Right after Easter, you have a crisis heading your way. The summer slump begins one minute after the last Easter service is over. This creates a challenge for keeping the proverbial offering plate full. Giving slumps at the same time as ministry and mission costs rise. Your need is to...
Today, in churches around the world, we celebrate Palm Sunday. This day, the week before Easter, is when we focus on Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem. On that day, Jesus rode into the city on a donkey that had never had anyone ride it. People came from all over the...
The following was originally posted at https://www.onlinegiving.org/support/the-seasonal-giving-strategy. Does your church have a giving strategy? Most churches don’t, so they struggle to be financially stable. They fall behind early in the year and struggle to get through the summer months. The typical church has more missions and ministry in the summer...
My job is to keep you focused and out of the ditch. I write each Stewardship Coach column with that in mind. I do for you what no one else does; think, how will that impact giving? I’ve been at this for, well, a long time. So, I’ve learned a...
The following was a blog post I wrote in May of 2021: Trust the science. You hear that a lot today. Typically, it comes from those wanting to silence any questions about COVID-19 in general, masks, and now the vaccine being pushed upon, well, everyone. One group in particular is being...
I will always remember Sunday, March 13th, as the day the offering bucket passed by me for the first time in, well, forever! Since I moved to Oklahoma, I have seen a lot of things in church I have not seen in a long time, like shaking hands and maskless...
Change is inevitable. That is one lesson we have all learned these last couple of years. We have been forced as a church to change how we do a lot of things. One thing that changed immediately with Covid was how we took up the offering. We went from primarily...
In writing to the Philippian church, the Apostle Paul began the letter saying, “Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God.” That verse expresses how we feel about each of you! As we focus on the offering today, I want to say thank you to every...
Here are some pointers and thoughts about crafting a thank you card or letter… Get to the point! It’s about saying thanks, not telling them how great your church is.Make it brief. People are busy these days and they won’t read more than a paragraph or two.Personalize it. The most successful...
“When is showing gratitude ever inappropriate?” That was my wife Valerie’s response after I returned home from meeting with a pastor who had asked me to write a series of letters for him. One letter I wrote was a thank you letter to donors for their generosity. When I showed...
