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As congregational leaders, we often think about giving and generosity — or at least, we should. Congregations have mortgage payments to make and payrolls to meet, and we need money to fulfill these obligations. We need people to give generously. For some pastors, however, talking about money is uncomfortable. We don’t want people to think we are begging from the pulpit. We don’t want visitors and new members to think the church is “all about money.” So we may just say nothing and hope for the best.
One of the assumptions that holds churches back is that the value of generosity is limited to meeting the church’s obligations. Encouraging people to be generous with their money is reduced to sustaining church operations. Inviting people to be generous with their time is reduced to filling volunteer ministry positions.
As important as it is to cover the costs of ministry operations and to have chaperones at youth events, we need to look deeper to see generosity’s purpose. Generosity matters because when we are generous, we embody the nature of the divine love that created, calls and sustains us. When we pass the offering plate (or post the offertory QR code), we are inviting people into a way of life that reflects the self-giving Triune God: don’t hoard what you have, but share with others.
Generosity is about more than money, too. God expects us to be generous with our time and influence. Churches can be generous with their property. Institutions can have generous visions that compel them to create partnerships and share resources. The next time you make an appeal to your members to be generous, remember that the aim is not simply to get something from them. Generosity matters because it’s a spiritual practice through which we are molded into the cruciform image of God’s love.
Resources
Beyond the offering plate: How to measure generosity in ways other than money
When congregations reduce giving to a financial transaction, they ignore the generosity happening all around them in other forms, a pastor writes.
By Robert Rueda
A group of volunteers offers a faithful presence in San Diego’s immigration court
After an effort tied to World Refugee Day, a Catholic diocese organically grew a program for faithful people to be witnesses for immigrants.
By Kate Morrissey
First Nations Kitchen serves ancestral foods to the Native American community
Instead of serving cheap, easy food in its community kitchen, All Saints Episcopal Indian Mission in Minneapolis honors its guests with dignified dinner service and fresh, organic traditional dishes such as buffalo, wild rice and elk.
By Jeff Strickler
Before you go
Here’s a question for you and your leadership team: Do your congregation’s practices widen or narrow the path toward a more generous way of life? Consider this question in the next conversation you have about generosity. That conversation — whether it’s with a stewardship committee, a reluctant volunteer or a new member — can be an opportunity to remind people that generosity is not merely a strategy for sustaining the church. It is a way we participate in God’s mission in the world.
As you lead, preach and plan, look for the small openings where you can help your community see generosity not as an obligation, but as a spiritual practice that shapes who we are becoming together. What you cultivate now may be the seed of deeper transformation later.
You can always share your ideas or feedback with me and the Alban Weekly team at alban@duke.edu. Until next week, keep leading!
Prince R. Rivers
Editor, Alban at Duke Divinity