Tennessee Baptist Churches cooperate in missions through praying, going and giving. Gifts through the Cooperative Program, special offerings and designated giving, from almost 3,000 churches, amount to about $60 million each year. The responsibility of the Accounting Services office is to ensure that every penny of those funds goes where the contributing church intends it to go.
Church can do three things to make this process smoother and more efficient:
1. Make sure your check is filled out correctly!
Sounds easy, but you would be surprised how many checks have to be returned to sender for being incorrect. Here are some things to consider:
— Be sure the check is written legibly.
— Confirm the amount written in words matches the amount written in numbers.
— Make the check payable to Tennessee Baptist Convention (not the Southern Baptist Convention or any other entity/offering).
— Sign the check.
— Make sure the amount of the check(s) equals the amount of the remittance form.
2. Send in remittance form with the check.
Every time a contribution is received at the TBC, an acknowledgement is printed and mailed to the church. At the bottom of the acknowledgement is a tear-off remittance form that can be submitted with the church’s next contribution. This remittance form contains all of the pertinent church information necessary to ensure the contribution is credited to the correct church.
The remittance form also includes lines where the church can indicate how their contribution should be recorded. The five special offerings adopted by the TBC are pre-printed on the form. There are additional blank lines that can be used to indicate other designated gifts for TBC or SBC causes. Blank remittance forms can be found online here. If a blank form is used, please complete all church information, especially the church’s unique SBC ID number. If you don’t know this number, contact Accounting Services.
Some churches remit a check stub in lieu of the remittance form. This is acceptable, but it is critical that all of the necessary information is included, such as the church’s SBC ID number and details regarding allocation of the check.
3. Communicate with Accounting Services!
Our accounting team is dedicated to serving our Lord by serving our churches. If your church ever has a question about how a contribution is being processed, please contact us. The phone number listed on the remittance form connects you directly to Cheryl Lee, our receipts assistant. She will be glad to answer any of your questions or get you to the person who can help you. She also is one who will normally call your church or church treasurer if we have a question about what your church intended.
Thank you for your church giving through the TBC for world missions! We honor your contributions and are committed to handling it with great integrity. The generous giving of our cooperating churches allows the name of Jesus to be shared with many who might not otherwise ever hear. Don’t hesitate to contact Accounting Services if we can serve you.
Jill Herren is an accounting supervisor with the Tennessee Baptist Convention. To connect with Jill about these and other similar questions, email her at jherren@tnbaptist.org.
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