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Stewardship materials prove worth
The Center for Faith and Giving produces materials that "really work" in ministry settings. For example, congregations using the annual campaign materials have experienced very positive results. Consider the response of Central Christian Church Union Town, PA, and New Horizons Christian Church in Akron, OH, when recently asked to review the resources:
We found the materials easy to use, theologically sound and complete with helpful tools for everything from worship planning to congregational mailings. Everything we needed was helpfully included in the kit. Additionally, the plan was flexible to adapt to our particular setting. It is easily adjusted to fit either a longer or shorter campaign schedule; or a spring or summer emphasis. Our gain in commitments over the previous year was more than 14%. We look forward to using the Center's materials again this fall. - Darwin Collins
God has done a great thing through our church's emphasis ... we can report that the results were phenomenal. 58 families/individuals have pledged $143,952 to God's ministries through our church. This compares with 49 families/individuals pledging $97,136 for the previous year. By any analysis, that is an incredible result. A number of folks either made first time commitments at New Horizons or increased their pledges from past years." - Jim Bane
When asked about the reason for the positive experiences congregations are having with the materials the Center produces, Director Bruce A. Barkhauer said: "I served as a parish pastor for over 25 years; we are simply creating the kind of materials I always wanted to have and could never seem to find."
The same could be said of the new publication entitled Community of Prayer that will be available this fall from Chalice Press. Barkhauer continues, "Again, this was the sort of resource that we knew could undergird a financial campaign with the biblical and theological perspective that would move the focus away from funding a budget to resourcing ministry and mission. Church members want to better understand their relationship with what they have and how to use it for good in the world. Our intent is to assist people in coming to the moment of financial commitment spiritually prepared."
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