Church Generosity Mistakes: 52 Missed Opportunities

You’d love for the people in your church to be more generous—for all sorts of reasons. You’ve done everything you know how to do, but you just don’t feel like the needle’s moving as far as it could. Or should.

I hear that a lot. After doing generosity audits and initiatives for more than 100 churches over the past 18 years, I’ve uncovered some reasons why that happens. To be honest, churches often get in their own way–making easy-to-fix mistakes that have a dramatic effect on their generosity culture.

Are you making this generosity mistake?

Today, I’m writing about the fourth of those common mistakes, and I want to start with a very serious question. Be honest as you answer:

In your weekly worship planning meeting, how much time do you spend discussing/planning how you’re going to introduce the offering moment that week?

I ask that question often of my clients, and I’ve never had anyone respond with time that exceeds five minutes. The most common answer? “We don’t spend time planning the offering moment in our worship planning meetings.” Ouch.

This is one of the biggest—and most easily remedied—mistakes you’re making. Seriously, this is very low hanging fruit. (Actually, since the Masters just concluded and I love golf: This is a 6-inch putt folks!) Fix this, and you’ll see an impact on the culture of giving in your church.

You have something other nonprofits don’t.

You have an opportunity every other nonprofit organization would love to have: You get to stand in front of your people every single weekend and:

• Recast / reinforce vision.
• Share impact.
• Tell stories.
• Say thank you.
• Teach Biblical motivations for giving.

Seriously: Nonprofits would die to have that chance—to engage their supporters in person that often. And what do we do with that opportunity? Most squander it.

Here’s how to fix that mistake:

Remember how I said this is an easily remedied mistake? I meant that. Here’s how:

1. Download your free copy of The Offering Moment: 90 Seconds to Engage Your Givers.
2. Read the eBook with your worship planning team.
3. Schedule a free coaching call with me. I’d be honored to suggest some practical next steps—about your offering moment or any other generosity challenges you’re facing.

Catch up on the Generosity Mistakes series

• Ineffective Sharing of Financial Information
• Not Having an Annual Plan
• Avoiding the Topic