Church leaders are entrusted with the responsibility to lead and guide God’s people into living fully and confidently as Christian stewards — servants of God and shepherds of God’s blessings, which includes our neighbors, near and far. Accomplishing this requires a leader, first, to identify as a stewardship leader, and then follow through with attention to […]
Giving is a part of being a disciple, right? If the pastor’s job is to raise up disciples, can he or she be said to be effectively doing his job if stewardship is not taught, preached or modeled? Could it be that one reason giving continues to decline year after year is that pastors are […]
OK, so you’re the stewardship chair and you don’t know where to begin? After a good, long prayer, look for the folks who will do the work with you. Not just anybody. You want folks who have the skills you need to get the job done, and done right. And how might you go about […]
When you read Acts 2 about the earliest Christian community, it’s almost too hard for us to believe. Everybody relinquished the idea of personal ownership and sold whatever they had? While Christians uphold values of frugality and charity, the Acts community took it to an extreme. What could turn their hearts to such radical generosity? Hint: It’s the same thing that can turn our hearts! (Photo: John Ragal, Creative Commons)
Surprising things happened when a church took mission giving dollars out of its regular budget and instead raised money for those important ministries. It got people involved and active, and now there’s more money for mission — and the regular bills. Read how they did it. From the Center for Steward Leadership at Luther Seminary.
It happens to too many of our colleagues and associates: they are creative, strong, dynamic, and working harder and harder. And before you (or they!) know it, like a match that started out with a burst of flame, they’re burned out. Spent. Out of fuel. The pattern is not inevitable. Here are some tips for […]
Many people today, including lots of Christians, don’t understand the true meaning of stewardship. And that’s a tragedy. Why? Because stewardship is our ultimate calling as Christ followers. God commands us to be stewards over everything we are blessed with. Everything. That means our time, talents, treasure, relationships, jobs and, yes, stuff. From Chris Brown, LifeWay Leadership. […]
Sure, your older members — and to some degree even the boomers — will give to your church out of duty or habit. But younger generations give because they know their donations are making a difference in the world. Are you telling your congregants the impact that their money is making? Here’s how, from MinistryMatters. […]
What does it take to be a courageous, prophetic, risk-taking, love-filled servant of Jesus Christ? Nelson Mandela can certainly provide some insights. StewardshipCentral assembled 15 quotations from the late South African leader whose lifelong fight for freedom earned him the Nobel Peace Prize. Which do you find most inspiring? (Photo: lasanta.com.ec, Creative Commons)
The church leader looking for books on stewardship faces a rich supply of options. Amid the field of excellent publications, Walter Brueggemann’s 2016 work Money and Possessions offers a distinctive perspective — sophisticated biblical study and prophetic speaking. From Adam Copeland at Luther Seminary’s Center for Stewardship Leaders. (Photo: Allen Sheffield, Creative Commons)
