Okay, I’ve got a quick question for you. Being that we’re two days away from Thanksgiving, it fits well with a food theme.

One of the best ways to connect with a leader, a new volunteer or a parent is over a coffee, breakfast or lunch. At least that’s what I found. I and my staff frequently meet together over a meal or coffee and we do the same with others. This seems normal, right?

Well, a few months ago we began looking at our budget from a church leadership team perspective to see what policies we have around meals. What is appropriate? What is expected? What guidelines need to be in place to make sure that we’re wise with funds. I knew that over the past few years, we’ve worked with a set number that we’ve just increased year to year… but we never looked at the lump sum specifically and defined exactly how we’re spending it.

So, I sat with my staff and started asking the questions.

  • How many lunches do you need to have with your staff a month? Coffees?
  • How many lunches does your staff need to have with leaders/volunteers a month? Coffees?
  • How many other lunches & coffees do you and your team need to have with others?

I complied the numbers and our Children’s Ministry number alone ballooned to $25,000. Granted, we’re leading a volunteer force of 300 people with 5-6 staff… but that seemed a little excessive.

I’ve never looked at these numbers in this way and I started asking around to see what others did or do. I’ll share some of the answers I got tomorrow… it’s good stuff, but I thought I’d throw it out to others.

  • Does your church have a policy on meals?
  • How much are you allowed to spend?
  • How frequent are you allowed to do it?
  • What is expected?
  • What best practices does your church follow in regard to meals?

Thanks so much. Your involvement will help me out a ton, but I’m sure that others will be anxious to know as well.