Sunday I will run my 20th marathon. Don’t ask me why. I would be hard pressed to give you a reasonable answer. Because its there and I can is about all I could say. I suppose I am fighting back the inevitable slide into mid life. Life is winning the battle. It is getting harder to run those 26.2 miles. This year for the first time ever my goal is to break five hours not four hours. I am telling myself that my time doesn’t matter. I am not sure the lie is working but its my mantra that I will repeat to myself at mile 22.

While non runners might scoff at the notion that you could learn anything from running a marathon I think you can. It has taught me some great life lessons. A few years ago I wrote to my team I led the following note after finishing a marathon. I have changed it a bit to fit you the reader. I think it contains some valuable truths. Here is what I wrote…

“Last Sunday I ran the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon.  All through the race I kept thinking about my last marathon in Dallas in December.  That marathon was the first time ever I had been over four hours.  Afterwards I wrote the following, “As I neared the end of my last marathon I looked down on the pavement and saw scores of discarded pacing bands.  Pacing bands are used to help runners hit a personal best.  All those pacing bands discarded meant scores of runners who had failed to meet their goals.
 
At that point I had one on my wrist for time splits that would get me home in four hours.  All my previous marathons had been under four hours.  As I looked down upon the pavement with just over a mile to go and the clock already reading past four hours I realized that I too could discard with the pacing band upon my wrist.  It laid with all the other dreams that had vanished with the warm Dallas sun.  The bitterness of that failure is still with me despite all the encouragement from friends and relatives that try to tell me that any time in a marathon is good.  I intellectually understand that but emotionally I still am disappointed.”
 
Last Sunday I kept thinking about that disappointment and how I wanted this marathon to be different.  I am grateful to report that unlike last December I was able to continue to push through the wall and record a time of 3:57:47.  One race left me feeling disappointed and bitter the other left me encouraged and hopeful.  Here are some lessons that I have learned and hopefully some practical advice on how we can apply this to ourselves and the churches we serve.
 
The difference between winners and losers is how they respond to losing.  Winners look for lessons to learn on the road to rebounding.  Losers look for excuses and scapegoats on the road to losing again and again.  Winners look first at themselves whereas losers look for someone or something else to blame.
 
I knew from my experience in Dallas that something about my approach had to change.   Here are some things that I did over the course of the last few months.
 
Analyze what went wrong - In December I really trained better than in April.  However something caused me to run out of steam three miles from the finish line.  As I thought it through one big thing was the lack of electrolytes in my system.  In Dallas I did not ingest anything other than an occasional gulp of water.  I did not eat any of the gel packets that I had for fear of upsetting my stomach.  As a result I hit the wall and could not push on.  You can’t break four hours doing a sixteen minute mile at mile twenty four!
 
Church application:  All of us will at times have a bad sermon, a bad committee meeting, a bad phone call, a bad experience or a disconnect.  We can’t afford to just blow it off.  We need to analyze what went wrong and why?  In every loss there are lessons that can be applied so that the next opportunity is a win.
 
Adjust to what went wrong - I realized that I needed to do a better job of keeping my body fueled.  So, in my training I ran with gel and practiced eating it on the run and getting use to its taste and after taste.  I knew during the marathon that I had to drink not only water but Exceed Sports drink.  That is exactly what I did last Sunday.  I ate four gel packets throughout the race and drank not only plenty of water but also Exceed at every other aid station.  I think that helped give me the needed last ounces of energy to make my goal possible. 
 
Church application:  We talk about the ministry changing, have we?  If you are still doing what you were doing last year you are not adjusting.  Don’t be surprised if losses pile up.  After you analyze what did not work do something new and different.  In the past Exceed had made me sick yet without its vital elements I knew I would crash.  It was worth the risk.  For us we must continually adjust what we do, what we say and how we think. 
 
Winners are willing to push through the pain.  Drinking Exceed and eating gel was not in and of itself a magic potion that allowed me to break four hours.  That strategy just gave me the opportunity to have the strength to consider pushing to the end.  I still had to push through the pain and tell my body that it would soon be over.  The key is being in the position to be able to do that.  Good pacing and good replenishment of the body gave me the opportunity.  I still had to simply grit my teeth and pound out the last three miles.  My body wanted to stop but I knew if I started walking that a sixteen minute mile loomed in my future and I would have months of regret over my failure.  The last few miles were literally mind over matter!
 
