A little over two years ago I had a
conversation with a ministry colleague about stewardship development. His church needed to do a stewardship
campaign to take the next step in their ministry. The problem is that stewardship
campaigns are designed for larger churches. Most don’t work well in a small church.
A large campaign where half the congregation would be expected to
volunteer and a fee equal to a quarter of the annual budget wouldn’t have
worked for my friend. So, I
began to develop a stewardship campaign that would provide stewardship
consulting for the smaller congregation. It would provide
From the number of volunteers and meetings, to the fee structure
this campaign approach is designed specifically for the church with less than
100 members.
God does not need our money, but as His people we NEED to give. Sacrificial giving is not primarily
about funding ministry, but about developing the character of God’s people. When God’s people are not obedient in
the matter of giving, they are deprived of Spiritual Blessings, the Joy of
Obedience, and the Deeper Life of Faith.
In the Church, especially in a small church, we sometimes are
hesitant to address the issue of giving. We are afraid people will feel that we
have ulterior motives, that we are getting too personal, that we have been too
demanding, or for some other reason
will be offended. This reflects our materialistic
culture that has, in some cases, crept into the church. In the typical American Church, 20% of
the congregation gives 80% of the offerings, 30% of the congregation gives 20%
of the offerings and 50% of the congregation gives nothing. Those who give little or nothing are
missing out on blessings that God would give them. Their giving may also reflect a
spiritual problem. The
objective of stewardship is to develop disciples. These disciples are obedient to the
Lord and are life-long stewards of the life and resources God gives them.
There are a great many stewardship-coaching ministries available
today. However, most focus
on larger churches and projects. One
organization reported its number of clients and their total campaigns averaged
about $1,000,000 per campaign. That
is wonderful, and no doubt they do great work, but that is totally irrelevant
for the average American congregation. With
about one half of American congregations having 75 or fewer attendees on
Sunday, $1,000,000 stewardship campaigns are not an option.
Stewardship campaigns can be a great option for smaller churches
for mission emphasis, deferred maintenance, debt elimination, funding
advertising campaigns, or even building additions.
Smaller churches can benefit from quality, professional,
stewardship consulting as they move toward fulfilling God’s purpose. The stewardship campaign I developed,
specifically designed for smaller churches is called MX3 in reference to
Malachi the 10th verse
of the 3rd chapter. Consider the features and benefits of
a stewardship campaign that is specifically designed for smaller churches.
ü Flexibility in developing the campaign. Each campaign is built to meet the
specific needs of each congregation.
ü Optional Vision Development. There is an optional training built
around developing the church’s long-range vision. This affordable option is not required
and may not be needed for your specific situation.
ü A Shorter Campaign. By design our campaign is completed in
one year rather than the typical three years of most campaigns.
ü Team size appropriate for your
congregation. The steering
committee for this campaign is the right size for a small congregation.
ü Detailed manuals. The process of the campaign is laid
out in manuals with calendars to make sure that everyone knows what to do and
when to do it, so that each step is easy to take.
ü Greater results. On average churches using a
stewardship consultant raise 2 to
5 times as much money as a church
doing an in-house campaign.
ü Less stress. Having a stewardship consultant
relieves the pastor of having one more program to run.
ü Convenient payment plans. There is no need to pay for the
campaign up front. A
payment plan makes the campaign very affordable.
ü Lower cost: MX3 campaigns are a fraction of the
cost of most consulting fees and provide an excellent return on the investment.
If you minister at a church that does not qualify as a
mega-church and would like to have the advantage of high-quality, stewardship
consulting please contact me and let me share with you how we might be able to
help you and your church move forward on fulfilling God’s calling for your
ministry.
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| What can you do if half your church not giving? |
Charlie Crowe
352-548-4837
Charlie@Colemanssi.com
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