People and institutions of faith helped reshape American philanthropy in 2023 despite the nation’s daunting economic, political and social challenges, according to the latest “Giving in Faith” report from Givelify and the Lake Institute on Faith and Giving. The survey…
The day the camel slipped through the eye of a needle … and the church did not
You may have read the remarkable story about the life of Charles Feeney, who recently died at 92 after having given away almost all of his $8 billion to the causes he believed in. At some point in his life,…
Fundraising is not a ‘necessary evil’ but an essential ministry, Capps says
Pastors must transform their attitudes about fundraising if congregations are to survive economic and cultural trends increasingly hostile toward churches, said Shauw Chin Capps, president of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship Foundation. “Embrace fundraising as a ministry. It is not a…
Against the odds, the SBC is experiencing a double-digit increase in giving
On the heels of a global pandemic and amid its own multi-faceted schism, the Southern Baptist Convention is experiencing something few could have predicted: Financial gifts to the SBC for the 2021-2022 fiscal year are up — way up. The…
How the evangelical church messed up and lost its way
The evangelical church in the United States is a mess. I’m not talking about reports of declining membership and lower baptism numbers. Those statistics merely provided warning signs that something was amiss, that things were going in the wrong direction….
CBF names Letson and Green to stewardship roles
The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship has named two new staff members with different responsibilities related to stewardship. Rickey Letson, pastor of First Baptist Church in Laurens, S.C., will join the CBF staff in May as congregational stewardship officer. Nell Green, who…
10 reasons we are giving a little extra to the church this year
Every year, my wife and I give a few gifts at the end of the year to nonprofits, mission centers and ministry groups with whom we have a close connection. And although we give regularly to our church throughout the…
The best way to finish this dreadful year is with lavish generosity
Thirty-six years ago this month, I learned a lesson in generosity that inspires me to this day. I was 23 years old, had just completed a bachelor’s degree in journalism at the University of New Mexico and was heading to…
Majority of churches plan flat budgets for 2021, large survey finds
Fall is a traditional season for budget planning in many churches and denominations, with stewardship drives often following into the holidays, but COVID-19 has flattened expectations and heightened uncertainty, according to a new survey conducted by the Lake Institute on…