By Russ Cantu: You spent $5000 and got nothing in return.

You heard it somewhere —a coach, mentor, pier, start up bro— that you needed a pitch deck. You were told to hire a designer, run a high quality print of their developed deck, and distribute it to prospective investors.

Fail. Whale.

And it’s not even your fault.

Pitch decks have been a thing for decades now, but how we think about them needs to significantly change. I’ve been developing decks for decades: from start-ups to church plants, investment decks for pharmaceuticals and medical device manufacturers, and even some dream decks for friends.

Pitch decks aren’t bad, but the process is fundamentally broken.

It’s time to fix it.

Meet Brandon Penn

Brandon is a church planter starting a church in Fontana, Ca. It’s in LA and has a population of 220,000 people and less than twenty churches. The system is broken and what’s there just isn’t working. Brandon came to me and asked if I could help him design and develop their church plant’s deck.

I told him no.

Well, I told him no… but only no because we needed to go about this differently. The way we raised money ten years ago is not the same today, so our tactics need to change to meet our context.

So I made him a deal.

I would help him design and develop his deck, under one condition: we make it free for everyone. We would knock this out for him and his church, but then we would make the Keynote file, PDF, and article walkthrough available to everyone, for free.

He agreed, and here we are.

Three Pitch Decks Problems

Like I said, pitch decks aren’t bad; the process is just broken. What we want to do is think through a few aspects of the process so we can wrap our head around the problem and push forward.

Pitch Deck Problems

No matter how good a designer is, they’re not you. While there are some world-class designers I could recommend to you, most designers design for design, not conversion. When you are designing a deck for investors, your target market cares more about substance than flash. They want to know you have a successful track record with market opportunity, not that your deck looked better than the other guy.

In addition to designer problems, you will most likely run into design problems. These two are not the same. Assume now that your designer is amazing, they can create a great initial pitch deck template (aka Slide Deck), and they truly understand you. Assume they get your story. But never assume they know how to lay it out properly for you, in alignment with your business plan. Again, they’re used to designing for design’s sake, not you. You need to design for conversions, and that’s a completely different ball game.

Principles to remember when designing your deck: 

Share your wins. Your last success will indicate future success.
Less is more. Don’t say too much and narrow your focus on achieving your goals.
Design to multiple learning styles: i.e. visual, logical, kinesthetic.
Everything has a next step. Every point has a natural onramp for potential investors.

Pitch Deck Development Problems

Now that you’ve designed your deck, how do you share your story? Inherently, this is the most difficult part of the equation. While we will get to a walk-through of an example shortly, I want to run down some development problems you may run into and what you can do to avoid letting them slow you down.

“It looks good, but it doesn’t feel good.”

While a designer will bring the heat, they can never bring the feels without you. You must permeate every aspect of your deck. What is the problem you are addressing with your church plant and how are you uniquely prepared to meet this moment? This is the question you must answer on every page. It’s on you, and while it is certainly daunting, it is not impossible.

Principles to remember when developing your deck: 

Address problems head on. Name names and have a solution ready.
Be your own hero. People will be sold on you before they’re sold on your church.
Elevate your key team leaders. The people you have are the people you are targeting.
Don’t compromise. Your church is your baby. It’s unique and not cookie-cutter.
Be specific and measurable. Know your business model and key metrics of success.
Own it. This isn’t a church planting organization’s start-up; it’s your company vision.
Remember: You’re called to be faithful, not plant a church.

Pitch Deck Distribution Problems

This is the one that kills me every time. You paid a designer, you spent weeks outlining your story, and now you need to pay to print… or do you? This is it; THIS is the thing that keeps me up at night. It honestly frustrates me to no end.

Can we talk about money for a moment?

When you hire a good designer, you can expect to pay around $1000 for them to design your pitch deck. Assume you hire a designer who knows the investment space, who can interpret your story well, and who will lay it for conversion; expect to pay around $3000. But design costs aren’t the only thing we are talking about here. What about your time and energy? When you hire a designer, you are feeding them daily for weeks. This thing takes time. Because time is money, let’s just put an equal amount on it and price your time at the same rate as your designer’s between $1000 and $3000. So far, we are talking about a $2000 to $6000 hit to your church plant, most likely before you have investors (and before you even considered hiring a pitch deck writer).

You’re six thousand into this thing, and now you need to print. Ugh. Seriously, who prints anything anymore? Someone somewhere told you that investors need this, so you have to do it, right? Not a chance. Investors don’t give a rip. They want to know you’ve been successful and will be successful now. If you can write your story and a plan on a napkin, transfer that to a single email, and break it down over the course of a fifteen page deck, then you’re solid. But if you’re sold on print, you’re dropping between $1000 – $2000 every run. Since your plan is a living document, you will need a few runs along the way. Now your total financial hit is coming in between $3000 and $8000, but likely more depending on market size and capital to be raised. Print is not dead, but it is not right for you. So what works? Well, here’s what we do every time for start-ups.

