Money conversations in small churches get tense for reasons that go way deeper than dollars - fear, pressure, old stories, and unspoken roles all show up at the table. 

In this episode, we talk honestly about why finances can feel so emotional and how clearer, healthier conversations bring the room back together. 

It’s real, relatable, and the kind of clarity that lets everyone breathe again.

You’ll learn:

• Why money in a church is never “just numbers” - it’s identity, trust, and responsibility
• How fear makes financial conversations smaller, quieter, or more reactive
• The everyday ways power can shape decisions without anyone noticing
• Why avoiding money talk creates more anxiety, not less
• How simple, mission-first communication brings peace, connection, and honesty back into the room

Join our free Facebook Community: www.facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry

RESOURCES MENTIONED

Get your FREE ticket to the Women Reaching Women Conference! smallchurchsummits.com

Support the show

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, please take a moment to subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts! Your support helps us reach more people -- just like you -- in small churches who need to hear this.

🎙 Thanks for tuning in to Small Church Ministry Podcast! See you next week!

FOLLOW US:
➡️  Website: smallchurchministry.com
➡️  Instagram: instagram.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Facebook: facebook.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Creative Solutions for Small Churches Facebook Community: facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry
➡️  Small Church Network: smallchurchministry.com/membership

Most small-church budgets weren’t really created; they just grew over time. Leftovers from last year, assumptions from a decade ago, and line items no one can quite explain anymore. 

And when a budget is shaped by nostalgia, fear, or “what we used to do,” it can make a church feel like it’s failing even when it’s not. 

In this episode, we explore how to see your budget as a story and how to shift that story from scarcity to possibility.

You’ll learn:

1. How churches unintentionally build budgets around fear and leftovers
2. The difference between maintaining the past and investing in what’s alive now
3. How to make mission-first decisions with what you already have
4. Simple ways to start a healthier financial culture, even if this year’s budget is already set

Join our free Facebook Community: www.facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry

RESOURCES MENTIONED

Get your FREE ticket to the Women Reaching Women Conference! smallchurchsummits.com

Support the show

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, please take a moment to subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts! Your support helps us reach more people -- just like you -- in small churches who need to hear this.

🎙 Thanks for tuning in to Small Church Ministry Podcast! See you next week!

FOLLOW US:
➡️  Website: smallchurchministry.com
➡️  Instagram: instagram.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Facebook: facebook.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Creative Solutions for Small Churches Facebook Community: facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry
➡️  Small Church Network: smallchurchministry.com/membership

This episode unpacks one of the most misunderstood issues in small churches: declining giving. 

It’s not that people have stopped being generous - generosity is everywhere. The real challenge is that many churches have slowly lost the connection between giving and a visible, meaningful impact. 

When we stop assuming stinginess and start rebuilding trust, clarity, and a real mission, generosity has a way of returning naturally.

You’ll learn:

1. Why generosity isn’t dying (but obligation-based giving is)
2. The emotional and relational reasons people redirect their giving
3. How transparency and mission rebuild trust
4. Practical ways small churches can reconnect giving to real ministry impact

Join our free Facebook Community: www.facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry

RESOURCES MENTIONED

Get your FREE ticket to the Women Reaching Women Conference! smallchurchsummits.com

Support the show

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, please take a moment to subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts! Your support helps us reach more people -- just like you -- in small churches who need to hear this.

🎙 Thanks for tuning in to Small Church Ministry Podcast! See you next week!

FOLLOW US:
➡️  Website: smallchurchministry.com
➡️  Instagram: instagram.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Facebook: facebook.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Creative Solutions for Small Churches Facebook Community: facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry
➡️  Small Church Network: smallchurchministry.com/membership

A large part of a small church budget often goes to paying the pastor. Most small churches assume there’s only one “real” model of leadership - usually the one we’ve always known - and anything different feels like failure, pride, or danger. 

But there’s no single “biblical” or “more noble” model here. Healthy, vibrant churches exist in every structure: fully paid, bi-vocational, and completely volunteer-led.

