As part of our series on 25 fundraising ideas for churches, we’re sharing ways to grow your giving program. Today’s idea is to fundraise for your mission.
When you think about those words, undoubtedly, your church’s best outreach and mission programs come to mind. Those are natural programs to highlight as you invite donors to support your church and as you share stories of the impact giving has on your ministries. Donors love to know how many children are served in your weekly ministries, how many households get food through your food pantry program, or how your partner church in Honduras or Haiti is growing, thanks to the support of your mission teams.
But today, we’re going to invite you to think about fundraising for your mission in a way that makes your day-to-day operations tangible gifts. If you didn’t have your current facilities, your computer system, your music or sound system, your staff, or your parsonage, how would your ministry be impacted?
Be sure your givers don’t feel like their gifts are going to an operational “black hole” – be transparent and tangible in how donors fuel everything your church does. I always encourage organizations to use their annual budget process as a way to outline donor “dollar handles” – how many donors at what level does it take to keep the lights on? Is the HVAC running? If you missed our idea on impact budgets earlier in this series with ways to use your budget as a fundraising tool, you can read that here.
As you share messages of donor impact throughout the year – and especially in your annual stewardship campaigns – be sure you include those operational costs that donors are helping meet through their tithes and offerings. While your outreach in God’s world is most often seen and felt through your ministries, those wouldn’t be possible without staff, infrastructure, and operational facilities. Be intentional to outline those donor dollar handles regularly in your messaging and communications. Your IT, insurance, parking lot, and staff benefit costs are part of your mission, too. It’s okay to fundraise for those items and have members understand their role in making the whole of the church’s work possible.
If you’d like advice or counsel on your upcoming stewardship campaign or any other development issue, our partnership with ACST enables us to come alongside churches looking for guidance.
Tim Smith
Tim has over 30 years of experience in Church, Non-Profit Administration, Management, and Fund Development. Serving as an Executive Pastor and Chief Development Officer in growing Churches and Non-Profit Organizations. He has provided a wide range of expertise and resources. Tim serves as the Founder and CEO of Non-Profit DNA. A boutique firm committed to helping nonprofits and churches. By building their capacity through fundraising, leadership, team building, staff recruiting, and coaching.
