Here is the recipe for success that I use…Prayer + Vision + Inspiration + Information + Work = Success! Cooks follow a recipe to assure the success of the food they are preparing. Every ingredient is important. The same is true when it comes to funding your church.
I write about how churches can be fully funded. This recipe is a key towards being fully funded. Whether it is your annual budget or a capital campaign this is the recipe for success.
Let me break this down for you.
Prayer should be foundational in all that we do, especially when it comes to raising funds. Frankly we do too little praying and too much talking. Let’s talk less and pray more. Prayer is where God inspired visions come from. My mantra has been, work hard and pray harder. The more you pray the better your vision.
Why is vision important? Because dollars follow vision so you need a vision that is…
- Clear – Does what you are proposing make sense? If your vision isn’t clear donors will not support it with their dollars. Make your vision clear!
- Concise – Can members repeat the vision in two to three sentences? Could they tell their neighbor in less than 3 minutes what you are proposing to do? Make your vision concise!
- Compelling – Does your vision connect to the heart of your donors? If a vision isn’t compelling people will not give to support it. Make your vision compelling!
Inspiration connects the heart of your donors to your vision. Your vision can make sense to me but if it doesn’t tug at my heart my response will be minimal. Visions should inspire donors to WANT to give to make what you are casting become a reality. Your task here is to answer the question, “How does this fulfill the mission of our church.” If you don’t inspire donors you will never get their dollars.
Information connects the heads of your donors to your vision. Your vision might be inspiring and compelling but if I don’t think you have thought it through I won’t give to support it. You task here is to answer the question, “Can you pull this off?” You must communicate a plan of action that realistically lays out how the vision can be accomplished. As a friend of mine once said, “People are down on what they are not up on.”
If you don’t connect head and heart you will not raise the funds you need to fulfill your vision! Yet what I have found is that is all of the above are in place and you don’t add the final ingredient, work, you will fail.
A failure to put the necessary work into giving initiatives is one of the biggest mistakes church leaders make. You have to work at being fully funded. In my experience the churches that are fully funded work at it 365 days a year. The amount of work you willingly put into funding your ministry will show up in the weekly offering plate. There are no short cuts to success.
How do you stack up? What areas of the above do you need to work on? Each of the ingredients are important. If you will use this recipe you will find your ability to be fully funded will greatly increase.
Mark Brooks – The Stewardship Coach