When it comes to stewardship ministry, too often we want unrealistically fast results — the program that will increase revenue by 20 percent in the first year. Using a gardening analogy, Anne Brock of the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy explores what it means to plant seeds of abundance.
Here’s a resource with great ideas to energize your financial stewardship ministry. Stewardship 101: An Invitation to Financial Stewardship is a free e-book from the Center for Steward Leadership at Luther Seminary. It contains 17 of the center’s best newsletter articles on a wide variety of stewardship topics.
“To know, or not to know?” That is the question that Hamlet surely never had to ask, but church leaders wrestle with it as they ponder whether to look at the donation records for their church. Faith & Leadership explores the “common assumptions” with the “actual facts.” (Photo: Edith Soto, Creative Commons)
Stewardship efforts often fail because a single team is saddled with all the financial leadership responsibilities and they get overwhelmed. A better approach is to create three teams who can focus — and do a good job — on just one area of responsibility. From the Center for Faith and Giving.
Stewardship is more than just a six-week campaign in the fall, yet most congregations lack a strategy for anything else. Here, from the United Methodist Church, is a handy guide with links to help keep financial stewardship awareness simmering all year long.
“There’s a hoax being perpetuated that time management is essentially about technique … All you need are the right tools: paper planner, online calendar, tools to block addictive websites,” writes leadership consultant Margaret Marcuson, who explores deeper issues that can help leaders get a handle on things. (Photo: Robert van der Steeg, Creative Commons.)
What can a gifted horseman teach church folk about leadership? Quite a lot actually! Read this article and be inspired by 21 leadership lessons from Frédéric Pignon. The vision behind and founder of Cavalia, a world-renowned equine spectacular, Pignon and his wife travel the world inspiring both horses and the people with whom they come in contact. Read on for valuable information! (Photo: Contando Estrelas, Creative Commons)
What does it take to lead a congregation? Intelligence and charisma count, for sure, but Saddleback Church’s Rick Warren says nothing is more important than vision. “You must constantly answer the question: Why are we here? If you don’t know the answer, you can’t lead,” Warren writes. Check out his essay on how to develop […]
Here’s a holiday worship service that celebrates the year’s blessings with a community meal featuring a very special soup of Puerto Rico. “We are a culture of abundance,” writes Pastor Thea Racelis. “We live into our belief that God has given us enough to go around if we just share!” (Photo: Rool Paap, Creative Commons) […]
Think of the church leaders you admire for their effectiveness. Chances are they exude a sense of gratitude for who they are, where they are and what they are doing. Not that things are perfect, but they deal with problems and life. Gratitude affects your attitude and makes a big difference in your ministry. Leadership […]
