If you are like me, I have sometimes looked at churches or businesses and thought, "Wow...if I only had their budget...I could accomplish so much more for the Kingdom."
I have often thought that when I am visiting a Disney Park. I see all the incredible rides, fantastic shows and amazing parades and think "I wish I had their budget. I could do so much more if that was the case."
But if you dig a little deeper, you will see where their massive budget came from.
You see, Walt started out with nothing. He was so broke at one point that he had to live off of dog food. Yes, you read that correctly. He was so broke that the only thing he could afford to buy was dog food.
But what Walt lacked in finances at the time, he made up for with his vision to provide a place where kids and their parents could go to and have fun together.
Disney obviously has a huge budget and assets now. Their net income in 2019 was 11.05 billion U.S. dollars. In the same year, the company announced record revenue of 69.57 billion U.S. dollars.
How did they go from Walt living off of dog food to a billion dollar enterprise?
I would propose that their huge budget comes from their ability to connect with families. Over 73 million people walk in a Disney Park each year (might be lower this year due to pandemic). The vast, vast majority of those people will be kids and their families.
Disney's budget came from their ability to create great experiences for kids and families.
Want to grow your children and family ministry budget? Here's a simple answer. Reach kids and their parents. The more people you reach, the more you will see your budget increase.
Remember when Jesus and the disciples owed a tax. Jesus told them to go to the water and catch a fish. They obeyed and sure enough there was a coin in the fish's mouth. They used it to pay the tax. We see the principle again - if you want to grow your budget (and ministry), then connect with and reach families.
Your Pastor wants to increase your ministry budget. But for that to happen, you need to reach more families. More families means more budget.
p.s. Have you read my book "If Disney Ran Your Children's Ministry?" It has lots of great ideas that will help you reach more families. You can order it at this link - www.buildingchildrensministry.com.