Online Donations

We’re fast approaching the biggest and busiest digital giving days of the year. That’s why we wanted to take a moment to review a very important (though often avoided) topic—taxes.

The subject of church offerings is a particularly sensitive one. A church cannot operate at no cost, and the costs of the church are compensated by the charitable donations of the congregation.

The Bless Your Pastor movement (#BlessYourPastor)  provides free materials to Christians and churches in order to honor pastors and clergy members. The goal is to help people share God’s love with their pastor and church staff, who often face financial struggles. 1 Thessalonians 5:12 calls Christians to show their deep appreciation to those who minister to them. Galatians 6:6 says people are to share all good things with the one who teaches them.

It's no surprise that churches are affected by lulls in giving, spurring a need for churches to find ways to encourage recurring giving. Roughly 86% don’t meet their annual budget goals. When you boil it down, that means 43 out of 50 churches aren’t raising enough funds during the year to support their ministries.

When it comes to church management software (ChMS), church leaders have a wide variety of options available. If you're in the market for a new ChMS tool, one of the tools you've likely heard of is FellowshipOne. In this review, I'd like to provide you with a brief history of the company along with an overview of its features.

There’s no shortage of data in the world today—more data was created in the last two years than in the previous 5,000. In fact, 90% of the data we currently use was created in the last two years! For churches, the enormous amount of giving data is enough to make your head spin, but it’s still necessary to collect, organize, and apply it. Healthy churches know that with the right giving information at their fingertips, they’re better equipped to cultivate generosity and grow their vision.

There’s a pretty good chance your ministry accepts digital gifts in some way, shape, or form. A donation page on your website, a mobile app, text giving, and giving kiosks all benefit the overall mission of the church. But, what worked for your church a few years ago may not be the best solution for you today. Online giving providers vary greatly and it just might be time to switch.

Implementing a strategic end of year giving plan can accelerate the growth and forward movement of your church or ministry. Guiding your congregation to understand the heart of giving not only helps your ministry, but it’s an essential part of their personal spiritual journey.