general

Systems Tell Your Story

The following is reprinted and was originally posted at https://www.onlinegiving.org/support/systems-to-tell-your-story. “To effectively communicate your message, you’ll need to stop building your strategy exclusively around physical attendance.” Why? As my friend, Dave Anderson, says, “Church attendance is not decreasing. It’s decentralizing.” 1. In early 2019, Phil Bowdle wrote that in a book...


Deferred Maintenance Explained for Facility Stewards

Are you being a good steward of your facility? One of our goals this year with the Stewardship Journal is to provide SBC pastors and church leaders with free advice on how to build, renovate, and care for church facilities. The following post is used with permission and can be...


Using the Trump Card of Vision to Unlock Generosity

The trump card to unlocking generosity in your church depends upon the connecting power of your vision. The Free Dictionary defines a trump card as a designated card that ranks above all others or a resource used to gain an advantage over others, often by being held and then used...


Let’s Make a Case for Your Vision!

When I work with a client for a significant giving initiative, I start by asking the Pastor to write out the vision behind whatever we are raising money for. Technically, this is called a Vision Case Statement. I want a broad overview of what we are raising money for on...


10 Trends Impacting the Church in 2024

One of our goals with the Stewardship Journal is to provide our readers with a depth of material from outside sources. The following post contains important thoughts about current trends that will impact giving. The post is used by permission and was originally published on LifewayResearch.com: https://research.lifeway.com/2024/01/12/10-trends-impacting-the-church-in-2024/ As church leaders...


Exegeting the Fundamentals of Receiving an Offering

Do you spend more time preparing for and executing your announcements each Sunday or your offering time? How you answer this question tells me whether you have a correct view of biblical stewardship. It’s not people I have to fight with about emphasizing giving more during worship services; it’s pastors...


How I Write Offering Talks

At 500 offering talks, I stopped counting how many I had written. Suffice it to say that I know a thing or two about offering talks, as I’ve seen a few. I wrote a blog post on this topic a few years ago.1. Here is what I wrote: First, let me...


Developing a Digital Giving Strategy

The following was originally posted at: https://www.onlinegiving.org/support/developing-a-digital-giving-strategy How churches receive the offering has changed drastically from the days of dropping in coins. As we stated in our last post, the future of giving is digital. This is why you must develop a digital giving strategy. In our last post, we shared...


The Fundamentals of Effective Offerings

“This is a football!” Legendary Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi once started a team meeting after a loss, stating that the team would return to the basics. He held up a football and said, “Gentlemen, this is a football.” Sometimes, you must go back to the fundamentals. The same...


Five Fundamental Keys on How to Receive the Offering

If you are a golfer, you know the importance of the fundamentals. It starts with a good grip on the club. If you want to improve, you get a coach who can help make the adjustments needed to make your game more effective. Consider me your Stewardship Coach, giving you...