Principles we remember when distributing decks:

Pitch Deck developed in Keynote or PowerPoint. Makes it simple for users to edit.
PDF exports for potential investors. Easy to view online or send via email.
Tactical Cards for handouts. Glossy on top and matte on back, makes people want to turn it over. Slap an URL on there for downloads and brand it alongside your deck and you’re solid. It’s a cheap run and instantly effective. Plus, if people throw it in the garbage, you won’t be diving into the can to rescue that printed gold.

Ultimately, your distribution plan is 50% of your design plan. How you disseminate your story to potential users or investors will determine how you raise capital. If you can accomplish this part of the puzzle, your audience will see a clearer picture and you will have more money in your pocket for your plant. And if that doesn’t show investors how you are managing money, I don’t know what will. It’s a brave new world, and they’re already ahead of the game. They want to invest in you. They want to reach your addressable market. It’s your job to make it easy for them to do so.

How to Create a Great Investor Pitch Deck for Startups Seeking Financing

Like I said, pitch decks aren’t bad; the process is just broken. What we want to do is think differently about this, from the designer to the design, the process and financials, and how to make the most of your moment. So let’s bring Brandon back in, so we can walk through his deck, and you can see how it works for him, as well as a few presentation tips so you can walk away with valuable insight and actionable items.

Beyond Church and Their Pitch Deck Outline

Branded Cover Slide with logo.
Mission Statement
Reachable Market and Our Problem to Fix
Current Growth Metrics and Market Validation
Introduction of Opportunity
Introduction of Startup Founders
Introduction of Business Model – Values
Introduction of Target Users or User Testimonials
Continuation of Target Users or User Testimonials
Introduction of Team with Focus
A-Round Pitch Deck Financials with Financial Forecast
Stage Process and Financial Application
Contextualization of Current Crisis and Application
Investment Opportunities
How to Connect with Brandon and Beyond Church

Branded Cover Slide with Logo

Your first slide is not the time to pitch your product or sell your services. Potential investors care more about you than they do your “sell”, so start off your pitch by sharing who you are and why you are taking their time. This is an opportunity for you to make them a part of your team before they hear what you’re doing, so sell them on you and it will be easier to sell them on your plant.

Mission Statement 

Your mission is the framework that drives your business. From inception to implementation, your mission statement is how you will grow your team, how you attract your audience, and how you grow over time. Share how and why your mission statement is not only important to you, but instrumental to your success.

Reachable Market and Our Problem to Fix

While most cities lack enough church resources to meet the need, Brandon Penn and Fontana are unique. Fontana is an underserved and under-resourced population, so the fact that there are so few churches to adequately serve the city should be drawn out and made a central focus, not just here, but throughout the presentation.

Current Growth Metrics and Market Validation

Past is prologue, so Brandon is going to discuss how he’s been successful in the past and prove he will be successful here as Fontana is drowning without enough people to serve the city. This is where he will start discussing the implementation of the business model, his current audience, and the people that are currently on board (as team members and investors).

Introduction of Opportunity

Brandon is bent toward justice, not as a pocket passion, but as a guiding life principle. As Fontana has a clear and obvious need, and as his team is ready to meet the moment, he will lay the foundation here for the opportunity to be met by those in the room. For him, God’s salvation is not just a gift for him, but one for everyone. Because of that, he’s encouraging his audience to participate in immediately actionable items.

Introduction of Startup Founders

In the initial stage of development, the focus will ultimately be on the shoulders of those who lead the early church. This is one of the reasons why church plant coaches emphasize the need for the founding pastor to preach every weekend for the first six months. These initial months are all about attraction, so Brandon must sell you on him, as wella s his family. It’s a lot to handle, but it’s what needs to be done. No pressure.

Introduction of Business Model and Your Values

Brandon is now going to share the business model (in expanded terms) but also share the guide rails of his plan: values. One caveat here: you don’t determine your values, you discover them. While Brandon has three values here, he also understands that values are malleable and may need to flex over time as his audience morphs into who God needs them to be for their community.

Introduction of Target Users or User Testimonials

One of the fin discussion items I often have with clients is persona types, not because we want to have a “perfect person” we want to reach, but because we want to have multiple moving targets we seek to market to. People are fluid according to their in-the-moment context, so persona types must go deeper than the surface level of a single mother of three kids.

Continuation of Target Users or User Testimonials

Like before, we are laying out the persona types we are targeting our reach towards, but we are also sharing who we have already reached. This is where past success meets current users. Don’t just share your hope for people to reach; share who you have already reached and how you are making their lives better.

