How to Avoid the Coming Giving Crisis

Americans are giving to charity at lowest level in nearly 3 decades. That was the headline of a post that I clicked on recently. The article, posted by Axios, summed up the decline by saying, “Americans gave 1.7% of their personal disposable income to charity in 2022, the lowest level they had given since 1995.”1. […]

From the Desk of Our Executive Director

Welcome to another edition of the Stewardship Journal. Our mission is to help you build a culture of generosity based on biblical principles that will help drive the fulfillment of God’s vision for your church. Our desire is to give you the help you need to help your church achieve and maintain financial security. We […]

The Right Tools for Addressing the Changing World of Giving

In the changing world of giving, one thing still hasn’t changed. What motivates people to give. Vision is the driver that generates the desire to give. Every appeal needs a driver, a compelling message that drives a donor to give. But the best driver in the world is worthless without effective vehicles to drive the […]

The Changing World of Giving

The Changing World of Giving is the title of this week’s Coach. The following is drawn from a recent Lifeway Research report and from a post I filed for my sponsor, OnlineGiving.org. As we prepare for end-of-year giving, I want to focus on how people are giving and what you can do to help increase […]

Biometric Benefits for Churches

As we focus on the changing world of giving, one huge change is in the use of biometrics. Biometrics allow for giving to be easier and faster. It’s where commerce is heading and where we will be forced to offer this type of giving to our members sooner rather than later. The following is a […]

From the Desk of Our Executive Director

Welcome to another edition of the Stewardship Journal. In this issue, we focus on the changing world of giving. Mark Brooks’, The Stewardship Coach, column, entitled The Changing World of Giving, focuses on a new Lifeway Research report about how people are currently giving to churches. Mark shares, “One of the greatest changes to church […]

End-of-Year Plan Planning Overview

December 31 will be here before you know it. The time to plan for end-of-year giving is now. The sooner you start your planning, the more effective your end-of-year giving results will be. Let’s get started! If followed, this basic plan of action will greatly increase your end-of-year giving. The Three Major Elements of a […]

The 2023 Fourth Quarter Giving Guide

It’s September, and I am starting to get emails about end-of-year planning. Those emails are coming from non-profits. Non-profit organizations (NPOs) understand that: Churches can see similar results if they start planning now. Let’s get started with this Coach entitled The 2023 Fourth Quarter Giving Guide. In this Coach, I will outline a broad overview […]

Without a Vision, Giving Declines

Nonprofit employees want inspired leaders with bold vision: Nonprofit employees ranked vision, relationship building, inspiring trust, and strong communication skills as the most valued elements of leadership. That was the finding of a national study recently conducted among nonprofit employees by a leading nonprofit firm, Dickerson, Bakker & Associates. You would find a similar result […]

From the Desk of Our Executive Director

“Nonprofit employees want inspired leaders with bold vision: Nonprofit employees ranked vision, relationship building, inspiring trust, and strong communication skills as the most valued elements of leadership.” Those are the first two sentences of our lead post, Without a Vision, Giving Declines. This edition of the Journal focuses heavily on crafting a vision that will […]