For us the pain might be the embarrassment of losing.  It might be the sting of a someone leaving our church to join another.  It might be that difficult staff member or lay leader that we struggle working with.  It could be a host of painful things.  The key question is how do you deal with whatever pains this job brings?  Are you pushing through them or letting them set you back?  We can allow them to derail us or we can continue on in the growth path we know God wants us to take. 
 
For me I am thankful for my time last Sunday.  Sub four hour marathons are never easy and at my age they are getting harder!  This could have been my last.  I just know that how I feel today is a whole lot better than how I felt last December.  Fulfillment is better than failure. 
 
On the wall of my office is a collection of running memorabilia.  There hangs a plaque that my running buddies in Arkansas gave me on the last run before I moved to Atlanta.  The verse on that plague is I Cor. 9:25 which says, “Everyone who competes in the games goes into training.  They do it to get a crown that will not last: but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.”  I realize that running is my recreation but ministry is my calling.  One gives me temporary satisfaction.  The other holds eternal consequences.  
 
Paul in his concluding letter to Timothy said, “But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.”  As we continue in this ministry that God has given us we must always be mindful that we are about helping churches fulfill the dreams and visions that God has given them.  As a result we can not faint before the finish line.  Be a winner not a loser!”
 
Now a few years later my running goals are a bit different. I have given up on breaking four hours. What matters is simply keeping my running going. Still the lessons from running have I think made me a better person and ultimately a better minister. How about you?

Mark Brooks
Founder and President
The Charis Group

My friend Ben Stroup known as domoreministry on Twitter got into a twitter rumble with Anne Jackson known as FlowerDust about celebrating big givers. They would not use the word rumble but rather a conversation. At any point there was a lot of back and forth. If you use Twitter you know that you can’t say much when you only have 140 characters per post.

To get the full impact of what started the back and forth you would need to read Anne’s blog post entitled “Celebrating Big Givers.” The upshot of her post was a reaction to churches that hold special events for large donors. In short her post objected to this practice. Ben weighed in with his experience and then the back and forth began. So, never one to be shy about my opinion here are some things to consider…

The church has always depended upon a few to give the majority of the dollars given. This will not change in the future. While there is a lot of hype about amassing smaller donations the truth is that small donations have always been with us and always will. They represent only a fraction of what any church or ministry receive. It is not to be taken for granted or discounted. However, without large donors the work of ministry would be seriously curtailed. In most churches 15% of those that attend give 90% of the dollars. In non-profit ministries it is not unusual for the percentage to be even smaller. We can cry about this all day long but as the old saying goes, “It is what it is!”

Segmenting your donors is not the same as segregating your donors. We are admonished in Scripture not to show favoritism to those with wealth. We don’t give them special seats or upfront parking. Extrapolating out the instances given in Anne Jackson’s blog as showing favoritism strains that application. I don’t get asked to sing in the choir of my church due to my inability to carry a tune. I am not offended by that.

Let me say that we always counsel our churches that any event where high end donors might be asked to attend be called a Leadership Event. We invite all who are in leadership despite what they give. We simply want those that can make a difference with their gift to be there. Our premise is that leaders should lead. Look at I Chronicles 29 for instance.

Those who do have high donor capacity feel, sense and respond differently to vision than others do. They have different sets of questions and concerns that need to be addressed. Barna has found that churches that segment their donors will raise significantly more dollars than those that do not. Paying attention to who gives and how best to maximize their potential is not a violation of Scripture but a wise stewardship strategy for achieving Kingdom results.

Most discussions like this are driven not by facts but by emotions. What was more interesting to me than even Anne’s blog post were the comments that followed. I must admit to some jealousy at seeing that many comments to a post. Yet some of those that commented did so not from any sense of truly understanding the issues but from emotion.

Stewardship is not just my job it is my calling and passion. While I disagreed with a lot of the blog’s premise and nearly all of the comments that were given I do love the fact that the conversation was being held. Too many never think about these issues. Ben and I have often commented to one another how few pay attention to this vital area. Ministries ignore stewardship to their own demise!

All gifts are to be celebrated! Let me say that I understand the passion of this blog and the comments that followed it. We counsel that you have to know how to value the widow’s mite more so than the large gift. However, we spend a great deal of time helping pastors know how to identify, approach and talk to high end donors in an appropriate manner. To succeed in meeting your budget needs this key group is crucial. In the times that we live in we need every gift. What all of us can do together is greater than what a few of us can do!

