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Few congregations have effective year-round programs for stewardship education, tithing and planned giving. Most need help. SALT will help supply that need. SALT, through information provided by "Church Stewardship & Growth Center" will meet the needs of your church by bringing you articles of what others are doing in the stewardship field, suggestions on new programs, audio-visuals, displays, literature, electronic medias, and training materials. It will give you and your congregation the satisfaction of more effectively meeting the needs of the work of Jesus Christ.
The difference between the success and failure of bringing families to full stewardship stature is vested in local leadership. As the chief steward under God, you hold the key of leadership. Use it or lose it!
Church Suppier Editor
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People give to the church and charities for various reasons and because they are motivated. Church leaders should understand such reasons and motivations, and distinguish between motives and reasons in gaining financial response.
A motive is that which empowers a person to act. A reason is that which causes a person to act. In our efforts to gain stewardship response, we need to realize that we are dealing with values people have - conscious and subconscious ones. Giving reflects a person's understanding of need, the quality of communication and information received, the degree of faith and commitment, and financial ability.
The National Council of Churches sponsored a study of the giving motivations and habits of Americans, which was published in a book, "Punctured Preconceptions." Motivations and reasons why people give were rated in the following order: Gratitude to God, part of worship, privilege, obligation, love for others, the church needs money, duty of membership, proud of church, help the church, makes one feel-good, habit. Unfortunately, the main Scriptural motivation for giving was not listed and not named: God's love in Christ for a person for the forgiveness of sins.
Besides motivations, there are many reasons why people give, some good and some bad: Command of God, the need of the non-Christians, self-interest, pride, fear, embarrassment by comparisons, social approval, tax exemption, conscience-easing, humanitarian ideals, example of Christ, reward, recognition, and pursuit of happiness. Some people use these as motivations and pervert the giving enterprise, thus destroying the integrity of the cause, the church, and the agency. We cannot sow self
and reap the Spirit. Good intentions do not excuse poor motivations and wrong reasons.
Some are poor stewards because their lives are based on convictions and values that are more secular or pagan than Christian. The solution is not to quote Bible verses and pious phrases, but to teach the whole Law and Gospel in their fullness.
Motivations, reasons and incentives are so vital because sanctification is an exclusive act of God's Spirit through the Word. The Gospel, the fountain of God, pours out God's gifts upon people. God's love is His "drawing power" - drawing us away from self and sinful pleasures, while drawing us to all that He wills, to His peace, security and strength.
Some leaders use bad motivations and wrong reasons in urging people to give. People need to hear and use good motivations and good reasons for giving. Churches and organizations that push their own needs instead of responding to people's need for spiritual food will have diminishing success. The longer a group delays the development of an aggressive Bible-based fund-raising approach, the fewer options it has and the smaller chance for real and lasting success.
When a representative of the church or organization faces people, they need to keep in mind the following factors:
- Recognize the level of spiritual strength and vigor of the individual;
- Avoid appeals to duty, loyalty, fear, wills, pride, need, and avoid wrong methods and gimmicks;
- Inform and motivate on the basis of God's Word and the Gospel according to the person's need. Deal with the person with integrity.
- Encourage a faith response;
- Ask: Is this what God truly says? Am I faithfully representing my Savior Jesus Christ? Are my methods truly ethical and Christian? What message is this person hearing? What response am I receiving? On the basis of God's Word, how must I interpret this response?
When we advance Scriptural motivations, proper reasons and correct incentives to potential givers, we will not anticipate results on the basis of visible resources, but of God's resources available to the person. We are not at the mercy of banks, inflation, or recession, but we are dependent on the mercy and love of God. We cannot overdraw on that divine account nor can Christian stewards and prospective donors.
Book by Rev. Waldo J. Werning -
"New Beginnings Â…In Christian Living and Giving is an excellent collection of four sermons, Bible studies and companion resources of sample letters, newsletter articles, and a commitment form. It is a very practical and usable resource for conducting a four-week stewardship or spiritual growth emphasis in a congregation. It includes all the basic ingredients needed for pastors and leaders to conduct a clear, forceful and relevant stewardship emphasis." Rev. Larry Reinhardt, Stewardship Ministry,
The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod
Published by Neibauer Press - #277 - only $13.95 each
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