If your church that has experimented with technology and capital campaigns, I’d love to hear more about what worked and what didn’t (if you’re brave enough to share).

P.S. In case you don’t get the magazine, here is my joint editorial conversation with Ron Keener on church giving.

Josh is a financial planner who has built a consulting firm around the idea of helping people discern and accomplish their life plan. His speciality is not just helping you invest money but also gain clarity about what it is you want to do with that money.

Josh is a believer who is passionate about helping others not only increase their generosity and decrease debt but understand what to do with the other 90 percent. This eBook is one I looked for when I graduated from college but couldn’t find. It spells out all the dimensions of money in a way that provides context and balance for those looking to gain their first financial foothold and those looking for a more specific, mature financial strategy.

I strongly encourage you to download the eBook and consider how Josh may be able to provide a fresh perspective as our culture seeks to make sense of the new normal of money.

What steps are you taking to implement a balanced financial plan for your life?

What about about database analytics for the rest of us?

Now that I work with a variety of organizations, I’m amazed at how many nonprofits and churches with multi-million dollar operating budgets don’t invest in this kind of vital business intelligence and process mapping. The prevailing practice — in many instances — is to “just go with it” and see what happens.

I can certainly understand why:

• The urgent squeezes much of the opportunity to pause for analysis of any kind.
• The availability of people who can perform such work is often limited.
• The salary  for a database analyst (when you do find the fight person) is often out of reach for many nonprofits and churches.

My goal is to remove obstacles for my clients, so I’ve found a way to provide database analysis for the rest of us.

It’s really simple (on your part at least):

• You identify the questions you’re trying to answer. (e.g. What age groups are growing in total dollars given? Who has increased/decreased their giving in the last 12 months?, etc.)
• We help you get the data we need out of your existing database. (e.g. ERP, ChMS, etc.)
• We process the data, put it into graphs and charts you can use internally, and offer insight into what we discovered.

Here’s what you can do with this information:

• Modify existing workflows or organizational strategy for better performance. (Huge area for growth among existing clients is in the area of assimilation and donor tracking.)
• Adjust your existing content strategy.
• Evaluate new initiatives or areas of opportunity to invest time, money, and people. (Stop leading with your gut.)

Take a look at some redacted charts and graphs we’ve created for some of our clients. Databases are powerful tools if used correctly. Part of harnessing the intelligence captured in this one place is understanding how to interpret and report over the available information. The questions you’re asking (or maybe afraid to ask) are probably hidden within the data you’re already collecting.

How do you use database analysis to inform your content marketing strategies for mission-critical functions like donor acquisition, cultivation, and relationship management? For churches, how can you be sure your assimilation process is engaging people who are then investing in your ministry with their time, talents, and resources?

Only read this eBook if…

• You are serious about year-end giving.
• You are looking for a tactical approach.
• You want proven advice.

Don’t read this eBook if…

• You think people will just give to your church.
• You refuse to talk about money.
• You are satisfied with the status quo.

Now is the time to start preparing. Are you confident you’re doing everything you can to maximize this season of giving? If not, download this free eBook to guide you through the process.

1. Stewards can be generous. Generous people aren’t necessarily stewards.
2. Stewards don’t own what they manage.
3. Stewards know they will be held accountable for what they do with what they’ve been given.
4. Stewards are rewarded based on the results they achieve or the impact they’ve made.
5. Stewards act out of concern for the owner of the property they manage.
6. Stewardship is the beginning of discipleship.
7. Stewardship carries with it a long history of meaning and application.
8. Stewardship prevents me from becoming consumed with cultural norms.
9. Stewardship is multi-dimentional: time, talents, treasure, temple, and testimony.
10. Stewardship balances our worldview between “ourselves” and “everyone else.”

Let’s keep using the words stewards and stewardship. I think they still has a lot of life left in them. Agreed?

A study commissioned by Smart Money magazine and Redbook found that more than 70 percent of couples talked to their partner about money at least once a week. (Source link.)

I recently completed a review for a pastor that showed a spike in church giving every time he talked about money. He is someone who is incredibly uncomfortable talking about the subject. Honestly, it stresses him out.

Sometimes we have to ask oursevles what is more important: staying within our comfort zone or engaging people with an issue that is central to doing life as a Christ-follower.

If so many couples are already talking about the subject, why is the church silent?

1. 5 practical things churches can do to increase giving
2. 10 excuses pastors make about church giving
3. 18-second listeners don’t cultivate high-capacity givers
4. What will your church do differently in 2011?
5. Giving testimony [video]

Title: 5 reasons churches limit the length of capital campaigns

Summary: Grounded in changes related to economic stability, needs, and expectations, churches are reducing the time they are willing to commit to fulfill upon capital campaign pledges. The traditional 36 month fulfillment period is being replaced with 12 or 18 month campaigns. This article explore the reasons why three church leaders choose to do so.

Read the article.

Download the article.

Is this shift a good thing?

It’s time rethink our approach to subject of money in church. If Jesus talked more about it than heaven and hell combined, perhaps we ought to make it a more central part of our teaching as well.

Warning: Churches who refuse to consistently deal with giving in a healthy way help fund outside organizations with money God intended to fund his church.

When was the last time you said “thank you” via phone, handwritten note, or in person? (Unfortunately, there isn’t an “app for that.”)