“If you’re going to be effective in ministry, you have to become comfortable talking about money. Few church leaders I know are,” writes church consultant Carey Nieuwhof. Those who don’t address money are generally leading their congregations to bankruptcy. Nieuwhof offers seven good ideas. (Photo: www.inkmedia.eu, Creative Commons)
Many church leaders avoid talking about stewardship, yet they can greatly influence the understanding of money and stewardship in the life of a congregation. Generous giving is a spiritual gift that requires cultivation and growth, like any aspect of one’s Christian formation. Consultant David S. Bell explains. (Photo: Grublee, via Bigstockphoto.com)
Indecisiveness can cause stress for you, your staff, and even your congregation. It is a form of double-mindedness, and James 1:8 says it leads to instability, writes Rick Warren of Saddleback Church, who shares four steps he uses when he confronts indecision. (Tsahi Levent-Levi, Creative Commons)
The way most church leaders approach budgeting may not yield the best results for congregation because it focuses on income and expenditures, NOT on goals and ministry priorities. What’s a congregational leader to do? This article from Logan Leadership has some suggestions. (Photo: Werner_Hahn, Creative Commons)
Everybody agrees a finance committee is essential to a congregation, but many do not have clear guidelines, goals or job descriptions for their members. How can they know whether they’re doing a good job? Here are 11 tasks that a committee should be doing, from Smart Church Management. (Illustration: AJ Cann, Creative Commons)
Stewardship is more than financial giving, writes author and consultant Julia Kuhn Wallace. It is a sense of thanksgiving for all that God has given us, including care giving for the world around us! She presents eight ideas for developing stewardship in a smaller congregation. Which might work for yours? From ChristianityToday.com. (Photo: Dublin Molly, […]
Most people are not surprised to learn that operating a church takes money, says this essay from Churchfuel.com. And they are not offended by being asked to participate in something important. It’s HOW we ask that matters. Read on for how to approach financial stewardship in your congregation. (Photo: Bev8200, Creative Commons)
When it comes to stewardship ministry, too often we want unrealistically fast results — the program that will increase revenue by 20 percent in the first year. Using a gardening analogy, Anne Brock of the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy explores what it means to plant seeds of abundance.
Here’s a resource with great ideas to energize your financial stewardship ministry. Stewardship 101: An Invitation to Financial Stewardship is a free e-book from the Center for Steward Leadership at Luther Seminary. It contains 17 of the center’s best newsletter articles on a wide variety of stewardship topics.
“To know, or not to know?” That is the question that Hamlet surely never had to ask, but church leaders wrestle with it as they ponder whether to look at the donation records for their church. Faith & Leadership explores the “common assumptions” with the “actual facts.” (Photo: Edith Soto, Creative Commons)
