Nothing is sure to build church unity and enthusiasm as a church-wide campaign. Nothing is more certain to wear you out. Successfully rolling out a campaign – whether it be for fundraising, service, missions, or any other number of objectives – is quite a difficult thing to do. It’s even harder to do well.
A few of the obstacles you’ll face are:
- Communication break-downs and inconsistency
- Competing priorities and “urgent” items that take your attention
- Vision casting and building enthusiasm
- Continuing the online and in-person promotion
- Different levels of buy-in from members and leaders
But, it’s been said, nothing worth doing in life is easy.
Planning, promoting, launching, and completing a church-wide campaign is worth doing. It will connect your people behind a common cause and provide opportunities for people to serve in new ways. It will reinforce the priorities and passion of church leaders. It will create a rallying point to initiate momentum. And best of all, it will make an eternal impact in the Kingdom!
To pull it off with aplomb, you’ll need to:
- Pray – Don’t ever forget, this is God’s Church and He’s promised to build it. Spend time seeking his will for the campaign and your church, and asking for his power. You’ll need it!
- Plan – Get together with the right people who can draw plans from start to finish. Consider who needs to be involved, what parts everyone will play, and how to reach your goals
- Prepare – Set aside the resources and people you’ll need. This is a great opportunity to develop members and leaders into new roles that fit their gifting the church’s purpose.
- Promote – Teach and talk about the “why” behind the campaign. Visit small groups to cast vision in a more intimate setting. Meet with key influencers who will amplify your message.
- Launch – Dedicate a whole service or weekend to the launching of the campaign. Consider ways for it to reach people who may not be there. The point here is, make a BIG deal out of it.
- Pray again – By this point, you’ll have put so much work into the campaign that you’ll feel like it’s “yours”. It’s not. You’ll need God’s help and guidance. Keep the prayer going.
- Finish Strong – Stay diligent in communication, promotion, prayer, celebration, and hard work. When people see it is still a priority for the church, it will remain a priority for them.
Having the right tools to perform the above is critical. With a good church management software, you can keep all the pieces connected and on track. Using the right ChMS will allow you to:
- Communicate; in small groups, online, via targeted emails, and while mobile
- Cast vision with notifications, reminders, and posts at just the right times
- Collect funds with online, recurring, and pledge giving tools
- Stay on track with Pathways that keep people moving in the right direction
- Share the progress and “wins” with reporting and dashboard features
Most of all, don’t ever forget why you’re doing what you’re doing. A church-wide campaign shouldn’t be about chasing after some arbitrary goal for the sake of accomplishing something or raising more money. It needs to be tied into the God-given mission of your church. It involves faith, trust, and pressing into what God has in store for you and your church. When your church grasps the eternal importance of reaching the goal, they’ll dig deep to get it done.