Introduction of Team with Focus

For Brandon, his new church startup is not about a new church for Fontana. Anyone can build a church, but Brandon is building a passion. Buildings and worship services will only get you so far. In today’s climate, passion outranks presentation (thank God). When all is said and done, Beyond Church’s end product will be a passionate people who just so happen to meet in a building every week.

A-Round Pitch Deck Financials with Financial Forecast

Part of the strategy here is to speak the language of everyone in the room. While some will be attracted to stories, others will be moved by finances. It’s your job to speak to everyone. Give a description of your need, where you are at, and forecast it a few years out. Just like you created a pitch deck outline for your designer, you need to create a financial overview for investors.

Stage Process and Financial Application

Every church and organization is different. While some angel investors may be moved by stories and financials, others may be moved by specific things you are spending money towards. Larry Osborne talks about this in his pockets presentation. While some may give their tithe out of one pocket and give to a need out of another, they normally only have one more pocket to give to: their individual passion.

Contextualization of Current Crisis and Application 

Covid sucks. Losing millions around the world and hundreds of thousands here at home has been an enormous loss. Churches that specifically address the wounds of Covid and assist in the recovery of our cities will be better positioned to serve their cities for generations, than those who chose to go back to business (and politics) as usual. Brandon has a plan, and it’s working.

Investment Opportunities

We’ve shared the problem, we’ve shared possible solutions, and Brandon has shared stories and user testimonials. You’ve seen the financials and our forecast, and maybe you’re sold on the vision. This is the time to give people their next right step. In this case, Beyond Church is specifically looking for three people: givers, prayers, and servers. They need money, they need people who will encourage them through prayer, and they need people with a passion who want to serve Fontana. All Brandon needs to do is make their next right step clear and simple.

How to Connect with Brandon and Beyond Church

The last step of your presentation is to continue the conversation. This is the beginning of a years-long relationship that requires trust and communication. Once you make the ask (and please, don’t forget to go for the big ask), you need to stay present in their lives. Investors are giving you their hard earned time, resources, and finances, but you must be the one to nurture the relationship.

Let’s put a bow on this pitch deck.

For those of you who have been wondering “what is a pitch deck” and “how to slide deck”, I hope this guide has provided you with clear next steps to accomplish your goal. This resource is free now and will continue to be well into the future. I have included individual slides of the presentation, as well as a working file for you in Keynote and PowerPoint, in addition to a smaller file size PDF (with active links). I would encourage you to save yourself some money and use this pitch deck template instead of hiring a designer and printing a full run of vision pieces. And if you need help along the way, reach out and I will do everything I can to help make you successful.

Download PDF Pitch Deck

Download Keynote Pitch Deck

Download PowerPoint

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Source: How to Effectively Share Your Church Story to Investors [Pitch Deck]

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By NewChurches.com: In Episode 585 of the NewChurches Q&A Podcast, Daniel and Ed revisit the discussion from episode three on fundraising.

“In a context with so few believers, what strategies would you recommend for church planters to expand their network in order to raise financial support?”

In This Episode, You’ll Discover:

Ways to leverage new networks
Different types of fundraising

 Shareable Quotes (#NewChurches):

“Join a network or a denomination.” – @edstetzer
“Getting an endorsement from someone else and leveraging their network is one option.” – @danielsangi
“Joining an association, denomination, or network is another way to expand your network to raise financial support.” – @danielsangi
“If there are churches of your denomination and network near you, you can reach out.” – @edstetzer
“Fundraising doesn’t always mean that I get someone else to pay me full time, it can mean that I get a job.” – @edstetzer
“There are so many ways these days with the gig economy that you don’t need to be tied to a schedule or a desk, but be free to minister and to plant and not 100% rely on outside fundraising.” – @danielsangi

Recommended Resources:

Listen to Episode 3: Fundraising That Works
Read You Are What You Do by Daniel Im
Read “One-on-One with Daniel Im on ‘You Are What You Do’”

Help us Multiply the Mission:

Please subscribe
Leave a rating and review on iTunes
Ask a question by clicking Send Voicemail on the right hand side of NewChurches.com
If you’re on a phone or a tablet, then go to www.speakpipe.com/newchurches to download the app and record your message
When you’re recording, introduce yourself and your context in about 15 seconds and then record your question for 30 seconds

This Episode’s Sponsor:

No matter how many people you have on staff at your church, there’s only so much you can accomplish in a day, right? Your church exists to serve your community, so the mission of your church and its staff is to reach as many people as you can.

So BELAY, the innovative staffing solution with over 10 years of experience serving churches with virtual assistants, bookkeepers and social media strategists, is offering a free download of their resource, ‘Church Leaders: Essential Strategies to Unleash Productivity.’

