Modern finance for mission-driven growth

Client background

Lakepointe Church is one of the largest and fastest-growing multisite churches in the United States, serving thousands of worshippers each week through seven campuses across North Texas and a vibrant global online presence. Rooted in a mission to reach people and build community, Lakepointe Church pairs faith with forward-thinking leadership, using technology to enhance operations and extend its reach.

The church supports its ministries with a lean five-person finance team—something that wouldn’t be possible without the right technology and an ally who understands both ministry and finance. That combination of technical expertise and industry knowledge helped Lakepointe Church build a strong foundation for scalable growth.

The business challenge

Lakepointe Church’s previous financial system, Shelby Systems, was no longer keeping pace with the organization’s rapid growth. It was difficult to pull reports, track performance or close the books on time. Budgeting happened in a sprawling 40-column spreadsheet, and supporting the audit process required significant manual effort—all of which posed challenges to managing church finances at scale.

“We had growing complexity across locations, ministries and donor designations,” says Ken Pharr, Lakepointe Church’s CFO. “But our system wasn’t designed for that kind of scale.”

The team needed more than a better financial reporting tool—they needed an integrated, automated financial platform that could support continued expansion without increasing headcount.

Strategy and solution

A platform for scale - and an ally who understands the mission
Baker Tilly helped Lakepointe Church implement Sage Intacct and Sage Fixed Assets, modernizing the church’s core accounting operations and setting the stage for transformation. Lakepointe Church also integrated Martus Solutions for budgeting and forecasting, giving ministry leaders the ability to access and manage their budgets without requiring them to purchase additional Sage Intacct licenses. 

From early planning through go-live, Ken describes the alliance with Baker Tilly as “spot-on.” Their understanding of both ministry needs and the Sage ecosystem made a complex implementation feel seamless. “They listened. They brought best practices. And they delivered,” he says. 

That foundation gave the church confidence to keep moving forward. “Once we had Sage Intacct in place, we started to look around and ask, what else can we automate?” Ken says. From plans to automate pledge card processing to streamlining project tracking, Lakepointe Church’s technology road map continues to evolve. 

The benefits go beyond time savings. Ken sees technology as a way to attract and retain the next generation of finance professionals. “The future workforce doesn’t want to spend time on data entry,” he explains. “We’re building an environment where people can focus on meaningful, analytical work. We want tools that appeal to the people coming up behind us.”

This vision includes incorporating AI in smart, strategic ways. “We love that Sage is leaning into AI,” Ken says. “We plan to take full advantage of those capabilities in the coming year.” 

Results and impact
The results have been dramatic. Lakepointe Church has shaved 15 days off its month-end close, accelerated audit prep and improved access to real-time data for ministry leaders and executives alike. Stakeholders no longer need to go looking for data — today, the system delivers it directly to them. “There’s a big difference between pulling data and having it pushed to you,” Ken notes. “This is what modern financial tools allow, and it’s helped make our whole team more proactive.”

Just as significantly, the church has been able to scale without increasing its five-person finance team — a team size Ken says is a fraction of what most organizations of their size would need. 

By consolidating platforms and eliminating redundant systems, Lakepointe Church has streamlined its technology stack. Integration with Martus Solutions has played a key role, enabling broader budgeting access and collaboration.

Sage Fixed Assets has also made a big difference, simplifying depreciation tracking and audit documentation. “It’s helped us clean up the balance sheet and track everything more efficiently,” Ken says.

And perhaps most importantly, the move to Sage Intacct — with Baker Tilly’s guidance — has changed how the organization approaches technology. “We’re asking better questions,” Ken says. “We’re more strategic. And we’re better equipped to support our mission.”