Due to the current COVID wave, this event has been postponed until June 18, 2022. SAVE THE DATE: The Southeastern and Northeastern Pennsylvania synods are sponsoring a hybrid Generosity event on Saturday, January 22, 2022, at Trinity Lutheran Church in Lansdale. Keynote speakers for “Stewardship and Vitality in the NOW Normal” are Louise Johnson and...
Category: Stewardship
October 15, 2021
Stewardship and Vitality in the NOW Normal
Due to the current COVID wave, this event has been postponed until June 18, 2022. SAVE THE DATE: The Southeastern and Northeastern Pennsylvania synods are sponsoring a hybrid Generosity event on Saturday, January 22, 2022, at Trinity Lutheran Church in Lansdale. Keynote speakers for “Stewardship and Vitality in the NOW Normal” are Louise Johnson and...
February 26, 2021
Thanks for your generosity!
Individual giving to causes including the COVID-19 fund, donations toward medical expenses for former Bishop Munga in Tanzania, and our annual All Saints appeal tripled in 2020 — in a pandemic year. Thank you so much for your support. We thank God for you always.
November 13, 2020
2020 Annual Report Cover Available
The new 2020 annual report covers are now available. Both can be found in the Stewardship resources here: https://www.elca.org/Resources/Stewardship#Leadership Direct links are here: Pages version: https://download.elca.org/ELCA%20Resource%20Repository/2020_Annu al_Report_cover.pdf Spreads version: https://download.elca.org/ELCA%20Resource%20Repository/2020_Annu al_Report_cover_spread.pdf
July 13, 2020
Will Your Finances Flourish or Diminish?
Tip of the Month July, 2020 : Will Your Finances Flourish or Diminish? By 2026 checks will no longer be processed by banks! So says, one of the ELCA preferred vendors who oversees Simply Giving, in a recent webinar sponsored by the ELCA Stewardship Desk. In the past 15 years the use of checks has...
May 15, 2020
What’s Next: How will COVID-19 Shape the Church’s Future?
What’s on the horizon for congregations and parishes as we transition from the crisis of the moment to the long-term implications of the coronavirus pandemic? The pandemic has fast-forwarded us into our future at warp speed. Normal has changed forever. With the advent of the digital church, not all of our congregation is physically present....
April 16, 2020
7 Ways to Keep Donations Flowing During the Covid-19 Crisis
Stewardship expert Rob Blezard, one of our workshop leaders at our Stewardship Extravaganza in January, outlines steps your church can take to address the financial challenges created by the COVID-19 crisis. Key strategies include staying in communication with donors, including an offering time in online worship, and considering the CARES relief program. Your congregation may have...
January 21, 2020
Extravaganza of Generosity
“You can’t love Jesus and not give,” pastor and author Clif Christopher said in his keynote at the 2020 Extravagant Generosity program Jan. 10. “It’s just impossible.” Yet some churches lose the battle with money because “there are more people who think money can save them than think Jesus can save them,” said Christopher, author...
January 21, 2020
Cultivate a Heart of Love
Dear friends, If you missed our Stewardship Extravaganza in January, you missed a great event with excellent keynote addresses, an outstanding sermon and wonderful workshops. But, here is a chance to benefit from that experience. One of the workshop leaders, Rob Blezard, has a monthly “Toolkit” that provides helpful bulletin inserts, thoughtful newsletter articles and...
December 3, 2019
Giving Tuesday… And Wednesday…
Yes, after Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday, society has finally gotten to Giving Tuesday. And, if your mailboxes, email boxes and social media sites are like mine, they have already been inundated with multiple requests from every organization you ever donated to (including church related sites) and many more to whom some...
November 11, 2019
All Saints Appeal
More of our SEPA saints share how they are blessed by ministries of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Synod. Give now at https://ministrylink.org/give.
October 15, 2019
Inspire Extravagant Generosity
Save January 10-11 for a weekend of informative and useful presentations designed to inspire Extravagant Generosity in your church! This event is hosted at Trinity Lutheran Church, 1000 W. Main St., Lansdale, PA 19446. This stewardship extravaganza features keynote speakers J. Clif Christopher (author of: It’s Not Your Father’s Offering Plate, Whose Offering Plate...
September 4, 2019
Crafting a Strategic Stewardship Campaign
Stewardship expert Catherine Malotky shares the success story of a church that approached groups of members who had different giving histories with different invitations to give and enjoyed a 30 percent increase in annual giving. I don’t know if this would work for you, but sometimes different approaches that borrow ideas from successful fundraisers can...
June 4, 2019
Save the Date for ‘Extravagant Generosity’
Save the dates — January 10-11, 2020 — for a can’t miss learning event. “Extravagant Generosity: A Stewardship Extravaganza” features keynotes by Clif Christopher, author of It’s Not Your Father’s Offering Plate, Whose Offering Plate Is It? and The Church Money Manual, and Aimee Laramore, author of Pathways to Generosity: Year-round Giving and Gratitude. Workshop leaders include: Scott Schantzenbach, Rob...
April 8, 2019
How to Be an Effective Small Church
Some years ago, David Ray traveled across the United States, west to east and north to south, and back north, visiting twenty-one smaller faith communities that were noted for the quality and faithfulness of their life together. He asked probing questions and listened carefully, looking for the common denominators, the faithful and exceptional qualities that...
February 19, 2019
New Online Giving Option for Congregations
CHICAGO (Feb. 19, 2019) – The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) has formed a preferred vendor agreement with Vanco, an eGiving software developer and payment processor serving more than 20,000 churches across the country. The agreement offers Vanco’s GivePlus suite of eGiving solutions to ELCA congregations. The ELCA churchwide organization has sought new working...
February 7, 2019
Hospitality: The Warm Heart of Generosity
ELCA staff member Steve Oelschlager writes in the most recent issue of Stewardnet, “How might our life together regularly teach and encourage people to want to be part of something bigger than themselves, sacrificing self for the benefit of others?” I think the answer has everything to do with creating remarkable cultures in which hospitality...
January 3, 2019
Generosity: Yours for the Asking
Clif Christopher (who will be our Keynote Speaker at the January 10-11, 2020 Stewardship Extravaganza) shares the following story: Recently I talked with a pastor about how to fund a $6,000 need beyond the resources of the church budget. I felt he had an excellent case for the funds. The ministry sounded important. I asked,...
