Master’s Group Session #10 May 14, 2018 As usual, you should have this slide showing on the screen as group members arrive. Use the arrival time as greeting and catch-up time with group members.

Agenda 8:45 Arrival, breakfast and fellowship 9:00 Koinonia Connection May 14, 2018 Agenda 8:45 Arrival, breakfast and fellowship 9:00 Koinonia Connection 10:00 Break 10:15 Developing a Church full of Generous People 11:30 Working lunch… 12:30 GPS 2:15 Wrap up / Debrief the day / Admin stuff 2:30 Adjournment You can quickly talk through the day’s agenda with the group. The focus of the content for the day will be a discussion of ‘Becoming Conflict Competent’. One of the realities of ministry (and life for that matter) is that there will be conflict. Learning how to deal with conflict in a healthy, productive way is a key to long term success in ministry. Today we’ll work on getting some practical handles on this essential topic.

Koinonia Connection X X Information + Feelings Information only May 14, 2018 Koinonia Connection X Information + Feelings Information only X PAST Here is something about my past that would help you know me better DEFINING A difficult life experience which helped me MOMENT grow as a person was.. VALUES Here’s what I stand for… Consider using this question for group interaction: “What do you consider the key factors in your life experience that have formed your personal perspective on Stewardship and Generosity?”

May 14, 2018 Hand of the Lord Ask two or three people to share recent stories about how people in their congregations have shown generosity toward others.

What is your current practice related to… May 14, 2018 What is your current practice related to… 1. Teaching about giving? 2. Developing and communicating about the church’s budget and finances? How would you say the average person in the church views church finances? Have each person around the table describe their church’s normal process regarding questions 1 and 2. Then have a group discussion about the ‘average person’s’ view of church finances.

Understanding Stewardship May 14, 2018 Understanding Stewardship Read Matthew 25:14-30 What do you learn from this parable about the role of a steward? “A steward is responsible for wisely managing the belongings of another in order to maximize the purposes of the owner.” Stewardship is: a role a relationship a responsibility Introduce the fact that for the next part of our day together we are going to compare Stewardship and Generosity with a focus on growing the value of generosity more deeply in our churches.

Understanding Generosity May 14, 2018 Understanding Generosity Read 2 Corinthians 8:1-7 What do you learn from this passage about generosity? What are some examples of God’s generosity? In what ways do you think God wants His generous character to be reflected in His children’s lives? Generosity is: a trait a characteristic a behavior Ask one group member to look up and read this passage (2 Corinthians 8:1-7). Then ask group members to comment on what the passage teaches about generosity. Have group members offer their own definitions of generosity and then contribute to a list of characteristics of generosity.

Most church leaders focus on the responsibility of Stewardship… May 14, 2018 Most church leaders focus on the responsibility of Stewardship… and relegate the Godly trait of Generosity to a distant second place. The reality should be that wise Stewardship makes the joy of Godly Generosity possible. The goal should be a church full of happily generous people.

Definition of generosity CHARACTERISTICS OF GENEROSITY May 14, 2018 Definition of generosity CHARACTERISTICS OF GENEROSITY Definition of Generosity - the quality of being kind, understanding. Generosity is a quality that's a lot like unselfishness. Someone showing generosity is happy to give time, money, food, or kindness to people in need.  Characteristics of Generosity - Gives the first and the best to God; systematic and regular; proportional to income; sacrificial, thoughtful, voluntary, worshipful, faithful.

Thoughts about establishing a culture of Generosity May 14, 2018 Thoughts about establishing a culture of Generosity Generosity begins with leaders Leaders communicate abundance Disciple-making includes generosity Correct language communicates generosity Tell the stories of Generosity Create intentional giving experiences

Generosity Language adjustments Ministry Plan (not budget) Contributions (not income) Costs (not expenses) Solutions, Opportunities (not church needs) Outcomes, Results (not deficits)

The Bottom Line… God’s children are called to WISE STEWARDSHIP SO THAT God’s children can become GENEROUS LIKE THEIR FATHER

May 14, 2018 What one or two adjustments do you think would be helpful in your context to shift perspective toward GENEROSITY ?

DEFINING STEWARDSHIP May 14, 2018 Now let’s consider Stewardship. Ask group members to suggest some definitions for stewardship. Then have them list some characteristics of stewardship. Have a group member look up and read Matthew 25:14-30. Then ask group members to comment about what this passage says about Stewardship.

DEFINITION OF STEWARDSHIP May 14, 2018 DEFINITION OF STEWARDSHIP "Utilizing and managing all resources God provides for the glory of God and the betterment of His creation."

