For those who preach sermons on a regular basis, which dynamic tends to be more challenging…how to start or how to finish? Neither matters if there isn’t something of substance in between. The same can be true with trying to stimulate generosity in a local church. Getting started with a great idea can get everyone excited, but if it doesn’t resonate with the majority or lacks staying power, it may fizzle out before being fully realized. As leaders, we can also unintentionally engage generosity in a standard or routine way, believing that by saving the most inspirational aspects for the end of a campaign they will push us over the goal line.

Generosity in a faith community doesn’t begin with a budget; it begins with a revelation of God’s grace and how it thrives in both the induvial and the community. When Paul wrote to the Corinthians about the Macedonian churches, he marveled that despite their “extreme poverty” they overflowed with a “wealth of generosity.” The reason wasn’t complex. Paul says they “gave themselves first to the Lord”. (2 Corinthians 8:1-5)

The John Wesley sermon “The Use of Money”, establishes the Methodist formula that creates the means to be fiscally generous, “Gain all you can…save all you can…give all you can.” To stimulate generosity, we must remind our congregations that Christ-followers see their money through the lens of stewardship, not possession. In that context, such resources become an avenue for expressing their faith.

The practice of stirring the hearts of givers is not just having a great idea with a meaningful goal. The link connecting the two is the purposeful pathway in the middle. The individual must see how they fit in, no matter what size gift they can contribute. At the same time, everyone needs to feel the sense of personal and communal partnership with God that exists within the goal…God wants to use both the ME and the WE that lives in a generous congregation!
 

That brings us to making sure there is enough energy for the last lap, the stretch run, finishing strong! Paul specifically challenged the Corinthians to accomplish what they started a year prior: “Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by your completion of it.” (2 Corinthians 8:11)
To keep generosity alive to the end, consider these factors:

  • Keep relevant details in the mix: Appropriate transparency maintains trust and keeps everyone informed of how the quest for achieving the goal is progressing. But at the same time…
  • Focus on vision, not shortfalls: A heart of completion is motivated by Kingdom purpose. Wesley warned that money often “stays” in the hands of the believer unless the vision of the Gospel is kept front and center noting, “I value all things only by the price they shall gain in eternity.” Finally…
  • Persevere in Righteousness: Speak the promise in Galatians 6:9: “Let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”

May the hearts of believers supporting the ministry you shepherd connect to the strength of the Me and the We as God uses us one and all to bring forth the Kingdom!

Serving with Christ, serving with you,
Rev. Dr. David Weatherly,
President & CEO