If you are going to make budget at the end of this year you need to know how to sow seeds for a future harvest! Let me give you a personal illustration of how important it is to sow seeds ahead of time.
My wife has an herb garden from which she can simply walk out our back door clip the herbs she wants and throw them into whatever she is cooking. Suppose however that she never bothered to plant the seeds ahead of time and then one day walked out the back door to get a specific herb only to find out there was nothing but weeds in the garden. Would you think she would be justified in complaining? We know that to reap a harvest you first have to sow a seed.
I find that many pastors and Christian leaders come to their stewardship gardens wondering where the harvest is when they have never planted any seeds to begin with. Where there is not an intentional planning and seeding there will never be a harvest. You have to plant now to reap later. Here are five seeds to sow for your future harvest.
First, embrace your God given role in stewardship. You would think it absurd if my wife never planted any seeds and yet expected a harvest. You can be sure that planting seeds in a garden is not my thing. If it is going to get done then she is going to do it. Someone at our house has to have a vision for that task and own that task. For us that is my wife.
The first principle to a stewardship harvest is to assume your role as the gardener that sows the seeds. Settle in your mind that you will need to regularly spend time at this task and then you will find a harvest waiting for you. Sow today to reap tomorrow. Forget to sow today and there will be a barren field in your future.
Next preach regularly on stewardship. George Barna in his book How to Increase Giving in Your Church said, “Churches in which pastors preach a series of messages about giving are nearly two-and-a-half times more likely to experience an increase in giving than when preachers speak about giving, one sermon at a time, on two or more nonconsecutive occasions during the year.” Find encouraging ways to communicate God’s Word about a key aspect of our lives and you will not have people push away but rather thank you for helping them. It is not that we preach on money that makes people leery it is how it has been done in the past. Jesus talked more about money and possessions than any other subject. Shouldn’t we take a page out of his manual and do likewise?
Work to get your people out of debt. One reason your people are not giving to your cause is that they are often up to their eyeballs in debt. The reality is that they have no expendable resources to give. The hearts are often with you but their pocket books are empty. They struggle to simply make it from one pay check to the other. Until you can get them out of debt and on their feet you will never see them get involved supporting your ministry like they could. It might not benefit you in the near term but you have to start somewhere so that down the road there will be a harvest.
We often recommend groups like Crown Ministry to be a long term ministry of churches. You can pick any of the many Christian groups out there committed to helping Christian get out of debt. Again, this might not result in immediate dollars to your ministry but it certainly is sowing seeds for the future.
Teach your people about estate planning. It has been said that in the next decade the greatest transfer of wealth will occur. Are you sowing the seeds now to benefit from this transfer of wealth? Don’t make the mistake of thinking that you do not have anyone of worth in your congregation that could leave a legacy to your ministry. If you have a couple that bought their house fifty years ago for $10K that house today might very well be worth over $100K. There are many creative ways in which people can leave a legacy to your ministry. I find that most Christian leaders never even broach this subject with their constituents. You can be sure that other ministries are not so shy about asking for a gift from your members. Often we have not because we ask not. Again, you might not see this money for some time to come but it is sowing a seed that will bring a harvest to you down the road.
Above all else, have a vision that makes people want to donate. George Barna said, “the churches most effective at fund-raising are those that are most consistent and compelling in communicating the needs the church wishes to address.” People give to something of worth. If you are looking for big dollars you need a big vision. Work on communicating a vision that is clear, concise and most of all compelling and you will find people stepping up to support that dream. Vision is the driver that opens up my heart which controls my pocket book. What vision has God given you? Have you made it clear, concise and compelling? If not you will not see the harvest you had hoped for.
Around my house we enjoy the benefits of my wife’s planning of a garden. Our neighbors often marvel at what she has done. They have the same yards, the same opportunity but do not have the foresight to plan ahead and sow seed. We benefit from her planning, they do without! Many Christian leaders hear about a friend who raised significant funds and wonder why they cannot do the same thing. Sometimes it’s a matter of sowing seed to reap a harvest in the future. Don’t get caught missing a sowing season so that you too can reap a harvest!
Mark Brooks – The Stewardship Coach
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