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Dick's Column
Dear G$ Friends and Colleagues,
The current financial crisis is increasingly causing us to look more deeply at the whole issue of money and our relationship to it — and that is a good thing. It’s like the curtain has been pulled back on the Wizard of Materialism and what’s been exposed is a very sad, little old man with a shriveled heart. The Wizard has everything but is unhappy in the midst of his abundance.
That growing realization has opened the door to what I hope by now are very clear opportunities and obligations we have as stewardship leaders to offer teaching, training and counsel in greater frequency and to broader audiences than ever before. Seize the opportunity! — not just for the sake of expanding the ministry but because there is huge need for what you have to offer.
The financial crisis has also raised some questions for the church that I am hearing and I’ll bet you are too. I’ve listed two of them with my space-limited answers. I’d be interested if you have anything to add — let me know.
1. How will church giving be impacted by the current financial situation?
There’s no question that the ability to give is lessened if someone loses their job or their income diminishes. Whether or not that results in less overall giving to the church, however, depends. What if those of us whose income does not decrease each raised our giving to compensate? Is that realistic? Well, if unemployment reached 12 percent (hopefully it won’t) there would still be 88 percent of us who were employed. A relatively small increase in our giving could make up the difference.
2. How can giving be encouraged without sounding like we just want people’s money?
I think there are lots of answers to this one but let me share what I think is a powerful but often overlooked opportunity to give a stewardship message about giving every week in a way that does not offend or seem heavy handed. It is particularly overlooked within megachurches. It has to do with how we treat receiving the offering.
Rather than a casual, “Now’s the time we take the offering” and on to announcements, the receiving of the offering can be a weekly opportunity to remind our people:
- This is a way of showing gratefulness to God for all He has entrusted to us
- That our gifts go to help others within and outside our church body — maybe even highlighting and briefly praying for some of those ministries and recipients
- That God can take our little and multiply its effectiveness
- That we are blessed to be a blessing
Those simple messages, often less than a minute in length, can be a powerful and impactful teaching tool over time. Talk with your senior pastor if your church is missing this opportunity to encourage generosity within your church.
God’s best to you and your ministry!
Sincerely in Christ,
Dick Towner
Executive Director
Good $ense Ministry
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