Category: Church Life

As I talk with pastors and ministry leaders about transforming the way giving is discussed in their congregations, one of the high points I hit most frequently is the importance of using stories when discussing generosity. I’ll say things like “names over numbers” and “stories instead of statistics,” and we’ll talk at length about the deep-seated human desire for narrative.

As wonderful as alliterative couplets might be, they don’t tell the whole story. (Forgive the pun.) Which is why I want to dive a bit deeper today. And I want to do so with the help of a friend who spends a considerable percentage of his days thinking and talking about giving to churches.

Erik Ely is a Generosity Strategist for Generis, and he brings over 20 years of experience to this conversation. Erik and I had a conversation recently about where, how, and why churches need to deploy stories for the sake of stewardship. (Last alliteration. Promise.) Below are the highlights of that discussion. Enjoy! (more…)

As a churchgoer, a recreational observer of Evangelical trends, and – most significantly – a redeemed (albeit imperfect) follower of Jesus, one of the most encouraging recent shifts I’ve seen in American Christendom is the emphasis more and more pastors are placing on kicking people OUT the doors of their church.

Certainly there will always be a place for evangelism and invitation campaigns, but – with the rise of The Missional Church Movement and others like it – churches are behaving less like social clubs and more like military outfits. Instead of collecting members, the focus is shifting toward training, equipping, and sending Christians out into the world to make a difference (a real difference!) in their respective neighborhoods, towns, cities, and states.

As Pastor Choco de Jesus of New Life Covenant Church said at a conference I attended recently, “Churches need to do more for their cities than occupy a street corner.” Indeed! It seems more and more churches are rising to answer this call, and – as they do – they are discovering that impact-driven ministries cannot be sustained without a generous congregation behind it.

And that’s what I want to talk about today. Generosity is my “beat,” and – as I talk and listen and learn – I am becoming ever more convinced that Outreach Campaigns must play a central role in every church’s stewardship ministry. (Yes, even the ones struggling to make ends meet each month.)

How can I say that with such confidence? Because here are just a few of the things outreach ministries, service projects, and the like can do for generosity at your church… (more…)

(NOTE: This article was originally published on SermonCentral.com as part of a four part series on giving to the church. Once you’ve finished reading this one, head over to Sermon Central for other great articles on church generosity!)

Working in business development for a church giving platform, I am often asked if there is a Biblical precedent for churches using digital technology to accept tithes and offerings; any scriptural evidence that “text-2-give is acceptable to the Lord? I’ll save you a concordance search: there isn’t.

In many ways, the Bible remains frustratingly vague when it comes to our most pressing questions about stewardship and generosity. This may explain why so much of our preaching about finances remains frustrating and vague.

How should we teach our people to give? How often? And how much? Do we teach that believers have to give to their home church? Or is it okay for our congregants to send money elsewhere? And what about tithing? Is that the minimum requirement for Christians or the maximum? Is it even relevant to New Covenant believers?

Over the years, many good-faith efforts have been made to answer these questions. More than a few pastors and theologians have attempted to codify the ABC’s (and $1.23s) of giving to the church. And yet, for pastors and parishioners alike, these efforts have provided little assurance. (more…)

One of the most frequently cited and widely used reasons for the rapid growth of digital giving over the past decade is the proportionate decline in checks during that time.

And the trend continues! In fact, according to one report, we are on pace to write our final check sometime in the year 2021. A mere six years away!

Nowhere is this “check-less” trend more prevalent than with Millennials, 20% of whom have never written a check in their life. There are piles and piles of statistics to back this up (like these), but – for today – I thought we’d forego stats and focus on some good, old-fashioned anecdotal evidence. (It is election season after all.) (more…)

Huzzah! Another New Year begins. New calendars. New seasons. New starts. And – of course – new goals!

My wife and I were on a jog last week and we decided to use that time as an opportunity to go over our 2016 goals. We tried to think of at least one for five key categories (aka The Five ‘F’s’): Family, Friends, Faith, Finance, and Fitness.

Most of the ones we came up with will be familiar to anyone with even a passing interest in calendar- based resolutions. Run two half-marathons. Save a chunk of money for our first house. Get plugged into a small group at our new church. All the staples. haha.

What we lacked in creativity, we tried to make up for with specificity. By picking measurable activities and goals, we’re hoping to have more success this year than we have in the past with our more general resolutions. (e.g. Get into shape! Make some new friends! Eat less(ish) candy! etc.)

Maybe you have some resolutions you’re working toward in your own life. Or maybe you’ve got some goals that you’d love to see your church accomplish in 2016. Expanded ministries? New outreach opportunities? Maybe adding an additional service or breaking ground on a new facility? The opportunities are endless. (more…)