CHARACTERISTICS OF STEWARDSHIP May 14, 2018 CHARACTERISTICS OF STEWARDSHIP Spirit of Abundance Action oriented Committed to congregation Focused on the Big Picture Committed to growth Results oriented Team Player … Read these characteristics and the quote that follows (slide #17). Take a few minutes to have the group compare these characteristics to the characteristics of Generosity listed on Slide #7 (A trait, A value, A lifestyle).

QUOTE FROM MARTIN MARTY May 14, 2018 QUOTE FROM MARTIN MARTY “Generosity, unlike stewardship, has no limits. It’s not that you’ve got to be generous, but you get to be. It’s not haranguing or threatening. It’s liberation!”

3 EXAMPLES OF BIBLICAL GENEROSITY May 14, 2018 3 EXAMPLES OF BIBLICAL GENEROSITY In Exodus 36:1-7, we see God’s people bringing more than enough to meet the need — to the point that Moses must tell them to stop! In 2 Corinthians 8:9, we see the Corinthian church giving faithfully to help a community of people whom they have never met! In Luke 21:1-4, Jesus compares the widow’s mite to the rich man’s gifts — demonstrating that the gifts of all are needed and used in God’s economy. Read this list of Biblical examples of biblical generosity. Then ask the group members to share any recent examples of God’s generosity from their own experience. Additional scripture references include: Luke 10:25-37, Genesis 45, Luke 7:1-10, Matthew 14:14-21, Luke 19, Luke 21:1-4, Philippians 4:15-16

GROWING GENEROSITY INTO A CHURCH’S CULTURE May 14, 2018 GROWING GENEROSITY INTO A CHURCH’S CULTURE (series of next 6 slides) This slide begins a series of 6 slides that focus on very practical implementation ideas related to building a more robust culture of generosity in a church. So far, we have been building a case for the value of Generosity but now we are thinking about ways to get started down that path. Ask the group members to walk through these suggestions with you so they can get a feel for a possible approach. At the end, they will be asked to identify a few steps they might be willing to take with their church. Generosity begins with leaders: not much will happen by way of change if the leaders are not on board with the idea of building generosity as a value. In what ways could you start this conversation with your leaders? Leaders communicate abundance: most church lay leaders tend to approach church finances from a ‘scarcity mentality’. What would it take to change the focus to appreciation for how much God is providing? What kinds of things would you have to communicate and how could you do it consistently?

GROWING GENEROSITY INTO A CHURCH’S CULTURE May 14, 2018 GROWING GENEROSITY INTO A CHURCH’S CULTURE Continues… Ask group members what they communicate about stewardship and/or generosity in their church’s disciple-making process. If they want to focus more on generosity, what changes might they make? The kind of language you use when you talk about finances, planning, budgeting, etc. really makes a difference. The following slide makes some language shift suggestions.

May 14, 2018 LANGUAGE Go through the list of suggestions one by one and ask the group to comment on the differences between the normally used terms (budget, pledge, etc.) and the suggested alternatives.

May 14, 2018 TELL THE STORIES… The point here is that you have to consistently look for and tell the stories of generosity starting with God’s amazing generosity to all of us, your congregations’ story of love and generosity toward those in need and personal stories of life change. Ask the group to share two or three recent stories that are good examples of these categories.

CREATE GIVING EXPERIENCES May 14, 2018 CREATE GIVING EXPERIENCES The point of this slide is simply that sharing information will not change behavior. If you want your congregation to begin to shift in the direction of generosity, you have to create opportunities to experience the results and benefits of generosity. One small example is to plan a simple $2.00 per person offering that will meet a specific need (perhaps for an unsuspecting family in your community that doesn’t even attend your church). Tell the congregation in advance, explain the reason and that it will simply be an expression of generosity following in God’s footsteps. Ask everyone to participate and provide the generous gift to the needy family in the name of the God who loves them (without the expectation of anything in return). Then tell your congregation how thrilled you are with their generosity toward this family. This is just one example of how to give people an experience of generosity. Be creative with your church!!

SHARE STEPS TO GROW THE CULTURE OF GENEROSITY IN YOUR CHURCH May 14, 2018 SHARE STEPS TO GROW THE CULTURE OF GENEROSITY IN YOUR CHURCH Give the group 5 or 10 minutes to think about and write down one or two specific steps each could take to grow the culture of generosity in their church. Take time to share the ideas around the table.

Growing Past Stress GPS May 14, 2018 See the “Growing Past Stress Instructions” document for a step by step description of how this process works. GPS