Editor’s Note:  The congregation engaged in generous giving has explosive potential for both spiritual growth and spiritual impact.  Reverend Brian Kluth, Senior Pastor of First Evangelical Free Church in Colorado Springs, is experienced in inspiring his own congregation to give and gifted in training other pastors to do the same with their churches.  Brian is the founder of Maximum Generosity, an organization dedicated to equipping pastors to train their congregations in biblical stewardship.  He is also the author of the 40 Day Spiritual Journey to a More Generous Life, a Bible devotional that is being used churchwide by congregations across America and overseas.

Seven Keys to Inspiring Your Congregation to Generous Giving
By Rev. Brian Kluth
Senior Pastor, First Evangelical Free Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado

 

In a recent survey of leading churches in America, 45 best church practices and website resources were identified to help increase biblical financial teaching and generosity. In most churches, only about four or five of these practices are actually being used. To help you better understand this important area of ministry and to help you inspire your congregation to give more generously, here are seven vital elements for church stewardship training, a crash course in “Church Giving 101.”

1. TEACH IT

Most people today are drowning in a sea of debt (from credit cards, no-principal mortgages, home equity loans, etc.). They desperately need the truth of God’s Word to shine a light in their darkness as it relates to managing finances and giving faithfully.  Some of the best ways to teach church members is through seminars, small groups, or Sunday school classes. Some of the most effective ministries with proven resources to help you teach biblical financial truths are Crown Financial Ministries, Willow Creek’s Good Sense Ministry, Dave Ramsey, Stewardship Direct, and others (including our own Maximum Generosity). Proper teaching is the key.  The more we can help people become free from debt and a materialistic lifestyle, the more they will be able and willing to be generous to giving to God’s work. 

2. TAKE IT CHURCHWIDE

Over the years I’ve seen many people benefit greatly from attending a biblically-based financial seminar or class at a church. Campaigns are available from Willow Creek’s “Good Sense” ministry, Crown Financial Ministry, and others.  A booklet we’ve published for a churchwide campaign is called  40 Day Spiritual Journey to a More Generous Life.  You can download a free sample.

Churches distribute a copy to every family in their congregation. It’s been our joy to see general offerings greatly increased, church mortgages being been paid off, and additional funds raised for building projects. The value of a churchwide initiative is that it brings a positive and God-inspired perspective on generous giving to everyone in the church. This all-church approach can have a powerful impact on people’s lives and the church’s giving for years to come.

3. MAKE IT AN ACT OF WORSHIP

In some churches, mentioning finances in the worship service means something dull and boring, like having the church treasurer stand up to tell everyone the church is behind in their budget. While this may shake a few shekels out of some tight-fisted people, this approach doesn’t help people see their giving as an act of worship. 

People need to know that giving is more than just writing a check or putting cash in the offering plate, it’s about involvement in the Lord’s work – and that can be rewarding and joyful. Here are a few ideas to help your teaching in this category:

• Videos on money or stewardship as part of your worship service (see www.sermonspice.com).
• Use giving and offertory teaching PowerPoints in the worship service to visually enhance what’s being shared.
• Read and Pray. Have the person who is praying for the offering read the offertory teaching slide/verse out loud and then pray for the offering based on the Scripture they just read.

4. HAND IT OUT

A very effective way to communicate biblical financial teaching and generosity is through pamphlets, flyers, and tracts.  These quiet, but effective, tools can speak in profound ways to people’s hearts and wallets. Include helpful written materials in your church bulletin, newsletters, website, or as an insert into giving statements.  As a helpful source of such material, SermonCentral is offering my Preaching and Writing Guide to Money and Generosity as a free resource to its newsletter subscribers. This e-manual has a list of 250 money and generosity quotes and stories that you can use in your preaching on finances. Another resource for written tracts and materials is Stewardship Direct.

5. PREACH IT

Studies show that 85% of pastors are uncomfortable preaching, teaching, or talking about money. One of the main reasons for this is that 95% of seminaries in America today never teach on a biblical approach to personal and church finances with their seminary students. The good news is that there are 2,350 verses on finances and material possessions in the Scriptures (so there is a lot of material to choose from). When you examine the Word for spiritual leaders who helped encourage financial teaching and generosity in their generation, the list is a veritable “Who’s Who” of Bible characters.  There are some helpful ministries that can greatly help pastors in this important area – and they offer valuable insight and free resources for a biblical approach to finances and generosity.  As a head start in your own sermon preparation, see the sermons listed on my SermonCentral profile. 


6. ADMINISTRATE IT

When I taught on finances and giving in churches in India, I noticed they had the largest offering baskets I had ever seen.  When I asked them why, I was told that they made the baskets big enough so that people could put in a portion of whatever the Lord had blessed them with during the week. Their offering basket held things like bread, rice, eggs, money, and more!  In one church, they even had “storage houses” next to the church so people could bring a tithe of their crops to church!  In America, I’m afraid our “baskets are too small.” We need to create bigger baskets, so to speak, so people can be faithful and generous in their giving in other ways.  If we limit our collections to the offering plate or in the box, our baskets are too small.  I recommend we create “bigger baskets” by creating a variety of ways people can give, like: giving through electronic fund transfers, self-addressed stamped envelopes, stocks, website giving, and gifts-in-kind. The goal should be faithful and generous giving through whatever means possible.

7. TESTIFY ABOUT IT

One of the most powerful ways to impact people’s generosity is to allow your congregation to hear real life stories about other people’s faith journey in becoming a more generous Christian.  Work with your leaders to identify some couples or individuals who over several weeks could take 1-3 minutes before the offering is collected to answer one of the following questions:

• How old were you and what were the financial circumstances in your life when you began to faithfully give at least 10% of your income to the Lord’s work?
• What are the reasons you faithfully give at least 10% of your income to the Lord’s work and what are the benefits you’ve experienced from doing this?
• Tell us about a time you gave to the Lord’s work a time of personal need and then saw God provide for you in some amazing ways.
• How do you make giving to your local church the highest priority in your Christian giving?
• Have you ever made financial sacrifices so you could be more generous to the Lord’s work for a special project?  What sacrifices did you make?  Have you ever regretted doing this?

A small church in Iowa did this for four weeks before I came as a guest generosity speaker to their church.  In the next year there giving went from $125,000 to $200,000!  The powerful impact of people’s personal stories about how God taught them to become more generous allowed this entire congregation to excel in the grace of giving in ways they had never imagined.

Money and finances are an essential part of spiritual life; and with the information and resources provided here, you can be used by the Lord to powerfully and effectively impact your congregation’s giving and financial health. The consequences will be transformed lives and more fully devoted followers of Christ–an even greater result than the giving itself!

Rev. Brian Kluth has a free quarterly e-newsletter on church giving that is sent to over 15,000 pastors and church leaders worldwide.  He is also the author of the A Generous Life Bible devotional that is being used churchwide by congregations across America and overseas.