So, should you celebrate the big giver? Yes! However do so in a way that is appropriate. Should you not celebrate the small gift? No! Find ways to celebrate every gift. While it might take some of your time in the end a wise focus on all your donor segments will pay off in more dollars being raised. At the end of the day it is the fuel that keeps your ministry going. It is more than worth the time and effort.

Mark Brooks
Founder and President
The Charis Group

If you would like to read Anne’s blog you can find it below

FlowerDust

Yesterday I preached at FBC Winder, GA. They are a client of mine and the pastor this summer asked if I could preach my sermon, “Recession Proof Your Life” before they voted on their annual budget. I readily agreed. Before the service I met a man who had been involved in various ministries, some of which I had been a part of. Yesterday afternoon he sent me a nice email that said, “I have been in ministry for 25+ years and that was one of the best “tithing sermons” I have every heard. As you know, when you step out on faith, you know who is in control! I appreciated what you said and the ending was very moving.” My neighbor from across the street came yesterday and also commented on the message telling me that it was positive in nature.

I wanted to share that not to build myself up but to give credence to the approach I took in sharing the message. Frankly, I did not think it was my best but I was honored they were ministered by it. What I think gave them such a positive view were some of the following points that I regularly follow when I preach on giving. See if your last sermon followed this path and if not try it the next time you preach.

The sermon was not about guilt but opportunity. Preaching that people are obligated to give rather than given an opportunity to give sets the wrong tone to begin with. While it is true that giving is not an option we have to work to show people how giving is in their best interest as well as in the interest of the church. In life we do not start babies on solid food but on milk. Sadly most of your listeners are babes still in terms of giving and you need to slowly bring them to maturity. Banging them over the head with Malachi 3:10 might get you thunderous Amens from the choir but it will not move those that are not giving to embrace your message.

Be positive rather than negative. Sermons on giving do not have to be a drag to listen to. If you set the mood right at the start you can gain the hearing of those that you are preaching to. A positive approach will always get better results than a negative one.

Show how giving can bring results to their lives. My title was enough to get people’s attention. I was frank with them that one way they could recession proof their lives was by putting God first. I then talked about the promise in Malachi 3:10 not the command.

Preach grace not legalism. While I read Malachi 3:10 I quickly admitted to them that many of them could not afford to tithe at this point in time. I think it does not glorify God when we ask our members to give us 10% but then they can not pay their light bill or their rent. I told my listeners that if they made a decision to begin giving what they could and worked towards a goal that God would honor that.

I once heard a minister talk about how wrong the graduated approach to tithing was. He said it was like a married man saying that he use to have ten girl friends and was now down to five and working his way to none. Pastor, get a clue! Your members will tune you out if you require that kind of legalism. Frankly, due to bad decisions most have put themselves in a place where they truly do not have 10% to give to anyone. Show them how to get out of debt first, manage their finances properly and then they can become life long donors. If however you stubbornly cling to preaching that they have to immediately start at 10% you will lose them and only increase their guilt and frustration.

Offer them help. If you truly want to develop generous givers in your church then you need to offer help. There are many programs out there that you can use in your church. Find one that fits your church and regularly offer that to your members. While it might take a year or two to get them up to speed it will pay off in the long run.

Teach stewardship regularly. The church does not talk about money too much. The church does not talk about money enough! It is not that we preach on giving too often that turns people off it is how we typically preach on the subject. Show your members what giving to your ministry accomplishes and how it can benefit their lives as well and they will put their money in your offering plate.

While I would not presume to say I am the expert on preaching on giving I have in thirty plus years of ministry learned a few things. Like many I have learned from my mistakes more than my successes. Take these thoughts and apply them to your next sermon on giving and see if it will not make a difference.

Mark Brooks
Founder and President
The Charis Group

PS. The ending that the man emailed me about was indeed moving. I shared with the congregation that now that I am a business owner I know what recessions can do to your business. I shared about the pressures business people feel. I asked all those in the congregation that owned their own business to stand. I then asked people to gather around them and lay hands on them as I had a special prayer for them. It was indeed a powerful moment. You might consider doing the same thing in your church.

It has been estimated that Americans spend over $450 billion dollars a year on Christmas! Even during this recession Americans will still spend billions of dollars on gifts many which will never see the light of day. How many Christmas presents have you gotten that you never used? While it might sound like Scrooge, what a waste!

