In this issue:

Understanding Giving Patterns in Your Congregation

What Motivates Giving?

The Right Question

The purpose of an endowment is to grow the church of tomorrow, not embalm the church of today.

Loren Mead

An analysis of stewardship practices in almost any congregation will reveal that a high percentage of giving typically comes from a relatively low percentage of the church’s membership. This phenomenon is referred to as a giving pyramid. In many charitable organizations, 80 percent of donations come from only 20 percent of donors. And this typically is the case in church capital campaigns or major fund drives, as well. Annual giving in congregations generally follows a similar, although somewhat less extreme, pattern. Lyle Schaller says that 70 to 80 percent of annual giving income tends to come from 40 percent of the congregation (The New Context for Ministry, Abingdon, 2002, 232). Dan Hotchkiss claims the breakdown is more like 60/20 (Ministry and Money, Alban, 2002).

Is such a skewed giving pattern good, bad, or neutral? It is perhaps best to think of it as understandable. There are a number of good explanations for why some of your members give much more than others. For example, people have very different levels of resources and obligations at different times in their lives. Also, not all people are at the same point in their discipleship journey. The most faithful givers often did not start as such exemplary financial stewards. Lyle Schaller captures this fact well when he says that “the most widespread expression of diversity in American Protestant congregations today is the level of Christian commitment” (The New Context for Ministry, 232). Also, disparate giving levels are not the only example of unequal levels of participation in church life. The entire congregation does not worship equally or attend church school equally or pray equally. Knowing how the giving pyramid affects your congregation’s stewardship is a means of understanding, not judgment.

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What Motivates Giving?

How can you nurture better giving habits in your congregation? Successful financial appeals are spiritually sensitive and respect the perspective of givers. Here are some tips about knowing what motivates giving.

• People give to many things for a variety of reasons. Few have a well-planned or consistent giving strategy. Some give on impulse. Others are more cautious. Different kinds of appeals are effective with different types of givers.
• All people want to make a difference. They will give to what they value.

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The Right Question

Leaders do not need answers.
Leaders must have the right questions.

Kibbie Ruth and Karen McClintock, authors of Healthy Disclosure: Solving Communications Quandaries in Congregations, (Alban, 2007) suggest a question that helps a congregation get at the secrets and hard stuff of their life that need attention.

What would you be embarrassed to tell new people about your congregation?

Editors:  Lovett H. Weems, Jr. and Ann A. Michel
Production and distribution: Carol Follett

Copyright © 2009 by the G. Douglass Lewis Center for Church Leadership. Leading Ideas material may be freely distributed with attribution (exclusive of material protected by separate copyright).