The people in your pews are most inspired by a mission that changes lives.
But, do you ask people to support your budget, to pay the light bill, to keep the doors open?
Do you need help reframing money talk in your congregation?

For more information, see the latest Cheerful Giving podcast.

Here’s the transcript:

Thank you for tuning in to Cheerful Giving, I hope the next two minutes will help you inspire yourself and your church to find the joy of generosity.

Today I want to think about how your congregation talks about money, and especially about the money that members give to the church and that the church spends for its various ministries.

First of all, as church leaders we know that operating a church can be expensive. There are some pretty big costs that need to be covered.

Personnel is usually the biggest, followed by the needs of the physical plant. It’s not unusual for those two items to eat up 75% or more of a church budget.

So how do we talk to our members about the money the church needs to do ministry? And especially, what frame do we use when asking them to support the church financially?

Do you talk about costs? Do you talk about what the church needs? The light bill has to be paid, the health insurance, the salaries, and we have to buy a new copier. Do you focus on expenses?

This is important, because the top three reasons people support any charitable organization, including the church, are:

3. The fiscal responsibility of the organization,
2. A sense of trust with the CEO (e.g., the Pastor), and
1. A mission that changes lives.

And the greatest of these is number 1 – a mission that changes lives.

So what if, instead of talking about what it costs to keep the doors of our church open, we began to talk about how our church changes lives.

What does your church do that changes lives? I bet your list would include things like:

• Inspiring worship, on Sunday and other special times
• Hosting community groups who need meeting and program space
• Feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, caring for the ill, and visiting the prisoners.
• Doing justice, loving kindness, and walking humbly.

Reframing our conversation about money in the church can help us to see the connection between our faithfulness in giving and God’s work being done through us. And that makes for Cheerful Giving.

For help inspiring a culture of cheerful generosity and giving in your church, send me an email. I’m always ready to help.

Thank you for tuning in, and may God bless your ministry.