Let BELAY help your church live its mission in your community by helping you juggle less and accomplish more. Visit belaysolutions.com/lifeway for your free download.

The post Episode 585: Revisiting Fundraising That Works appeared first on NewChurches.com – Church Planting, Multisite, and Multiplication.

Source: Episode 585: Revisiting Fundraising That Works

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By NewChurches.com: In Episode 579 of the NewChurches Q&A Podcast, Daniel and Ed discuss why a church planter might consider partnering with a network.

In This Episode, You’ll Discover:

What kingdom collaboration looks like
How networks have changed over the years

 Shareable Quotes (#NewChurches):

“If a network is going to put significant resources into a church plant, they have a right to expect, and strategically should desire, for those church plants to then become churches that start new churches in side the network.” – @edstetzer
“With networks, it’s like this fire that planters and individuals have been attracted to.” – @danielsangi
“All innovation happens on the periphery and then good organizations move it to the center and rejuvenate themselves.” – @edstetzer
“The string has to grow because a movement generally can’t just be church planting. It can be primarily church planting, but overtime you end up more of a system.” – @edstetzer
“Institutions tend to persevere. They need to be reminded of their mission, and when they are they can remarkably effective.” – @edstetzer

Recommended Resources:

Listen to Episode 577: The Role of Denominations in Church Planting
Read Planting Missional Churches by Ed Stetzer and Daniel Im

Help us Multiply the Mission:

Please subscribe
Leave a rating and review on iTunes
Ask a question by clicking Send Voicemail on the right hand side of NewChurches.com
If you’re on a phone or a tablet, then go to www.speakpipe.com/newchurches to download the app and record your message
When you’re recording, introduce yourself and your context in about 15 seconds and then record your question for 30 seconds

The post Episode 579: The Role of Networks in Church Planting appeared first on NewChurches.com – Church Planting, Multisite, and Multiplication.

Source: Episode 579: The Role of Networks in Church Planting

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Today’s post is written by Jim Sheppard. Jim is CEO & Principal of Generis, a consulting firm passionate about helping churches accelerate generosity towards their God-inspired vision.

By Jim Sheppard

Money and the church. It’s an awkward relationship. Have you noticed that?

If I had to guess, I would say that there is no topic that is more on the minds of senior pastors on Monday mornings and less on their minds as they plan sermons. This is not a critique, just an observation.

The conversation about money and giving in the church has become taboo. We don’t talk about it; and yet, all of the church leaders I know want to see giving increase. They want their people to become more generous with their finances, loosen their grip on money, and give back to the One who has provided it all in the first place.

To add to the tension, a lot of pastors fear playing into the stereotype that the church is all about money. So they never talk about money or wait until they need it. That’s a mistake.

The reason you need to talk about money is more about what you want for people than what you want from them. People argue about money every day, and you can help them win with it.

In addition, without casting an authentic vision about money, many will never release the gift of generosity in their life. Giving is a discipleship issue that too many church leaders ignore.

If you truly want to see church members embrace biblical generosity, you have to talk about it openly. You need to normalize the giving conversation and take the awkward out of it.

It starts with the acknowledgement that giving is first and foremost a spiritual issue, not financial. Our giving back to God for the work He wants to do in this world is a reflection of who He is in our lives. It shows our worship and reverence.

Giving is first and foremost a spiritual issue, not financial. – Jim SheppardClick To Tweet

That is why we give to God. It’s not to fund the church budget or advance projects. Those are merely secondary effects of what happens when we give to God’s work in and through the church.

This is where we often get it wrong and add to the awkwardness. We communicate that the main reason we want the people in our church to give is so that our church finances will flourish. That’s not it. That is not the primary reason we want our people to give. We want our people to give so that they can experience what it does for them when they give to God’s work. Our giving to God is meant to transform us!

When we treat the spiritual discipline of generosity as an exercise in fundraising – we end up nominalizing what God intended as a means to grow us.

Teaching about giving is an integral part of making disciples.

All of the church leaders I know want to make more disciples. Therefore, we have to teach and equip our people on giving if we are really serious about making disciples.

Most of the people in our churches have no idea of the spiritual implication of managing (or not managing) well the money and possessions that have been entrusted to them. For us to take the awkwardness out of it, our focus must be on growing givers’ hearts.

A couple of leading voices in the American church have spoken to this and it bears mentioning here.

In the second message of the series Money Talks that Andy Stanley preached in February 2019, he says it this way. “Until Jesus is first in your finances, Jesus isn’t first. You’re not a follower. You’re a user. And Judas tried that.”

That sounds direct but it is hard to argue. If we have put Jesus first in other areas of our lives but we have not done so with our money and possessions, we have missed it. We have not fully put Jesus first.