This episode lifts the shame, clears out the judgment, and helps churches learn:

1. Why there isn’t one “right” model (and why that’s such good news)
2. How assumptions, pride, and tradition shape our views without us noticing
3. The strengths + limits of paid, bi-vocational, and volunteer pastor models
4. Why most tension around leadership positions come from unspoken expectations
5. How to discern whether it’s time to rethink your model when things feel stretched or scary

Join our free Facebook Community: www.facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry

RESOURCES MENTIONED

Get your FREE ticket to the Women Reaching Women Conference! smallchurchsummits.com

Support the show

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, please take a moment to subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts! Your support helps us reach more people -- just like you -- in small churches who need to hear this.

🎙 Thanks for tuning in to Small Church Ministry Podcast! See you next week!

FOLLOW US:
➡️  Website: smallchurchministry.com
➡️  Instagram: instagram.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Facebook: facebook.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Creative Solutions for Small Churches Facebook Community: facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry
➡️  Small Church Network: smallchurchministry.com/membership

This episode reframes the entire money conversation by separating the Church from the nonprofit structure that houses it. 

We name the fear, pressure, and assumptions that swirl around finances - and then clarify why revenue impacts the organization, not the mission. 

When we stop confusing the two, financial decisions get calmer, clearer, and more grounded.

You’ll learn:

1. The difference between the Church and the 501(c)(3) that supports it
2. Why money isn’t needed to save your church (but it might save your building)
3. How identifying fear and spiritual pressure around finances is a starting point for clarity
4. The real cost of trying to raise money to keep the lights on - and how a shift can save your church culture

Check out podcast episode 187: When Your Church Feels Like It’s Dying: What to Do (and What’s Still True)

Join our free Facebook Community: www.facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry

RESOURCES MENTIONED

Get your FREE ticket to the Women Reaching Women Conference! smallchurchsummits.com

Support the show

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, please take a moment to subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts! Your support helps us reach more people -- just like you -- in small churches who need to hear this.

🎙 Thanks for tuning in to Small Church Ministry Podcast! See you next week!

FOLLOW US:
➡️  Website: smallchurchministry.com
➡️  Instagram: instagram.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Facebook: facebook.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Creative Solutions for Small Churches Facebook Community: facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry
➡️  Small Church Network: smallchurchministry.com/membership

Finding the right kind of help shouldn’t feel complicated - but between long waitlists, confusing titles, and church mixed messages about therapy, it often does.

In the final part of the Do No Harm series, Laurie and licensed therapist Kati Quigley talk about what makes finding help so hard, and why it’s still worth the effort. 

Together, they unpack the difference between a counselor, coach, and spiritual director, why “biblical counseling” can unintentionally do harm, and how to find affordable, faith-aligned options that actually support healing.

Connect with Kati Quigley:
katiquigleycounseling.org

Join our free Facebook Community: www.facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry

RESOURCES MENTIONED

Get your FREE ticket to the Women Reaching Women Conference! smallchurchsummits.com

Support the show

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, please take a moment to subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts! Your support helps us reach more people -- just like you -- in small churches who need to hear this.

🎙 Thanks for tuning in to Small Church Ministry Podcast! See you next week!

FOLLOW US:
➡️  Website: smallchurchministry.com
➡️  Instagram: instagram.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Facebook: facebook.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Creative Solutions for Small Churches Facebook Community: facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry
➡️  Small Church Network: smallchurchministry.com/membership

In small churches, we’re often the first people others turn to when life falls apart - whether we’re on staff, leading worship, teaching kids, or serving on the elder board. 

In Part Two of the Do No Harm series, Laurie and licensed therapist Kati Quigley talk about what churches can do to help create more emotionally healthy spaces. 

This isn’t about becoming counselors, giving advice, or providing solutions. It’s about practicing empathy, allowing people to lean into their own painful places, listening well, and partnering with counselors and professionals we trust.

In this episode:

• How small churches can normalize therapy and mental health support
• Why awareness of reactions matters (our own and others) in ministry meetings
• How to listen better and create safer, judgment-free spaces
• The value of clear boundaries and trusted referral lists

Connect with Kati Quigley:
katiquigleycounseling.org

Join our free Facebook Community: www.facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry

RESOURCES MENTIONED

Get your FREE ticket to the Women Reaching Women Conference! smallchurchsummits.com

Support the show

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, please take a moment to subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts! Your support helps us reach more people -- just like you -- in small churches who need to hear this.

🎙 Thanks for tuning in to Small Church Ministry Podcast! See you next week!

