Snowflakes in the air, carols everywhere, Olden times and ancient rhymes of love and dreams to share Yes, Christmastime is here, and just a few days more to write the Christmas sermon! Here are five Christmas Carols to keep you mindful of generosity and stewardship during this hectic season.…
No doubt about it: managing an effective capital campaign takes planning and organization. So what are the benefits? People will work very intensely during the campaign. Undertaking a campaign will be a major congregational activity for a period of months. Church leaders will devote even more time than that to…
Money. One of the major challenges that churches face is setting a sustainable funding strategy. When it comes to church finances, leaders often take a “seat of the pants” approach each fiscal year with small regard for tomorrow. Too, they may not understand the funding sources available to the church,…
“There was no feasibility study to make sure people were in favor of the project and willing to give.” Glenn and Barbara Holliman have an excellent little book about capital funding in churches. With Generous Hearts is well worth your time to read before considering a campaign. I was struck…
There is nothing glamorous or exciting about building improvements like roof repair or window replacement. That was the reality that a recent client faced. Built in the late 1950s, their building had become worn and dated. Each proposed improvement seemed minor and cosmetic. All together, though, the updates added up…
A church is not a hospital or school. Of course, Jesus is the Great Healer. And many times the gospels call him Teacher. But metaphors aside, there are differences between raising money in a non-church setting and raising money in a congregation. While a church is a non-profit in the…
Something is going right in your church. The nursery is full, the new adult class meets on the stage, and more families keep showing up. What a great problem to have! It might be time to build or renovate, and that means a Capital Campaign. A capital campaign is a full-body…
Stewardship is the way we use our God-given gifts – talent, time, and treasure – to carry on Christ’s work in the world. We are his disciples. As part of stewardship, it’s important to understand the financial health of your church. The decisions you make about money are part of…
Church Campaign Services has recently been consulting with a church that is planning to update its facilities. The church was originally built in the late 1950s and earlier, and has become worn and dated. Most of the proposed changes seem minor and mostly cosmetic, yet together the updates add up…
Every year various denominational groups ask if we’d give a workshop on choosing the right capital campaign consultant for “your” church. And, it seems the focus ends up on the personality of the individual, not the firm, and I believe that is wrong. So you may wonder, in what ways…
