As businesses, schools, and churches close their doors to slow the spread of COVID-19, will charitable giving take a hit? It's possible, but churches can take steps to ensure their organizations, members, and communities will continue to be served well.
Coronavirus is reshaping how we do church.
Believers are meeting digitally:
Churchome, a Christian megachurch:
- Closed all Seattle locations
- Saw app sign-ups increase by 60% in one week
- Virtual Sunday service attendance increased by 23%
Lakewood Church, a megachurch in Houston, pastored by Joel Osteen:
- Averages 52,000 attendees per week
- Services will broadcast exclusively online on, including: (1) Free Streaming: Facebook Live & YoutTube, including; (2) Paid Services: Roku & AppleTV; and (3) More Traditional Methods: The Osteen and Lakewood Church websites & SiriusXM channel 128.
Harvest Christian Fellowship, a church in Southern California, pastored by Greg Laurie:
- Saw 4X increase in online attendees reaching over 230,000 people
- Had 1,400 people commit online to follow Jesus
Continue Giving Through Digital
- Most Americans believe charitable giving has a positive impact.
- In 2018, more than 3 in 5 Americans gave to charity—38% of funds went to religious organizations. More than 1 in 3 Americans volunteered—36% of those worked with churches or religious groups.
- Typically, bad news inspires more giving—41% of donors give in response to natural disasters. Religious groups have historically received the largest share of donations—many rely on in-person, cash donations. During the Great Depression, Christians donated an average of 3.3% of their income.
Before COVID-19,
- 79% of churches offered online giving.
- 46% offered a mobile app or text-to-give.
- 60% of people are willing to give to their church digitally
- Through digital options, churches can:
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- Banish giving slumps—providing a way to give without being physically present in church
- Make giving more convenient—people can give at any time, using bank transfer or cards
- Stay connected—and keep growing—while people stay home
Tithe.ly:
The global leader in digital giving, church engagement, and church management software for churches of every size – Tithe.ly helps churches to …
- … increase their giving by 167%
- … set up digital giving for your church in just 5 minutes
- … and with no setup fees and no contract