FOLLOW US:
➡️  Website: smallchurchministry.com
➡️  Instagram: instagram.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Facebook: facebook.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Creative Solutions for Small Churches Facebook Community: facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry
➡️  Small Church Network: smallchurchministry.com/membership

When the Church tries to heal what it doesn’t understand, even good intentions can cause real harm. 

In this first conversation of the Do No Harm series, Laurie and licensed therapist Kati Quigley talk about the unseen damage that happens when untrained pastoral or biblical counseling takes the place of trauma-informed care. 

It’s not about blame; it’s about awareness, wisdom, and protecting the people we’re called to love well.

In this episode:

• The difference between spiritual care and clinical therapy
• Why quoting Scripture can backfire for trauma survivors
• What “do no harm” really looks like in ministry
• The emotional fallout when help hurts
• First steps toward safer, trauma-informed spiritual care

Connect with Kati Quigley:
katiquigleycounseling.org

Join our free Facebook Community: www.facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry

RESOURCES MENTIONED

Get your FREE ticket to the Women Reaching Women Conference! smallchurchsummits.com

Support the show

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, please take a moment to subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts! Your support helps us reach more people -- just like you -- in small churches who need to hear this.

🎙 Thanks for tuning in to Small Church Ministry Podcast! See you next week!

FOLLOW US:
➡️  Website: smallchurchministry.com
➡️  Instagram: instagram.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Facebook: facebook.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Creative Solutions for Small Churches Facebook Community: facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry
➡️  Small Church Network: smallchurchministry.com/membership

In this Church Spotlight, Ruth A. Popkin shares how her small church started A Really Free Market - a ministry built on listening, not assumptions. 

Instead of following trends, they followed people, meeting real needs with dignity and creativity. It’s a story of simple generosity that’s reshaping how small churches think about outreach.

Listen in for:

1. How to listen to your community before deciding what they “need”
2. The difference between following people and following trends
3. What makes A Really Free Market unique (and doable for any church size)
4. How trust, conversation, and consistency open real doors for ministry

Connect with Ruth A. Popkin:
www.facebook.com/ReallyFreeMarketplace
www.blcin.com/the-really-really-free-market

Check out podcast episode 166: We Added Dignity To A Food Pantry With A Sit-Down Cafe | with Alastair & Nicola Bruch:
www.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/166-church-spotlight-we-added-dignity-to-a-food/id1583416568?i=1000697609047

Join our free Facebook Community: www.facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry

RESOURCES MENTIONED

Get your FREE ticket to the Women Reaching Women Conference! smallchurchsummits.com

Support the show

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, please take a moment to subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts! Your support helps us reach more people -- just like you -- in small churches who need to hear this.

🎙 Thanks for tuning in to Small Church Ministry Podcast! See you next week!

FOLLOW US:
➡️  Website: smallchurchministry.com
➡️  Instagram: instagram.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Facebook: facebook.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Creative Solutions for Small Churches Facebook Community: facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry
➡️  Small Church Network: smallchurchministry.com/membership

When a pastor retires, moves, or suddenly steps away, small churches often feel lost in the in-between. If this is hitting home for you, you’re not alone. Pastoral transitions are on the rise as more pastors retire and fewer step into ministry roles. 

In this episode, Laurie talks with Kari Bartkus, who served on her church’s pastoral transition team, about what it really looks like to help your church through a season like this—without panic, burnout, or losing your sense of purpose.

In this episode:

1. What to focus on when your church is between pastors
2. How to care for people and keep communication open
3. Ways to fill the gaps without burning out a few key volunteers
4. Building trust and teamwork in uncertain seasons

Join our free Facebook Community: www.facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry

RESOURCES MENTIONED

Get your FREE ticket to the Women Reaching Women Conference! smallchurchsummits.com

Support the show

SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW

If you loved this episode, please take a moment to subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts! Your support helps us reach more people -- just like you -- in small churches who need to hear this.

🎙 Thanks for tuning in to Small Church Ministry Podcast! See you next week!

FOLLOW US:
➡️  Website: smallchurchministry.com
➡️  Instagram: instagram.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Facebook: facebook.com/smallchurchministry
➡️  Creative Solutions for Small Churches Facebook Community: facebook.com/groups/smallchurchministry
➡️  Small Church Network: smallchurchministry.com/membership