Churches and faith-based institutes are struggling. There is a conflict between secular society and those seeking comfort in spirituality. Even as people turn back towards religion, tithing in churches still suffers, and churches are having to consolidate—and even close down. It’s imperative to increase donations and giving-activities, and it can be done with the right efforts and approaches. Learn several ways that you can improve donations and giving in your faith-based institution, including using custom church tithing envelopes.
Live Your Teachings
The Bible wants people to give regularly—and with cheer and a willingness to sacrifice. This needs to be inherent in the church’s teachings while the congregation needs to see the church living by its own philosophy. In other words—practice what you preach! Be visible in the community. Be service oriented. Provide for the needy and for other charitable institutions, and do it because it’s the right thing to do, not just because it allows you to spread the word.
Show a Clear Purpose
Don’t be afraid to include messages in your weekly sermon and/or your church bulletin or newsletter that offer transparency and a clear picture of how the tithings are spent. People are far more likely to give if they understand how the money is being used. They want to know how the bills are being paid, and what kinds of charitable activities it will support. The clearer, more concise and transparent you are, the more you’ll see donations rise.
This also serves a second purpose: it encourages and helps you as a faith-based organization to live and act with integrity in all things. It keeps you honest as you constantly examine and re-evaluate how you handle the receipt and distribution of funds from every source. It encourages accountability for approval of expenditures and how the books are kept. If there’s anything a faith-based organization has to have, it is integrity.
Financial Education
It never hurts to offer practical financial education. Even nonprofit, faith-based institutions exist to help the community and educate, and financial education is something that’s sorely lacking in our society. Bring in local finance experts to teach people how to spend, budget and save money. You will be helping to improve the lives of your congregation overall when you do this, and naturally, you can also include education on the benefits and best practices for giving and charitable donations. As people are able to better manage their money, they will find that they have more money to give, and they’ll be more willing to give when they understand benefits like tax write-offs that come with donations to nonprofit charities.
Start Early
We all know how important it is to teach children to share. The earlier we teach these values, the more they will carry over into adult life. You’ll find that as children value giving, the next generation will donate and tithe all the more. It may not turn around immediate results, but it’s vital for every organization to be forward-thinking and looking ahead. Donations don’t start and stop with the current generation and current congregation. They have to build into the next generation as well, and educating students and children about the values of giving are the best way to ensure this happens.
Encourage Increases
People can be frightened by asking to donate percentages of their income. Instead of asking for such a set percentage, ask for small amounts of money, and encourage your congregation to increase their donations on an incremental basis. Let them know that even an increase of fifty cents or a dollar a week helps as it combines with all of the other increases across the board to better foster the financial solvency and viability of the church. This goes back to transparency as well—show how each increase can improve the services you provide to the community. Once again, education is key.
Turning Case Studies into Narratives
As part of the picture you paint regarding the help and aid that donations provide, you can tell concrete stories about the lives that have been changed for the better, thanks to the services the church provides. Draw a direct line to the funding gained from giving and tithing, to the help and aid that affects real, positive change in the world. Show people that not only is the church doing good works in the community, but that they are, as well, by helping to fund those good works.
Day of Giving
There’s a reason why many organizations have an annual “Day of Giving.” This method of funding works! It allows you to build up tithing as an event with excitement and purpose. On this day, people will tend to open their wallets a bit more and donate more than they do on a regular basis. It allows you to challenge your congregation to help out the church and build financial solvency for the coming months or years, and really makes an important emotional impact.
Church Tithing Envelopes
Do you encourage tithing just from passing around a basket every week? Why not encourage the process further through the use of custom church tithing envelopes? These envelopes can be printed to your exact specifications, including your organization’s logo and an important message from scripture that illustrates the importance of giving and sacrifice. You can make these envelopes available to your entire congregation, and as they look at them, they will be encouraged to give.
It may seem when it comes to transparency, this is an unnecessary expenditure, but the cost for custom envelopes isn’t high. It is, in the end, a very low cost for a big return on your investment. When the time comes to increase your church’s funding through donations and giving, custom printed envelopes can be the best way to go. Check out our offering for custom tithing envelopes, and get in touch with Letter Jacket for more information today.
