SEEKING
TO INCREASE THE FINANCES OF YOUR CHURCH
The pioneer
pastor must especially address his attention to the issue of
church finances. He should have certain unshakable convictions
about the issue. The first conviction is-
Giving brings blessing. (Acts
20:35; Gal. 6:7). The
second conviction is- All
giving is to the Lord. (Lev. 23:38; Prov. 19:17; Phil. 4:18-19) 1. The
first guaranteed way to increase your church’s income
is to be a blessing to your people. Bless them through good
preaching of the Word. An older Presbyterian minister has
written-
Not by gimmicks,
or stunts, or new ideas, but by the Word of God released in preaching
by prayer. There will soon be evidence that God is at work - and
the devil will rouse himself too! The first sign may be that believing
folk who may have grown cold and worldly, will begin to loosen
their purse-strings out of thankfulness to God for His living Word,
and the finances will improve.
(William Still, The Work of the Pastor, page 18-19). |
Dr. Gordon
Fee, an American Assembly of God scholar, says that most preachers
are not professional enough about their preaching duty
(Intermin Conference). He says that if the preacher is not
called to study then he is not called to preach! Congregations
appreciate a minister who puts sweat into his sermon.
2. Set
the example. Don’t ever complain about the sacrifices
that you have to make for the Gospel. Your people will copy
your attitude. Note what King David did in First Chronicles
29, and how this affected the giving of the people. When
you feel that the ministry is a losing deal for you, remember
your convictions about giving- 1) it always brings blessing,
2) it is for the Lord.
3. Pray
for your people to be blessed. In Jack Hayford’s article A
Rising River of Resources (Minister’s Bulletin,
page 6 June 1996) he states, Any rise in my flock’s
bounty will only reveal itself in a corresponding increase
in the church’s resources. Even if your people
only give 10% of what God gives them, the church’s
income will increase as they are blessed. Especially pray
for your business people, and those with the ministry of
giving. These are the people that should understand how to
be stewards of God’s blessing. Why not invite all those
in your church who want to be blessed to come out for public
prayer for such? Challenge the unemployed to come out for
public prayer so that they can be candidates for God’s
financial blessing.
4. Treat
your offering time as an act of reflective worship rather
than as an embarrassing inconvenience to your service. This
may involve extended prayer for God’s blessing upon
the people during the service immediately prior to the offering.
It may also involve a time of refreshing the memories of
God’s people through reminding them of what God’s
Word says about the blessing and obligation of giving. It
may call for testimonies of God’s provision from those
who have recently commenced tithing. More and more pastors
who are taking up their offerings in this fashion are reporting
that God is increasing their resources. If your people understand
the principles of giving, then they are more likely to give.
Pioneer pastors
need to understand what the terms open heaven, and rebuke
the devourer in Malachi 3:10-11 entails for them, their
people, and their church. When this is understood and taught
it will have an impact firstly on the giving, then on the size
of the church. History bears this out: an increase in giving
will always usually lead to numeric growth. You may be able
to find sovereign exceptions to this, but this principle is
seen especially throughout the early chapters of Acts.
5. Concentrate
on your ministry, not the church finances. Ultimately God
knows what we and our churches need. I have never made the
church finances the theme of my prayers. I have always tried
to make the extension of God’s kingdom the theme of
my prayers. Surely this is the principle of Matthew 6:33.
Dr. Jack
Hayford says, "I’m persuaded that there’s a direct
correlation between the spirit of our congregation’s
giving and the number of souls saved, bodies healed, and homes
mended." (AOG Minister’s Bulletin, June 1996, page 7).
6. Be
a generous church. There is the principle of sowing and reaping
that is equally true for churches as it is for people (Gal.
6:7). Tithe to missions as a church. Be generous in the paying
of honourariums. These are two principles that we expect
our people to live by, therefore as a church we need to also
employ them.
You may
already be applying these principles within your church and
seeing the benefits of them. If you are about to venture into
their application and find them beneficial to your situation
please let me know.
© 1997,
Andrew Corbett.
Written
by Dr. Andrew Corbett. May be freely copied provided that the
author's details are credited.
 Andrew Corbett
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