the ministry engagement team at The Baptist Foundation
of Alabama. He's also an attorney who spent a decade in litigation before the
Lord redirected him into ministry work. In this episode, he walks through what
biblically responsible investing is, what it screens out, what it looks for,
and the questions a church ought to answer before it invests anything at all.

Along the way: whether a church should be investing reserves in the first
place, whether any of this amounts to gambling, and what Matthew 25 has to say
about money that sits buried in the ground.

In this episode:
— What biblically responsible investing actually means
— The categories screened out, and why
— The three questions to answer before investing a dollar: purpose, time
  horizon, risk
— Why reserves are a long-term posture, not a shortcut to fund a building
  project
— What changes in a congregation when its leaders steward openly

CHAPTERS
00:00  Intro
00:18  Welcome to Far More
01:04  Disclaimer
01:32  Meet Jason Herbert
02:37  Leaving the courtroom for ministry
06:10  What biblically responsible investing actually is
07:45  What gets screened out
08:32  What gets invested in
09:53  Two companies behind the positive screens
13:28  Does investing this way cost you return?
15:13  Is this new, or does it have a track record?
16:34  Should a church invest reserves at all?
17:27  Matthew 25 and the servant who buried it
19:55  There is no one investment model for every church
21:25  Why reserves aren't a shortcut to fund a building
23:20  "Isn't this just gambling?"
24:06  Three questions before you invest a dollar
26:30  A church that paid its loan off early
29:43  What changes in a congregation
31:48  Gasoline on the fire
32:43  Closing

The Baptist Foundation of Alabama has served Alabama Baptist churches,
ministries, and individuals since 1940. More resources for more ministry.

Learn more: tbfa.org
Subscribe to Ministry Ledger, our newsletter, or other platforms at: tbfa.org/subscribe

DISCLAIMER: The information discussed on this podcast is for informational and
educational purposes only and should not be construed as specific investment,
legal, or tax advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
Listeners should consult with a qualified financial professional before making
any investment decisions.

Far More is produced by The Baptist Foundation of Alabama. More resources for more ministry.

This is a session on church finances that seminary probably didn't provide.

John Ashworth, President of The Baptist Foundation of Alabama, joins host Mitchell Bruce for the first episode of Far More. John has spent years sitting with Alabama churches of every size, and he walks through what financial health actually looks like for a church, the blind spots he sees most often, and the one change he would ask every church to make this year.

In this episode:
- Where to start if your church has never reviewed its financial health
- The estate-planning gap in most congregations, and what it costs the church
- How a legacy ministry works, and why the church has to own it
- Reserves: what to consider — what that money should be doing
- Financial controls most churches assume they have and don't
- Ministerial payroll, bookkeeping, and the retiring volunteer problem
- The stewardship principle underneath and the model it provides

Chapters:
00:20 Welcome to Far More
01:51 Meet John Ashworth
04:52 TBFA Professionals
05:48 Disclaimer
07:18 Where to start a financial review
09:19 The biggest blind spot: estate planning/legacy ministry
12:00 What a legacy ministry looks like in practice
13:22 Why the church has to own it
14:11 Profile of a church positioned for what's next
16:00 The reserves tension: hold back or put it to work
18:25 Church money vs. personal money
19:29 The Consistent Mistake: Fraud controls and bookkeeping
21:25 Ministry Accounting: what it actually does
23:50 One thing to change this year
26:00 The stewardship principle underneath all of it
28:29 Closing

Have a question about your church's situation? Use the 'Connect with Us' button at tbfa.org

The Baptist Foundation of Alabama is a Cooperative Program ministry of the Alabama Baptist State Convention, serving Alabama Baptist churches, ministries, and individuals since 1940.

The information discussed on this podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be construed as specific investment, legal, or tax advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Listeners should consult with a qualified financial professional before making any investment decisions.

Far More is produced by The Baptist Foundation of Alabama. More resources for more ministry.

Far More is a podcast from The Baptist Foundation of Alabama (TBFA) for everyone who embraces the call to stewardship that God gives, especially those who carry the weight of leading a church in stewardship. Each episode, host Mitchell Bruce, Director of Marketing and Communications for TBFA, sits down with pastors, ministry leaders, TBFA staff, and others doing that work across Alabama for genuine conversations about crucial elements of things like church finance, generosity, legacy, and what it looks like to be faithful with what you've been trusted with.

This short trailer introduces the show and where it's headed. Follow us to stay tuned and updated when episodes go live. Special features will be posted in between regular episodes as well.

Listen, then go deeper:

•   Learn more about the Baptist Foundation of Alabama: www.tbfa.org/the-foundation

•   Podcast hub: farmore.buzzsprout.com

•   A question or a guest idea? [email protected]

Far More is produced by The Baptist Foundation of Alabama. More resources for more ministry.