The issue gets compounded because we are not good at self-assessing. We think we are more generous than we really are.

Tim Keller, in a talk he gave at a Generous Giving gathering some years ago, says it well in this excerpt. “…Nobody thinks they’re greedy. Nobody. In all my years as a minister, I have heard almost every kind of confession. Nobody has ever come to me and said, ‘I spend too much money on myself.’ Nobody has ever done that. But here is what I want you to consider. If Jesus talks about greed and materialism 10 or 20 times more than he talks about other sins, and he says that nobody ever thinks they’re doing it. Then we should start with a working hypothesis that it is probably a problem for me.”

Giving is a spiritual issue. If we want to develop cultures of generosity in our churches, we have to own this. We can’t just hope it will change. We have to do something if we want to see it change.

Until Jesus is first in your finances, Jesus isn’t first. You’re not a follower. You’re a user. And Judas tried that. – @AndyStanleyClick To Tweet

Five Areas To Address When Taking The Awkward out of the Giving Conversation

So, where do we start? There are five areas where I would recommend we start:

1. Regularly Teach Biblical Generosity

The senior leader must teach on generosity and stewardship on a regular basis. A series every now and then is helpful, but also consider other means. When generosity comes up in the text of a passage you are using to make another point, take time to cover the generosity point in the text.

Perhaps the single best way to teach regularly is through the offering moment. The few minutes before you receive the offering in service each week is a key time to teach on the importance of what is happening.

If you want a step-by-step plan to accelerate generosity in your church, you can download one for free here.

The few minutes before you receive the offering in service each week is a key time to teach on the importance of what is happening. – Jim SheppardClick To Tweet

2. Model Generosity – In Your Own Life and In Others

Share examples of people who have seen transformation in their own lives when it comes to giving. For people who are not faithful givers, they don’t know what it looks like. They need examples and encouragement. Seeing the journey of someone else accomplishes both.

One thing I hear often when I bring this up is the idea that this is not a topic we are supposed to share about in public. They say, “don’t let the left hand know what the right hand is doing.” Without going into a long explanation of the text, that is not a prohibition against sharing one’s giving story. If it were, Jesus would not have talked about letting your light shine before men that they might see your good works.

The key here is to be careful about the motive in sharing. Give credit to God for the increase in your heart’s capacity to give. That’s the real story here!

3. Celebrate Mission Advancement

Encourage your church by calling attention to victories in mission advancement due to giving. This is probably the most overlooked element of encouraging generosity.

Think of a time when you made a significant appeal to the people of your church and they rose up and met it. Did you celebrate it? I don’t mean patting yourselves on the back and congratulating each other, I mean giving thanks to God for the move of His Spirit among your people, and the response of obedience in His people.

If you haven’t been doing it, make sure you do it next time you ask and your people respond.

4. Make Generosity a Priority, a Mark of Discipleship

Specifically identify giving and generosity as one of the marks of discipleship in your church.

Churches prioritize that which they have identified as important. Values get prioritized. Many times, the values a church establishes are connected to marks of discipleship. Prayer, service, leading, and Bible study are frequently on the list of things a church considers the marks of discipleship.

Did you notice which one is not in the list? Giving and generosity. Maybe church leaders just assume if you do the other things, you will be a generous giver. This is not a good strategy.

I have been around hundreds of churches as a consultant and I’ll just say that’s not my experience. It doesn’t just happen. It has to be specifically addressed. Making generosity one of the church’s marks of discipleship is a way to ensure that it happens.

5. Have a Generosity Champion at the table with your lead team

This is a voice to make sure generosity and giving are prioritized. This is probably the biggest single idea of the five mentioned here, and likely the one most leaders have not considered.

It is easy for giving and generosity to take a back seat to other priorities church leaders are addressing at any given time. This is understandable when something really pressing comes along, but it should be the exception, not the norm.

Generosity should be like a thread that is woven into the fabric of the church. Not siloed, but owned by every leader on the team.

A Generosity Champion, whether a staff member or a key lay person, will keep it on the table at all times.

Generosity should be like a thread that is woven into the fabric of the church. Not siloed, but owned by every leader on the team. – Jim SheppardClick To Tweet

Where do we go from here?

We have to solve this. The stakes are high on two fronts.

1. The people in our churches are spiritually malnourished when it comes to money and possessions.

When we talk about making disciples, we have to be committed to addressing all the areas of discipleship. Teaching in the area of money and possessions is the most neglected one. In a culture that is as materialistic as America, our understanding of money and possessions and how it fits into our faith perspective is critical.

Jesus was concerned about it two thousand years ago. He knew that money had the potential to be another god to us.

In Luke 16, he clearly pointed out that money has the potential to cause us to worship at that altar instead of the altar of Almighty God.

