Stewardship & Generosity

Stewardship & Generosity gathers Christian Standard articles focused on honoring God with the resources he has entrusted to us—time, money, abilities, and influence. Here you’ll find biblical teaching and practical wisdom on giving, generosity, contentment, budgeting, debt, church finances, fundraising, and supporting ministry and missions. These articles encourage faithful management, joyful generosity, and a gospel-shaped view of possessions that serves others and advances God’s work.

March 10, 2011

Christian Standard

Southeast Christian Church “˜Paid in Full”

By Jennifer Taylor This past weekend Bob Russell, previous senior minister at Southeast Christian Church (Louisville, KY), shared the pulpit with Dave Stone, the current senior minister. Stone invited Russell to preach with him so he could surprise and honor him midservice by sharing a letter from the bank. “Because of God”s provision and your prudent leadership,” Stone said, “and because of the overwhelming generosity of these good people at all three campuses, every inch of land and buildings on over 100 acres at the Blankenbaker campus has been paid in full.” After burning the note, Stone also shared that

January 26, 2011

Christian Standard

Calculating Our Generosity

By Mark A. Taylor David Campbell and Robert Putnam got it right when they commented on the generosity of Evangelical churches. “Local congregations are often on the front lines of providing charitable services to the poor and needy through food pantries, soup kitchens, and shelters,” they wrote in the December 10 Wall Street Journal. “Many congregations also sponsor missionaries overseas.” A visit to the National Missionary Convention underscores the truth of their conclusion, especially among Christian churches and churches of Christ. This week”s NMC review article mentions that at least 300 missionaries and other ministries brought displays to the convention

January 19, 2011

Christian Standard

Preacher, Crew, to Climb Volcano

Greg Nettle, senior pastor at RiverTree Christian Church (Massillon, OH), is one of nine guys climbing a volcano in the Andes Mountains this month! Nettle and his team leave for Ecuador tomorrow; while there they will climb four mountains including Cotopaxi, the second-highest summit in the country and one of the highest active volcanoes in the world. The last 5,000 feet of the climb will be over the world’s largest equatorial glacier! The nine climbers, all part of RiverTree, are raising $100,000 for ChildReach Ministries and Compassion International. Click here to watch Greg and two teammates discuss the trip and

December 24, 2010

Christian Standard

Church Offers Year-End Offering Opportunity

“Being a part of this church has changed my life! I am in a very difficult financial place right now so finding an extra $20 is hard. I do, however, have these rings to give. Thank you, I have been able to make it through the darkest time because every Sunday you are all here for me.” Inspired by this note, the team at 2|42 Community Church (Howell, MI) created a special year-end offering opportunity””“The Original Christmas Gift.” Just as the wise men gave gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh to Jesus, members were encouraged to bring their gold (in

October 8, 2010

Christian Standard

“˜Give 10 for 5,000″²

Central India Christian Mission has designated October as “Give 10 for 5,000” month. It is asking supporters to give $10 each to provide 5,000 copies of the Hindi Family Pictorial Bible, which CICM first published in 1999 and which has played a vital role in sharing the good news with children and illiterate adults in India. Click here to find more information and to access bulletin inserts, posters, videos, and PowerPoint presentations!

September 27, 2010

Christian Standard

10,000 Pairs of Shoes for Romania

Andy Baker, an alumnus of Milligan College in Tennessee and founder of Remember the Children, a nonprofit organization dedicated to meeting the needs of Romanian families, spoke about shoes in Milligan”s chapel last Thursday. And students, faculty, and friends donated shoes to the cause. “10,000 shoes,” an initiative to collect 10,000 pairs of shoes in 10 months for Romanian children, captured the attention of Milligan students like Rachel Severns. She rallied students across the campus to meet the goal and even collected donations from the public. “Our students are excited about this campaign and combining the heart of the students

September 23, 2010

Christian Standard

Tweeting for Haitian Children

Northwest Haiti Christian Mission has partnered with a variety of organizations to raise money for a Miriam Center, a home and therapy center for Haitian children with cerebral palsy, severe autism, and other challenges. One of the partners””A Home in Haiti“”launched TwitChange last week to raise money for the cause by giving bidders the chance to have more than 150 celebrities follow them or mention them on Twitter or retweet their message. Celebrities participating include Eva Longoria, Shaquille O”Neal, Demi Moore, and many others. Read more about the project on NWHCM”s Web site or click here to visit TwitChange. The

June 27, 2010

Christian Standard

Great and Mighty Things

By Chuck Booher What is the best way to conduct a financial campaign when 14 percent of your county is unemployed and your offerings are barely making budget every week? Any sane person would probably say the best answer is, “You don”t!” You just don”t do a financial campaign in a down economy. Several months back, however, I found myself wrestling through this predicament. Truth was, not having a campaign was NOT an option. I had become senior pastor of Crossroads Christian Church three years prior and inherited several obstacles that had been worked through. The last hurdle to jump

April 28, 2010

Christian Standard

Pondering the Demands on My Abundance

By Mark A. Taylor This March I accompanied a small group of ministers as they saw firsthand the work of Christian Missionary Fellowship in Kenya. When we walked through slums in the capital city, Nairobi, all of us experienced squalor and poverty that none of us will ever forget. But as I write this, after one week home from the visit, I”m still deciding what to do with what I discovered there. Accompanied by CMF-employed social workers, Doug Priest and I visited one of the slum homes. Jane, a single mother, lives there with her mother and her two children.

March 28, 2010

Christian Standard

The Blessings of Scarcity

By Stephen Bond I meet for lunch every month with four other senior pastors who serve in my community. I”m surprised by the openness of each pastor in sharing the unique hurdles and challenges his church faces. But one challenge we”ve all wrestled with in the past two years is finances. The economic downturn has affected our churches in different degrees””but we”ve all felt the crunch. In our state, Nevada, unemployment hovers near 13 percent. When people don”t have jobs, it often means they don”t have money to support their local church. This inevitably affects the financial resources churches have

January 30, 2010

Christian Standard

Guaranteed Returns

By Jeff Faull Can I share the talk I had with myself recently? I said, “Self, what few assets you possess are not really yours; they are God”s. And in these tough economic times you need to protect and use God”s money wisely. “But where is a safe place for God”s money? Is it the bank? Is it the stock market? Are CDs the way to go? Can it bolster my sagging 401k? Should I buy precious metals? Should I hide it under the proverbial mattress or bury it in the backyard?” Perhaps you have had similar conversations with yourself

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