Money and the Mission of the Church Pastor Mark Aune 2014

Role of the pastor  Healthy church stewardship practices begin with the pastor  Know and be able to articulate your personal stewardship journey  Money Autobiography is a good place to start  Role model and share your giving practices with the congregation

Create healthy financial practices  How is money handled on Sunday morning?  Who makes the deposit?  What safeguard are in place for handling money and approving expenditures and signing checks?  Understand congregation giving patterns, what is the financial rhythm of congregation

Create healthy financial practices  Emphasize the importance and set expectation of giving in new member class  Promote a healthy relationship with money by offering a financial class such as Financial Peace University  Include stewardship as a line item on the budget

Tips for daily ministry  Speak about God’s abundance  Start small and celebrate success and build on them  People want to be generous, all you have to do is ask  Thank people for responding  Know what people give and recruit generous givers to leadership positions

Tips for daily ministry  The best time to talk about money is when you are NOT asking for money. Preach a stewardship sermon whenever the texts warrants  Don’t publish weekly offering amount in bulletin  Beware of parishioners who don’t want the pastor involved in finances

Tips for daily ministry  The relationships you build and nurture as a parish pastor will determine your effectiveness as a stewardship leader  Keep reading and learning  Ask, Thank Tell by Chick Lane  Spirituality of Fund-Raising by Henri Nouwen  Giving Magazine from Ecumenical Stewardship Center

Pastor Aune’s Stewardship Top 10  God is the owner  God invites us to put God to the test  When you put God first, everything else falls into place  People like and respect when pastor speaks openly and honestly about money  Money is a deeply spiritual matter and linked to mission

Pastor Aune’s Stewardship Top 10  Pastoral care is intimately connected to stewardship  Be aware of your own stewardship story and don’t be afraid to share it from the pulpit  People want to know what to give as it relates to what you give  The pastor is the key stewardship leader  God will provide for the mission of God’s church

How to talk about money  Create a culture of honesty  Understand your role as a pastor in the finances of the church  Establish a Finance Committee  Congregation should tithe at a minimum  Stewardship Committee should begin its work in January and have campaign in place by May. PLAN PLAN PLAN

The Stewardship Formula Augustana Lutheran Church 2014

The Formula Constant + Variable + Recurring = Stewardship Success

Constant T hings we do every year around our fall emphasis  Leadership  Biblically Based Theme  Planning  Education & Communication  Involve Stewardship Committee, Church Staff and Church Members Early and Often

Variables Creative or tactical ideas that you try specific to current stewardship emphasis  QR Code for completing your Giving Plan with your smartphone  QR Code published in the bulletin to make your weekly offering  Interactive Time & Talent Form online  21 days of activities reinforcing weekly themes

Recurring Things that you do throughout the year  Preach a Stewardship sermon whenever the text fits  Day to day pastoral care  Talk about stewardship all the time, interview members, ask people to take pictures, get lots of people involved throughout the year  Educate about Local Mission Partners  Share your stewardship message and set expectations in new member classes  Offer a finance/budget class several times a year [We offer Financial Peace University]