This is a powerful teaching and we tend to blow past it. It speaks to the need to provide spiritual nourishment in the area of money and possessions.

2. Our churches are being limited in the pursuit of their God-given mission and mandate by the lack of sufficient financial resources.

In a country as affluent as America, there is no reason for our churches to have to limit their ministry because of financial resources. Yes, there are churches that are in economically challenged areas. But that is not the norm.

The best research we have indicates giving among believers is somewhere in the range of 2.5% of their income. Think about that. If believers in America gave just half a tithe (10% of their income), it would double the level of giving to churches. The impact of the ministry of the American church would be significantly expanded.

Only by growing givers’ hearts and loosening the grip on what God has provided will we make meaningful progress.

There’s too much at stake.

Let’s commit ourselves to removing the awkwardness and normalizing the giving conversation. For our people and for our churches.

What if you could take the weirdness out of the giving conversation at your church?

The Generis team has been helping churches do this for years.

We’d love to offer you a totally free conversation about how you can build a culture that embraces generosity like never before.

Normalize the giving conversation in your church and accelerate greater generosity towards your God-inspired vision starting today!

You can schedule a complimentary discovery session with a Generosity Strategist here: https://resources.generis.com/carey

How do you currently talk about giving? 

I’d love to know what strategies you’re trying.

Leave a comment below and let us know!

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Source: The Awkward Relationship Between Money and The Church…And What You Can Do About It

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By unSeminary: Do you lie awake and ponder how your church will meet its budget for this coming year?

Are you wondering how to increase the generosity culture at your church?

Is there a gap between the vision for which you believe God has called, and the funding your church currently is generating?

As church leaders, there is a connection between our beliefs on generosity, fundraising, funding, giving, and what happens in our churches. We must identify inherently negative ways of thinking and replace these thoughts with the mindset God desires of us. These negative mindsets can creep in over time, without us even realizing it. We need to actively align our philosophy on financial matters at our churches with what God would have us consider.

I’ve pulled together five negative mindsets I’ve seen within my own life that I’ve needed to uproot and address. These beliefs are also at play in other church leaders. I’ve wondered whether these mindsets are ultimately the cause for other churches’ lack of progress in this area.

Simple Silver Bullet Solution

As leaders, there’s a real temptation to attempt to find the silver bullet to this problem.

It’s tempting to think that simply delivering the right message on offerings or having an impactful year-end campaign would solve all issues pertaining to generosity and the finances at our churches. The reality is that there is no single silver bullet to funding issues at our churches. We are attempting to disciple people connected to our church into leading a generous lifestyle. That takes consistent work and a unified approach over time.

We need to continue to lead our churches towards a lifestyle of generosity.

A single sermon series would not be sufficient to accomplish this objective. We need to maintain a consistent focus on this for an extended period. Effort applied on a weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annual basis will, over time, create the kind of desired change in our churches.

Our vision can be fully funded and arrive at the point where we have the resources required to accomplish what God has called us to perform. Some churches reach this stage because they applied consistent strategies over an extended period. There is no silver bullet to the issue of funding.

Too Afraid to Challenge People and Ask Them to Give?

I get it. Money is hard to discuss.

This reality is peculiar to our culture. It seems like we can easily discuss the most intimate of human relationships, even talking about sexual relationships. However, we get defensive when thinking about discussing money. People’s approach to their finances is at the very core of how people perceive themselves. It’s critical! We need to find a way to overcome this—whether by abolishing this mindset, using humor or simply calling out the fact that it’s a difficult topic to discuss.

Over the years, many church leaders have found a way to lean in and discuss money, ultimately challenging members to live in a more Jesus-centered way concerning their money. These leaders have been afforded incredible opportunities and accelerated growth on the other side of this approach.

Our ability to persevere in discussing money and generosity, and challenge people in this regard, is directly connected to people’s desire to grow in generosity. This approach will impact how funds are generated at your church.

It’s Unspiritual to Talk about Money.

One of the biggest lies propagated among church leadership is that it is unspiritual to talk about money.

This belief comes from a strange disconnect between our views on faith and its impact on our lives. It’s a dangerous notion that, somehow, our faith only exists between our ears, that it’s only about what we think, about developing the right thoughts and having the right ideas. Some believe it not about how we live, and in this case, what we do with our money. This mindset has led some of us to the point where we believe that it’s somehow unspiritual to talk about money and generosity.

Jesus is clear on this: how we invest our lives and how we invest our money reveals much about what we value in life. [ref] Challenging people to think correctly about money, be generous, and lead generous lifestyles is at the core of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. At the core, Jesus challenged us to live another centered life. In a world so obsessed with money, there are few other, more obvious ways to a centered life, other than being generous and donating your resources to help others get connected with Jesus’ teachings.

