WHAT
IS YOUR PERSPECTIVE?
Why do you give?
Why do folks in your church give?
Do
you know? I encourage you to spend the next week or so considering these two
questions. Focus, first, on the reasons why you give. Think about it. Then
think about the ways that you talk about generosity and giving in your local
church. Is your thinking all about the organization—the church? After all, people
should trust the church and be willing to give and give generously to the
church, trusting that the church knows what to do.
While that may certainly be true;
for many, they may want to know that what they are giving creates an impact. An
article I recently read talks about the difference between an organization-centric
view and an impact-centric view.
The church may certainly be trustworthy,
but there are more and more people and organizations competing for givers’
attention and money. Have you received an invitation to give from a non-church organization?
They may certainly talk about the organization, but they, more importantly,
tell stories about what has changed because of givers, and lives impacted.
What if we tried to do that? We can
talk about what we’ve done as a church, and we think that’s important (and it
is), but what if we talked about lives that were changed because of what
we’ve done or contributed?
Let’s try stopping our focus on the
church, but and instead focus on God and the lives that are changed and
impacted because of the church through God. If you find yourself
struggling to come up with these stories:
- 1.
It
may be because you don’t think that way; or
- 2. There
aren’t any lives impacted by the church.
If it’s the first one, that can
change. If it’s the second one, I’m worried that the church isn’t acting as God’s
hands and feet in the world.
What is your perspective?
Please
feel free to contact me at (315) 427-3668 or susanranous@unyumc.org if you’d like help identifying
and telling stories.
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