Stewardship is not an annual financial campaign, but a way of life for disciples and for the church. The focus is on nurturing Christian disciples, rather than balancing the budget. When a church replaces its goal of “increasing the budget” with helping people make a faithful response, miracles will happen! This page includes suggested resources and websites to help local churches in developing a culture of generosity and telling the stories that spur a desire to support ministries that make a difference.
WPAUMC Generosity Resource: While annual campaigns and fundraisers can help meet immediate financial needs, Rev. Tom Parkinson, pastor of Dutilh UMC, says: “To develop long-term financial sustainability, I believe that every church needs to be intentional about cultivating generosity among its members.” Parkinson has done stewardship and finance presentations for provisional clergy, and serves on the WPA Conference Board of Pensions, as well as the Wespath Board. He is creating a 5-part video series Generosity in the Local Church, with a video posted weekly beginning Oct. 19, 2020.
The Generous Church Leadership Course: Leading Congregations to Grow in Generosity, is an online course from Discipleship Ministries designed to help clergy develop an understanding and confidence for leading congregations toward growth in generosity. Participants explore their leadership role in local church finances and learn to connect and articulate generosity as a key component of a growing, authentic disciple of Jesus Christ. The 6-session series includes the topics: 1) Theology of Money; 2) Pastor as Generosity Leader; 3) A Disciple’s Relationship to Money; 4) Nurturing Generous Leaders; 5) Generosity the United Methodist Way; and 6) Moving to a Congregational Culture of Generosity. For more information, go to .
UMC Giving offers the Selah Generosity Pastor and Leader’s Kit. The kit provides resources to nurture the spirit of generosity and the impact United Methodists are making in the lives of individuals around the world. The resources are designed to approach the subject of giving and generosity with congregations through “an emotional and personal touch.
Stewardship in Crisis, a podcast from Discipleship Ministries, is part of the Worship Matters series and provides insights into online giving, funding ministry, and other wisdom on church and finances.
The Lewis Center for Church Leadership's stewardship resources include articles about stewardship, church finances and personal finances.
The United Methodist Foundation of Western PA offers free stewardship kits with everything you need to implement Defying Gravity, a small group study and stewardship campaign created by Rev. Tom Berlin. These kits are available upon request by emailing info@umfoundation.org.
The Foundation provides fund management and ongoing stewardship programing through its Laity Leadership Academy and Pastors’ Leadership Academy for Stewardship Formation. In addition, the Foundation offers webinars regularly. Get details on all the Foundation's services at umfoundation.org
Giving 365, offered by Horizons Stewardship, is a free online, on demand resource library to help church leaders make disciples and fund ministry. Current resources are designed to help congregations address stewardship issues during the Covid-19 pandemic. The free resources include videos, blogs, e-books, webinars and more.
The Pastor’s Workshop is an online site that offers various resources, including stewardship- oriented worship resources. There are both free and paid subscriptions.
A Sanctified Art website includes “creative worship and practical resources for a season of stewardship.” This is a site where materials must be purchased.