Preaching to Our Need to Give Surprise! People are eager to hear about joyful giving, if you approach it in the right way. Bob Russell
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About a decade ago I changed my philosophy from apologizing for teaching on a touchy subject to making it an essential part of my preaching calendar. Now, nearly every January, I preach a series of three or four sermons on stewardship.
The result surprised me—attendance has been good, the number of people coming to Christ has actually increased during the stewardship month, and offerings have ...
Raising Faith Before Money How a purpose-driven church develops consistently generous givers. Forrest Reinhardt
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Saddleback doesn't do fundraising. For us, it's all about faith raising.
Why? Because we believe God is primarily interested in growing our faith, not getting our money. We also believe that if the first happens, the second will naturally occur.
That's not to say we don't put funding opportunities before our people that they can and should give to. We do. We just do it a bit differently.
The Soul and Pocketbook of Ministry You can't serve both God and money, said Jesus. But pastors know you can't lead a church without both. How four pastors use one (money) to serve the Other. A Leadership forum
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"I hate stewardship, in terms of being the upfront guy," one pastor said, "but I like the results."
All the pastors around the table nodded.
The admission came early in our conversation, but it was important to get it out. Most pastors don't like talking about money. We don't like preaching about money, most of us aren't good at handling it, and many people—even Christians—think that's all ...
When Bowser pokes a cold, wet nose under my arm to signal it's time to pet him, the nose tells me he's healthy. When the nurse announces "120 over 80" for my blood pressure, I know I'm healthy. But when my church treasurer flings a file of figures across the table in his report, how do I know if my church is financially healthy?
What are some vital signs of churches that are fiscally fit?
If you were to ask people over 50 who have grown up in the church, "What should a Christian give?" they'd say, "A tithe." I don't think you'd get that response from the younger generation. Whether or not they agree with tithing, they have not been taught to give. Giving in church, for many of them, is seen as paying admission: You pay $30 to go to a hockey game, and $10 for a movie, so this service ...
The junior high kids have a great fundraising idea: a bike-a-thon. And the youth are planning three car washes for their upcoming trip. Also, there's the hand bell committee's pizza drive.
It's the world of church fundraisers, and the church that doesn't want to drown itself in its own soapsuds or pizza sauce will look gratefully to its written fundraising-activities policy.
Printer view of these results
