There are few things I hate more than being forced to count cash alone. I was at a meeting the other day where we took up an offering to give to the host church. I admit it that I counted this money by myself. I wasn’t prepared. It felt awkward to count the offering right in front of the people who donated.
Why is it wrong to count cash alone? First, it opened me up to accusation. What if someone thought more was collected than what was actually donated? I wouldn’t have a defense. Second, it opened me up for temptation. I have worked with money for 22 years, but it can still be a temptation. Imagine I went to fill up with gas after the meeting and my debit card doesn’t work for some reason. I would have the choice of calling up the bank and hopefully getting it straightened out…or the easy way of “borrowing” the cash and promising to repay.
What if there isn’t anyone qualified to count the cash with me? How qualified do you need to be? I’ve grabbed pastors to help count and most are notoriously bad at math. I’ve grabbed middle schoolers, and they feel honored to be asked. Ask anyone. You will rarely get turned down. Even if you just have to grab someone to watch you count it, that’s better than nothing.
If there truly isn’t anyone willing and able, grab someone to go with you to lock it up. If you can’t even find someone to do that…quit! Or at least threaten to quit. That may wake up someone to help you out.
What if the offering is just checks? Here I’m not as concerned about counting checks along. Mostly because this is not easy to steal. Are you going to forge signing over the check to yourself? That is a paper trail that will get you caught.
What if you receive cash in the mail and no one else is around? Take a picture of it with the envelope or make a copy of it. That hopefully is a very rare event.
Useful Links
- Caring for & Recording the Offering: https://jctaccounting.com/2023/11/10/how-to-care-for-and-record-a-deposit-or-church-offering/
- Counter Form (detailed version): https://jctaccounting.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Counter_Sheet.xlsx
- Counter Form (short version): https://jctaccounting.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Offering_Recorder.xlsx
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