That was the lead paragraph to an end of year letter that I recently wrote for a client. In the next paragraph I wrote the following: “Consider what a gift to our church accomplishes. This past year we have been able to impact hundreds of people locally with the gospel message of hope. We have through our denomination touched the lives of thousands literally around the globe. Even during a recession with our area hit incredibly hard this church has stepped up and given to meet the needs of our vision. Truly when you give here at your church it is a gift that keeps on giving!”

I then followed these paragraphs with a positive challenge to end the year well with a gift to the church. This particular church wanted to have a special offering that ran through the month of December and culminated on December 27th. End of year appeals are great ways to close the gap in budget shortages or to meet additional needs. Here are some basics to consider as you write your end of year appeal.

Have the letter to your donors by Thanksgiving.

Make the letter positive upbeat and to the point.

Share specifics of why you are asking people to give. Just asking them to give for the sake of giving does not motivate the heart.

Make giving easy for them, include an envelope.

Always include a PS as studies show most people skim a letter but always read the PS.

Take the time to personally sign each letter. The more personal the delivery the more effective the letter!

These are just a few things that if implemented can make your letter more effective. If you think that Americans don’t have money to spend consider that “Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2″ sold $310 million dollars on its first day of release. A good end of year letter might just net you some of the money your donor base would other wise spend on ties, socks and worthless Christmas gifts this year. What have you to lose?

Mark Brooks
Founder and President
The Charis Group

Today is Veteran’s Day. Several years ago when I worked at ISS I first met Tom Holloway who is now The Charis Group’s Director of Marketing. Right before the 4th of July one year I wrote the following tribute to him and to my son who at that time was a Captain in the Army. I thought it worth posting for you to read what I had written then about our veterans. They truly deserve our respect and gratitude.

Here is what I wrote…

“Our country is great because of men like Tom Holloway.  Tom will probably be surprised at this statement.  He might even want to argue with me about it.  Yet I believe its true.  Tom works in marketing for us.  He is always upbeat.  Always cheerful.  He is one of our Marketing Department’s first in, last out soldiers that helps set the stage for our ability to engage churches.  He works in a cube but never lets that affect his attitude. 
 
Something you might not know about Tom is that he is a veteran.  Tom served when serving wasn’t cool.  He could sport that yellow license plate or bumper sticker with green and red lines you might have seen on some trucks.  Its the Vietnam Service Medal.  Tom served while others sat home.  There are a lot of guys just like Tom.  That is why Tom will think this note does not apply to him.  I think it does.  Oh, he may not have done some heroic feat or made some save the ship kind of statement.  Yet guys like Tom are what have made this country great.  You see there are a long line of Toms that stretch all the way back to that Lexington green.  From that green to the brown dusty streets of Baghdad to the snow capped peaks of Afghanistan we have countless other men like Tom and now women too who are putting their all on the line to help keep us free. 
 
This weekend we will celebrate the founding of our country.  We would not have this country were it not for men like Tom and all the countless others who have served to make it great.  Our country is so great we even allow those that don’t appreciate the Tom’s of the world the freedom to live here.  There are times that some far left liberals anger me so terribly.  Then I am reminded what they probably would never recognize, that guys like Tom have sustained their right to be stupidly wrong.  In other countries they would be executed.  Here they get their own television show or they make a movie!  It’s called freedom. 
 
Freedom isn’t free.  For us as a nation the price was paid beginning at that Lexington green so many years ago.  Payments were continually made throughout our two hundred plus years.  In places with names like, Valley Forge, Yorktown, Manassas, Appomattox, San Juan Hill, Belleau Wood, Pearl Harbor, Tarawa, Normandy, Okinawa, Chosen Reservoir, Khe Sanh, Kuwait and Baghdad our men and women have fought.  Lives have been lost and are being lost.   Over 1,700 men and women to date have died in Iraq, 1,333 in combat.  Over 200 have died in Afghanistan.  All have died trying to preserve our freedom and to gain freedom for people who have never known freedom.  They are guys and gals just like Tom and my son Jon and now my son in law Nick.  They serve and as a result we continue to be free.  What a country!  For all our faults and short comings, what a country!
 
Jesus taught that to whom much is given much is expected.  We have freedom in America but there is a much greater freedom in Jesus.  That freedom was not free either.  It cost God His only Son on a cross.  That cross is God’s attempt to redeem a lost and sinful world to Himself.  As those who have accepted God’s gift we have the duty to tell others the way to safety.  It is why guys like Tom sit in cubicles.  We have been given much, much is expected in return.
 
