ECCU Blog

According to a new survey published by the Barna Group, 79% of evangelicals have donated money in the past year, compared to 53% of born again non –evangelicals. Of those evangelicals who give, 66% give to their churches and 28% give to other non-profit organizations.

 Evangelical Christians are also the faith group that donates the most: 26% donated $2,500 to $5,000, and 6% donated over $10,000. This compares with a national average of 7% and 1% respectively in these amount categories.

 So the survey says that evangelicals do in fact donate more than others. Does this surprise you? Would you expect this?

 If we follow Jesus’ teaching, we should be the giving the most, because we understand that we have the most to be thankful for in the gift of God’s forgiveness through Jesus’ sacrifice. Plus, we understand that we are to be shrewd stewards of the resources we’ve been given.

 A question we should all be asking: “Am I a generous giver regardless of what the survey says?”

After the economic crisis that began in 2008 triggered the Great Recession, news media reported countless stories of the impact on individual churches. Few of those stories included trends, because the data simply wasn’t available. Today, the numbers are in, and some of them are surprising.

The School of Philanthropy at Indiana University recently published the findings of a survey they conducted with more than 3000 churches. How did the Great Recession impact churches and how have congregations responded? Here are some key findings.

• U.S.congregations are generally improving financially. However, those with older attendees and those whose clergy are uninformed about congregational giving are experiencing the greatest challenges.
• Despite overall positive trends in fundraising receipts, pledges, and budgeting in 2011, the majority of congregations’ revenues have not kept pace with inflation in recent years.
• Changes in average congregational gift size and the number of donors are the main drivers of fundraising success.
• Congregations are increasing their budgets in the areas of missions and revenue-generating activity.
• Congregations have more work to do in the area of educating congregations on financial planning and charitable giving.
• The majority of congregations employ some type of electronic giving.

Are these findings consistent with what has happened at your church? If you have been successful in one of these areas, to what would attribute your success?

At my church, we weathered the Great Recession well, not that any one of us can take any credit. I do, however, believe that maintaining adequate cash reserves before the recession hit was one critical reason we were able to stay focused on our mission and vision. And by being transparent and letting our congregation know that we would live on what was given, we were able to build trust in a time of uncertainty.

What did your church or ministry do that helped it get through the Great Recession?

According to GuideStar’s recent survey of nonprofits, for the first 9 months of 2012, 34% of nonprofits reported an increase in donations while 37% reported a decline. These mixed results are attributed to the lasting effects of the Great Recession and slow economic recovery.

The major cause cited by 77% for the decline in donations was smaller gifts from individuals when compared to previous years. The other major cause was fewer individual gifts.

In addition, 30% expected year-end giving to be higher than last year while 29% expected giving to be lower. 

Surprisingly, 42% of nonprofits were planning on increasing their 2013 operating budget when compared to 2012.  32% will keep budgets the same and 24% will reduce their budget. 

How are you and your ministry viewing 2013?  Are you planning for an increase in donations?  Planning for things to be about the same or lower?  With so much in economic uncertainty right now, cautious and prudent planning for 2013 seems appropriate. 

Grateful we can trust God for the just the right amount of resources we need.

This is the fifth in our series of email interviews with presenters for the upcoming 2012 Financial Forum for Ministries.

Brian Kluth is former senior pastor of the First Evangelical Free Church in Colorado Springs, who commissioned him as a generosity minister-at-large to the global church, and founder of Maximum Generosity. He will appraise current funding realities in churches and ministries today and share best practices and resources that staff and leaders can use to inspire generosity and increase giving. Here are Brian’s responses to my questions.

MBG: How will your presentation help attendees serve their ministries?

Brian: Growing economic difficulties are leading to decreased giving in many churches and ministries. As a result, they’re having to adjust to a “new normal” when it comes to finances, fundraising, and budgeting. This session will help attendees discover practical and creative ways to move their ministries forward in the midst of tighter budgets and a challenging fundraising climate.

MBG: What are three important takeaways attendees will learn during your presentation?

Brian: Empty Tomb, Inc., reports a 40-year decline in the percentage of income that Christians in the United States donate. The first thing attendees will take away from this session is an understanding of how major national trends impact giving to ministries and churches. They will also discover ten ways God provides and moves ministry forward, including nine that are possible even when the budget says “no.” The final takeaway is a list of five key ingredients needed to make any fundraising and generosity initiative more successful in churches, ministries, and the work of missionaries.

MBG: How will the format of the forum make it an even more valuable learning experience?

Brian: A variety of valuable materials will accompany the presentation, including graphs on giving trends, lists of the 50 best practices to increase giving and 80 helpful websites, planning worksheets, and other generosity-related handouts. Attendees will return to their churches and ministries with many resources to share with staff, leaders, and committees.

Next up will be Dave Moja, a partner and national director of not-for-profit tax services with CapinCrouse LLP, who will discuss recent Internal Revenue Service, congressional, and court benefits. He’ll also talk about ministers‘ payroll and unrelated business income as well as health care compliance issues.

Brian will present at the financial forum in Colorado Springs on December 4, 2012. Follow this link to learn more and sign.

A key distinction between a financial cooperative like ECCU and other banking institutions is the difference between credit union members and bank customers: Customers simply conduct business at a bank. ECCU members don’t just bank at the credit union—they are the credit union. Because of this, our staff’s role is to partner with members to help them fulfill their missions. Ministry conferences are one good illustration of this distinction. We often work with member ministries and others to provide educational opportunities. In metaphorical terms, we see this as “fueling” ministry.

Our next opportunity to fuel ministry is at the WFX Conference and Expo inAtlanta(Sept. 19–21). The conference’s ambitious theme is: “Preparing churches of all sizes to meet evolving leadership, technology, and facility needs.” ECCU will help deliver on that theme by presenting two educational sessions, one featuring the senior pastor of an Atlanta-area church and the other featuring generosity expert Brian Kluth.

ECCU Regional Director Jeremy Moore will present one of the conference’s hands-on training sessions. His session, How to Increase Giving in Any Economy, is scheduled for 1:30-2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 19. Co-presenting with him will be Stan Lester, senior pastor of Crosspointe Church in Dalton, Georgia.

Kluth will co-present with Moore at an educational, invitation-only breakfast hosted by ECCU. They will discuss Purchasing and Financing Existing Facilities Today. Ministry leaders who attend will be eligible to win a new iPad^®, as will conference attendees who register at ECCU’s booth in the conference expo. (For the complete Official Rules*, visit www.eccu.org/wfx-sweepstakes.)

Are you going to the WFX conference? You can learn more and register at www.wfxweb.com/atlanta-2012.

*_{OFFICIAL RULES SUMMARY: NO PURCHASE IS NECESSARY TO BE ELIGIBLE TO WIN. EACH SWEEPSTAKES ENTRY WILL HAVE AN EQUAL CHANCE OF WINNING. The iPad^® Breakfast sweepstakes ends on Sept. 20, 2012, at the end of the breakfast; the iPad^® Booth sweepstakes ends on Sept. 21, 2012, at conference closing. See the “Consumer Disclosure” section of the Official Rules for odds of winning. Only one entry permitted per person. By entering this drawing, you agree to be bound to the Official Rules. For the complete Official Rules, visit www.eccu.org/wfx-sweepstakes. Apple^® is not a participant in or sponsor of this promotion.}