Cultivating Generosity as a Church
"As a ministry, fundraising is as spiritual as giving a sermon, entering a time of prayer, visiting the sick, or feeding the hungry." - Henri Nouwen
One opportunity pastors have is to invite people into a life of generosity. Many of us as ministers have preached sermons on generosity or on understanding why God has called us to give & serve for the sake of the mission and our own discipleship. But how comfortable are you with what it takes to fundraise, manage finances, grow generosity in young people, and steward what God has entrusted your church to be a transformative community for others? Moving from theology to the day-to-day of giving can be a source of stress or struggle for many pastors. So we wanted to curate some of the best resources and tools for you and your staff, board, or finance teams to help you do the “internal” parts well, so the “external” impacts for people and the Kingdom can flourish.
Curated Content For You
Read
Prayer Guides from 24-7 Prayer
Looking for ways to lead yourself, your church or specific groups in prayer for Ukraine? Our friends at 24/7 Prayer have written short and long-form prayer guides to help you.
A Spirituality of Fundraising - Henri Nouwen
Nouwen encourages us to see fundraising as spiritual work and approach it confidently. "Fundraising is precisely the opposite of begging," he points out. Unlike most business/leadership books, A Spirituality of Fundraising is brief and can easily be read in one sitting.
The Paradox of Generosity: Giving We Receive, Grasping We Lose - Christian Smith & Hilary Davidson
Determining why, when, and to whom people feel compelled to be generous is invaluable when considering how we talk about giving in our churches. Smith & Davidson through this research project illustrate the ways generosity leads to happier, healthier, and more fulfilled lives and how people’s choices to give are most influenced.
Free Ebooks from Generis
Find free resources on topics like: Year-End Giving, Capital Campaign Guide, and First-Time Givers. Beautifully designed, and deeply helpful ebooks that succinctly guide you in how to implement proven strategies for managing giving at your church!
Thanks to our partner Generis for these resources. If you want to explore how to create a culture of generosity at your church, you can email jon.wright@generis.com or visit generis.com/jon-wright to get started.
Courses & Other Resources
Certificate in Fund Raising Management
Interested in receiving formal education in fundraising and managing donor relationships? The Lily School of Philanthropy offers one of the leading programs in North America for non-profit leaders. Courses include:
Principles & Techniques of Fundraising
Developing Major Gifts
Developing Annual Sustainability
Managing the Capital Campaign
WATCH: Generosity & Discipleship
Learn from Jim Sheppard (CEO of Generis) and Julie Bullock (Senior Generosity Strategist at Generis), alongside Carey Nieuwhof & David Kinnaman, about barriers to giving, the root struggles pastors face around money and how to disciple a church towards generosity.
NextAfter: Fundraising Research Lab, Digital Fundraising Agency, and more.
NextAfter helps non-profits grow their digital fundraising, like Compassion, who they consulted with for redesigning their webpages to increase new child sponsorships.
Upcoming Events
Oct. 3-5, 2022 | Vancouver, BC
Being a youth pastor is hard, but you’re not alone. Join our team and youth pastors from across Canada as we seek to reignite your why, deepen your calling to this next generation and develop a new playbook for youth ministry in our time.
We’re doing this because we think it could actually change the climate of youth ministry in Canada. Let’s be more specific - your youth ministry in Canada. Your youth ministry in ______. We think if you join us for this Summit, the Lord might do a few things.
In Case You Missed It
NEW: Life Revealed Series by Alpha & The BibleProject
A 9-part series that journeys through the narrative of Luke and Acts, provokes curiosity around the person of Jesus, and creates an accessible way for young people to read and understand scripture.
This series is a collaboration between Alpha and the BibleProject with the purpose of helping the Church on its mission of helping young people discover and develop a relationship with Jesus.