So, today I want to say thanks to Tom and all the others like him that have served and are serving.  This weekend as you celebrate the Fourth take some time to reflect upon our freedoms.  Find a Vet and thank them.  Most of all take some time to thank our heavenly Father who has given us such freedom.  Then think about how you might do your part to extend that freedom to others.” 

That was what I wrote several years ago. You will note that the casualty numbers for Iraq and Afghanistan are lower than they are now. To date we have lost 4,362 lives in Iraq and 918 in Afghanistan. Now more than ever I stand in awe of those that have served and are serving. From the bottom of my heart, thank you Veterans!

Mark Brooks
Founder and President
The Charis Group

The other day I read a blog post by a former pastor. He is now out of full time pastoral ministry and in business for himself. He listed some of the lessons he had learned in the short few months that he has been in the secular world. Among some of his observations was the following:

I had NO clue the kind of financial, job, and family pressure most of our people were living with.

Criticism makes me better. I had shielded myself from criticism to the point that I couldn’t see my flaws. In the “real world” I don’t have that luxury.

He summed up his observations with this comment, “Overall, it is just amazing how out of touch I was with what was going on around me. God had to knock me down, humble me, and let me hit rock bottom where I can be more effective for Him in the future.” Could the same be said of you?

In the over eleven years since I left pastoring to be in the stewardship ministry I have had the honor to work with scores of pastors. I have literally been in every kind of context you can imagine. From traditional to ultra contemporary to super mega churches to emerging churches. I would have to say that what amazes me is how little pastors understand real life. If we are not careful we will be lumped with politicians as those totally devoid of understanding what our constituents are feeling.

How does this impact stewardship? As my old boss John Maxwell says, “You first must win their hearts before you ask for their hand.” With unemployment now over 10% our country is nervous about the future. Do you understand those fears? Can you relate? As a small business owner I can tell you my perspective is much different than when I was a Senior Pastor. Can you relate to the business owners of your congregation?

At a time when finances are tight you will have to work even harder to gain the confidence of those in your ministry. However when you do show you care, that you truly understand, they will rise up and support the work of ministry God has called you to.

Do you truly get what you people are feeling? If not it could be a long hard year for you and your ministry!

Mark Brooks
Founder and President
The Charis Group

The nation’s largest charities anticipate that giving will decline in 2009 by a median of 9 percent according to The Chronicle of Philanthropy. They further state that the fund-raising outlook for 2010 is not much better. The question I have for you is how will you fare in 2009?

Before we explore more about how you will fare let’s talk about some other interesting findings of The Chronicle of Philanthropy’s study of the biggest 400 charities in America. Only 16 were religious groups. Some religious groups were listed in categories such as social services since that is their primary work. Even though few are primarily religious in nature we can still learn a lot from this report.

Here are some observations that I had after reading the report.

Not all charities saw a decline in their giving.

Some saw a decline in 2008 but are poised to see an increase in 2009.

Others that saw an increase in 2008 are seeing a decline in 2009.

The over all rank or size of a charity made little or no difference in out come.

6 of the 16 listed religious charities saw a decline.

Overall these 16 saw a decline of .6% from ‘08 to ‘07.

Here is what The Chronicle of Philanthropy said these top 400 charities were doing in response to the recession. “The biggest charities are stepping up their efforts to solicit individuals, trying to explain more clearly why they need money, focusing on donors who have stopped giving, experimenting with new methods of online fund raising, and putting more time and effort into securing planned gifts.”

My question is what are you going to do about the possible decline in giving in 2009 and 2010? From the quote above it is apparent that these top charities are not going to just hope things get better. They have devised a plan of action and are working that plan. What are your plans? How will you end these last few months on a positive note? How will you get the new year off to a positive start?

Another question I have for you is this, are you even thinking about this? Sadly I find that too few give any amount of time to their stewardship plans. Those that leave it up to hope are typically the first to experience declines in giving. So, start now, if you have not already, to make sure that you end on the best footing for 2009. Ending well will set you up to start well.

As always if you need help we are here to provide that help for a price you can afford.

