Sunday Offerings
Last week, our Kentucky network of High Impact church planters met for a meeting and meal at the Kentucky Baptist Building in Louisville. It was a great time of fellowship and exchanging ideas. There was also a discussion of the Lifeway-conducted “Church Planting Health and Survivability Study”, an internal survey of Kentucky High Impact churches, reviewing of two books (Andy Stanley’s Making Vision Stick and Jeff Iorg’s Characteristics of Leadership—which were read in advance of the meeting) and a sharing time from each planter about a life that had been transformed through the ministry of the planter’s church.During the look at the internal survey of High Impact churches in Kentucky, we had a time of discussion about the offering and its place in worship. It was noted that in a recent white paper that in a 2007 NAMB study, church plants that have a proactive stewardship plan enjoy a 178% greater chance of surviving beyond five years than their non-proactive counterparts. It was also noted that the handling of finances and other aspects of stewardship are key elements of discipleship.
Planters often neglect stewardship because they are afraid that if they place emphasis on giving, that the surrounding community will view them as money-hungry charlatans. But, because giving and stewardship issues are so important to the development of disciples, because giving is an important part of authentic worship, and because so many people are struggling with debt and how to manage their finances---it is essential that planters and all churches help their members and prospective members understand God’s will in the area of stewardship.
The white paper poses this challenge: “How can I (the church planter or pastor) teach God’s plan for stewardship and giving without making prospects or new members feel like they are being manipulated for their money?”
The white paper entitled, The Stewardship Challenge. . ., provides four keys to developing a stewardship plan for the congregation:
· Be straightforward about the costs of ministry.
· Teach the scriptural approach to money management.
· Model giving as a congregation.
· Model stewardship to your congregation.
This white paper referenced in this blog can be found on the NAMB website under
The Church Planting Village www.churchplantingvillage.net.
A final question: What are you doing to develop stewardship in your church plant or church? I would like to hear your plan. A short description in the comments section may help many church planters.
7 Comments posted by: Larry Baker on August 25th, 2008
