If you listen to the news and talk around the water cooler, you might just think the sky is falling. The current economic happenings certainly have an impact on your church, but what is it?
Offerings are down for 35% of you. Your budget red is getting brighter and brighter as stocks go down and down. And another 24% of you have had to make budget cuts already. I’m sure marketing budgets are going down, and we’re always looking to hear how you’re making less money do more work, so drop us a line.
15% of you have seen attendance going down. Gas money, fear of pressure to give and general unhappiness are probably just a few of the culprits in sinking attendance.
A lucky 11% of you haven’t seen a single impact of the tough economy. And an unlucky 10% have noticed a big impact–your marketing plan has been reduced to prayer. Prayer isn’t bad, but a few dollars certainly give your marketing a kick start.
Then there’s the 5% of you whose attendance is on the up-and-up. Do you attribute this to the financial downturn? Be honest, are you paying people to come to church?
This week, click through to the main site to let us know, does branding your church with a specific scent take branding a step too far?
will
October 2, 2008
those individuals and organizations who embrace biblical prinicples for managing finances should be the ones thriving right now. we should not be overextended in credit and spending, we should be operating with margin so that now are margin is just smaller.
much like the effect of 9/11 causing hordes of people to run to the church for answers in panic and desperation, people should be running to us again.
what are we giving them? extraordinary peace in an out-of-control world? is the Prince of Peace that brings a calm that surpasses comprehension and circumstance present at your church? let people know this. tell them that you have the ANSWER! promise PEACE, Jesus did!
besides, when it comes to practical teaching on finances, Jesus spent 15% of all of His recorded words in Scripture on it. 16 of his approximately 40 parables dealt with money or possessions in some way. I believe that God has a lot to say to us in these times about how we steward, invest, manage and generously give of our financial resources.
we are currently engaged in a series for our men called PRICEless …a man and his money, playing off of the Price is Right font (pricedown) and a banknote feel background. Our three topics are “more than money”; “strictly stewards” and “putting wealth to work.”
I believe that there are few things the world considers the church to possess beneficial knowledge of, but two prime areas are fiduciary responsibility and marriage – at least in our metropolitan community they seem to be willing to run to us for at least these two areas of their lives. maybe they will at your church, too. I hope so.
Let’s leverage our current climate of chaos and show them a peace and some principles that defy our circumstances!
formerfire
October 2, 2008
Yes its an important time to be financially wise stewards. They should make financial planning etc part of a ministry training course.