Discussing money is incredibly spiritual, plus it is one of the things that people worry about all day long. Striving to ensure that people understand biblical teachings about money, and helping them apply those lessons to their lives, will accelerate your membership’s spiritual growth.

You Feel Like a “Used Car Salesman.”

Why is it that when we consider discussing money at a church, the stereotypical picture of a used car salesman comes to mind?

You know that guy: he’s little and slimy, his hair is greased back, he wears a bad suit, and he’s just trying to rip you off. Why do so many people possess this mental image when considering whether to discuss money in their churches?

Part of the reason that this is the case is that there have been “slimy car salesmen” in the name of Jesus. They’ve ripped people off and used their money for nefarious ends. There is no lack of evidence of church leaders who have abused this privilege and honor to help people with generosity and help them move into a more generous lifestyle.

But here’s the thing, you are not a slimy used car salesman. You’re not attempting to help people grow in their generosity because you want to get something from them. You’re doing this because you want something for them. You want to help people transition into a more generous lifestyle. You want them to experience the freedom and exhilaration of a fuller lifestyle through giving. You are not trying to extract cash out of them so that you could fund some new crazy plan at your church. You’re not a used car salesman. You’re a messenger of the peace of Christ, and this is a critical aspect of the conversation that must be communicated to our membership.

Your Personal Finances are in Chaos.

Are you drowning in debt?

Are you living your life with no margin?

Are you not being generous because of the financial decisions that you’ve made?

Too many pastors are living less than paycheck-to-paycheck. We’ve structured our financial lives in such a way that we’re struggling, and we’re not giving generously, and that’s ultimately driving us into debt. This issue of debt is an epidemic among church leaders nationwide.

If this is the case in your life, I strongly recommend that you get help in this area. Whether it’s Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University or Joe Sangl’s Financial Learning Experience or Good Sense, you can take control of this area of your life and get things right in your finances at home.

Too often, people aren’t generous because they have too much debt.

What is debt? Debt is simply living beyond your means. It’s not trusting that God will provide, and it’s leveraging other people’s money to live the lifestyle you want to live. The antidote to an active debt lifestyle is generosity. It is a tool that will break the debt mindset, because what is generosity at its core? Generosity, at its core, is saying that God will provide. That I’m going to give up this money to help someone else, and that I believe that God will provide for me. Maybe the thing you need to do is to be more generous.

Listen, I understand that living and life costs a lot of money, but this might be a wake-up call for you to get your finances in order, to help you speak more clearly and with conviction to your own people and, ultimately, see them take steps towards generosity.

Are you looking for more help to raise more funds for your ministry?

We’ve put together a few resources to help your church build even more in the area of generosity, providing an important example of what you do as a church leader. This free download includes an MP3 and PDF.

MP3 // Increasing Your Church’s Generosity Culture with Steve Stroope // Steve started as the first pastor at Lake Point Church about 40 years ago and has since passed the baton to Josh Howerton. Lake Pointe began with a launch team of about 60 people and has grown to eight campuses with over 15,000 attendees. In this interview, Steve offers practical tips on how we can increase generosity at church.PDF // 5 Free Resources to Increase Your Church’s Generosity // Each of these resources can be used and implemented to help your church see ever-increasing levels of generosity. This “read to apply today” PDF is a great tool get the conversation and action rolling with your team!

Click here to download these two resources and access the information to help your church increase generosity.

Download PDF Article

Source: 5 Negative Church-Leader Mindsets About Funding

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Source: How to Develop a Budget

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Source: How to Work Full-Time and Plant a Church

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by unSeminary: Thanks for listening in to this week’s unSeminary podcast! Today we are joined by Jim Sheppard, CEO of Generis. Generis is in the business of helping churches and ministry organizations with giving development. They’ve been around for a little over 30 years and are most known for their giving campaigns as well as coaching churches in developing an ongoing culture of generosity.

Jim is with us today to talk about what he’s seeing as he speaks with a broad spectrum of churches across the country, and how churches can plan well financially for an unknown future.

