Giving Languages
Last week, in Dave’s post Everything is Terrible, But I am Fine, he challenged churches to see this season as one of opportunity for giving initiatives.
“People want to be generous. People want to be faithful to the Lord through their church. Now is the time for bold asks. Funds will be given for new vision, new projects, and enhanced ministry in the coming year. The college, university, healthcare, and arts charitable giving sectors aggressively ask and receive gifts to fund their work. Churches should as well.”
When I read the post, I was reminded of a conversation that took place in a Leadwell Senior Pastor Cohort that I am leading this year. This particular group is for senior pastors in their thirties. Generosity, giving, donor development are always at the top of the list for these leaders of rapidly growing churches. This particular conversation was led by Steve Stroope, one of the cohort mentors and former senior pastor at Lake Pointe Church in Rockwall, TX. Steve is a genius at all things related to church finances, but I particularly love the thoughts he shared with the group about giving languages.
Steve suggests that there are different giving languages just like there are different love languages.
People give for a variety of reasons and they are most engaged when they find the giving language they have and and are introduced to opportunities that provide a connection. The five languages that Steve suggests are the following:
Giving to the general ministry
Giving to brick and mortar
Giving to missions (spreading the Gospel globally)
Giving to compassion projects (particularly locally)
Giving to designated projects.
Some people will give to all five of these categories, but others will only give to one of them, so Steve suggests that your annual giving strategy provides opportunities to give to each of these categories in some way.
If you are a Right Now Media subscriber, you can hear Steve share the model here.
How are you shaping vision for enhanced ministry in your church and community in ways that connect with the giving languages of the members of your church?
If you are interested in the opportunity to have access to peers and great mentors like Steve Stroope, check out Leadwell Cohorts.
Through a unique blend of collaborative learning, cross-discipline resources, and mentor access, Leadwell Cohorts help you develop a community of peers, grow in key competencies and address your greatest challenges and opportunities.
After over 20 years in leadership at Leadership Network, I launched my consulting practice, The Ligon Group in the spring of 2020. We provide a unique offering of services, but one of my favorites is our continued work with peer learning opportunities that I helped to pioneer at Leadership Network and now run as Leadwell Cohorts.
The cohorts provide you with unique insights from peers, coaching from well-seasoned mentors, and the wisdom of expert resources from multiple disciplines empowering you to tackle your leadership challenges and accelerate your results.
What makes Leadwell Cohorts Unique
There are several cohort opportunities available that serve a variety of needs. The things that make Leadwell Cohorts a unique experience include the following:
Mentors – You will have access to our expert mentors for 72 hours in each of the in-person sessions AND you will have their cell number because they welcome and will respond to your texts and calls.
Size – The groups are limited to 12 leaders which gives you greater access to mentors and the opportunity to build relationships with your peers that extend beyond the cohort.
Action and results – You walk away from every session, not simply with a notebook full of ideas and quotes but an action plan detailing your commitments to action based on what you learn.
Sprint Calls – Those plans don’t sit on the shelf between in-person sessions. Our in-between virtual calls give you the opportunity to update peers on your progress, get feedback where you are stuck and recalibrate your plans for greater results.
Coaching – Leadwell Cohorts are committed to holistic growth for leaders. Not only will you focus on strategies for this season for your church, but you also have the opportunity to receive coaching on personal and professional leadership development. You define the coaching need and we provide the process.
How to Apply
Leadwell Cohorts are by invitation only. We will launch three groups - Senior Pastor (under 40), Executive Pastors and Senior Pastor Finishing Well (55+). If you are interested in being considered for the next cohort, email me at greg@ligongroup.com or schedule a call here.
Email me your innovation ideas and questions to greg@ligongroup.com.