Be intentional about the offering. // Around March 15, 2020 the coronavirus shutdown caused nearly all churches across the country to suddenly shift to remote services, leaving many unprepared as to how to handle the offering. As a result that first weekend was terrible financially for many churches. They didn’t pay enough attention to the giving moment during their online-only services, instead assuming that people would just “get it”. Suddenly giving dropped by 80% for some churches and they realized that if this trend continued while they couldn’t physically meet, they’d be broke in a matter of weeks. During moments like these, it’s important for churches to be specific when talking about the offering, and don’t assume that people who don’t give electronically will suddenly start doing so. Make a plan ahead of time so people have options and understand what they are.Increase your online giving. // Since the initial lockdown, many churches have seen a surge in giving. Not only has their giving returned to normal, it may be even better than where it was last year at this time. The churches that have made online giving easy have faired the best in this season. There are many robust options for third party online giving that are currently available to nonprofits. Make it a point to encourage more people at your church to give digitally to avoid the types of interruptions that can come during this type of season.Get an accurate picture of your giving. // Jim’s concern for churches right now is that people might be getting a little too comfortable with the giving rhythms that they’re seeing. When the government liquidity gets pulled out of the market, what new dynamics will we need to pay attention to? Some of your core donors may have stepped up in this season and given what they’ve committed to earlier than planned, but it may not change the overall picture at the end of the year. Take the one time surge of giving out of your numbers so you can discern how well giving is really going at your church.Build your reserves. // Take this season to be building your reserves. If your giving seems to be going well and your expenses are down while you’re not regathering, then take that money and put it aside as much as you can. You should have a minimum of three months worth of reserves. Think in terms of what thirteen weeks of reserves looks like for you. Setting aside reserves will help your church not to panic when you encounter times like the current one. Furthermore, make sure that you have a policy for spending reserves in addition to accumulating reserves. You don’t want to strip all of your cash out, but if you need some extra, it’s there for you.Increase revenue. // If your church isn’t in a place where you have extra to put aside for reserves, it’s time for the pastor to begin to cast vision around why this is important in order for the church to continue its mission. Cast vision to your higher capacity givers and your faithful core givers in particular because this message, while not glamorous, will really resonate with them.Plan for the worst. // Be prepared with an action plan before you might ever see a dip in giving. Determine what specific numbers will kick things into action and model out what this will look like through the end of the year. How will you cover your expenses? How will you continue to flourish and thrive? Plan now for a worst case scenario so that you aren’t behaving in a reactive way if it ever happens. Having a plan A, B and C enables you to be proactive no matter what scenario you encounter.

To learn more about Generis and how they can help your church, visit their website at generis.com or ” target=”_blank”>email Jim. You can also download their ebook Beyond: Forward Focus, Planning the Critical Next Seasons for Your Ministry.

Thank You for Tuning In!

There are a lot of podcasts you could be tuning into today, but you chose unSeminary, and I’m grateful for that. If you enjoyed today’s show, please share it by using the social media buttons you see at the left hand side of this page. Also, kindly consider taking the 60-seconds it takes to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes, they’re extremely helpful when it comes to the ranking of the show and you can bet that I read every single one of them personally!

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Thank You to This Episode’s Sponsor: Portable Church Industries

Doing Church in a Rented Facility can be a Challenge.

Questions about Multisiting or Portability?Click here to connect with our Multisite Specialist for a free evaluation.

Source: Navigating Your Church’s Next Financial Phase with Jim Sheppard

The post Navigating Your Church’s Next Financial Phase with Jim Sheppard appeared first on Passion for Planting.

By: New Churches

In Episode 506 of the NewChurches Q&A Podcast, Daniel and Ed discuss how to be successful in fundraising and planting a church during this time.

“During this social/economic crisis we are in, how do we raise support? How do we plant churches? What kind of evangelistic practices should change during this pandemic?”

In This Episode, You’ll Discover:

Why sending a survey to your congregation can help you determine how they are feeling about reopening
When is the right time to start working on reopening plans

 Shareable Quotes (#NewChurches):

“Support raising has been hit and it has been hit at multiple levels.” – @edstetzer
“The typical church we are seeing 10-15% budget reset.” – @edstetzer
“Some mission agencies and church planting organizations are not adding new church planters right now.” – @edstetzer
“I would fund raise as I would fund raise in normal times with the exception of a higher sense of urgency.” – @edstetzer
“Just because you are in a deficit doesn’t mean that your mission to move forward stops or pauses in anyway.” – @danielsangi
“Church planting is not a luxury for a few churches that have this as a side application. it’s central to the mission of God.” – @edstetzer
“If you are a church plant, what a great opportunity to be nimble.” – @edstetzer

Recommended Resources:

Read Planting Missional Churches by Ed Stetzer and Daniel Im

Help us Multiply the Mission:

Please subscribe
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When you’re recording, introduce yourself and your context in about 15 seconds and then record your question for 30 seconds

The post Episode 507: Fundraising and Planting a Church During a Pandemic appeared first on NewChurches.com – Church Planting, Multisite, and Multiplication.

Source: Episode 507: Fundraising and Planting a Church During a Pandemic

The post Episode 507: Fundraising and Planting a Church During a Pandemic appeared first on Passion for Planting.

Source: Raising Financial Support: Tips for Getting to 100%

The post Raising Financial Support: Tips for Getting to 100% appeared first on Passion for Planting.