Mark Brooks
Founder and President
The Charis Group

Yesterday one of my clients emailed me the following question. He wrote, “I have a question for you. Someone just sent a pledge in the mail today for $4,000. They also sent the entire amount in as well. Should we acknowledge them in a letter of thanks? How should we thank them, and maybe encourage them to think of us next year as well?” This layman intuitively knew that his church needed to respond in some way. He is far ahead of most churches in America. Most churches make a deadly mistake of either ignoring donations or taking them for granted.

I wish my own church were a bit better at this. For three weeks I have been getting letters every Tuesday about my lack of a pledge to the annual budget. It is clear that on Monday’s someone in the office checked the list of those that had not pledged and cranked out another letter. It always came on Tuesday. My wife finally came home after being in Oklahoma tending to her ill mother and we put our pledge card in the offering plate on Sunday. Yesterday, the first Tuesday after putting our pledge in the plate, there was no mail from my church. To be fair maybe some acknowledgement will come in the next few days. However I can not help but wonder why the appeal letter was mailed on a Monday arriving at my house on Tuesday and nothing acknowledging our commitment came in the same timely way.

Churches are sometimes their own worst enemies when it comes to raising funds. The list of things they do wrong fills book after book. There are at least two major mistakes they make that I want to point out in this post in hopes that you and your church will avoid them. Making these mistakes can and will cost you thousands of dollars in support.

Deadly Mistake Number One: Taking donors for granted. Too many churches just assume that members will give. Of course your members are suppose to give. Of course it is a biblical requirement. Of course it is our obligation. You however should not take that for granted.

Thirty three years ago my wife married me. She loves me, faults, there are many, and all. As Christians we understand that we are obligated to love one another. Yet it would be a tragic mistake if I did not continually tell her I loved her and worked to show her by my actions that I love her. I assume she loves me. I will never take her love for granted.

When I was a Senior Pastor I had a man come to see me to explain why he and his wife were leaving our church. He had come to know Christ while listening to me preach one Sunday. I was stunned. His reasoning further stunned me when he said, “You never tell this congregation that you love us.” Of course I loved them! I had however made a cardinal error. I had assumed that they knew I loved them. Assumption is a nasty disease that will hurt you.

Lesson Number One: Don’t take your members donations for granted!

Deadly Mistake Number Two: Never saying thank you. Have you ever held a door open for someone and they never thanked you but simply breezed through like that was what you were suppose to do? How did it make you feel? It probably caused you to be slightly indignant. It might have even made you question ever holding open another door. If you never acknowledge the donations made by your members you give them the same mis-givings. Never saying thank you is much akin to taking donors for granted. Together they can combine to make a one two knock out punch to your ministry.

The other day I read a fundraising blog, I read about fifty a day, that gave the advice of personally writing to top donors. They talked about how in this rush to use technology that sometimes a personal touch can go a long ways. I have to confess that I do so much on a computer that I can hardly write by hand! However think about it. Do you still go to the mail box daily in hopes of something other than bills? How would your donors respond to a thank you note written by you? While you might not be able to do that for all your donors should you not find some way of saying thank you?

Think again about my illustration of opening the door for someone. When a person smiles at you and thanks you for your kindness how does that make you feel? It makes you feel like doing it again and again. So, why would it be any different to do this for your donors? You should develop multiple ways to thank your donors both publicly and privately. It could mean in the end thousands of dollars to your ministry.

Lesson Number Two: Continually thank your donors!

I wrote back to my client who asked about acknowledging the gift that it was indeed a good step to take. I told him that I would simply thank the donor and not mention future gifts. In thanking this donor for their gift that alone would pave the way for future gifts to come.

I wonder how many gifts are lost because we take for granted that people will give and then when they do give we never say thank you? Don’t make these mistakes in your ministry.

Mark Brooks
Founder and President
The Charis Group

With the recent third quarter spurt of growth many are proclaiming that the recession is over. While that might be true from a “technical” point, emotionally the mood across America is little changed. The recession continues to depress growth in nearly every quarter of our economy including churches.

A friend asked me the other day what I thought of the mood of the country was with regards to the recession. My answer was one word, fear. While few might admit it in that strong of a word it none the less is the overall mood from Wall Street to Main Street. That fear is finding its way into the board rooms of countless churches across America. If left unchecked it will set the church back for years. In what is our greatest opportunity in years to share hope we in the church are missing the moment.

Peggy Noonan in a column this past weekend in the Wall Street Journal summed it up well. She said, “The biggest threat to America right now is not government spending, huge deficits, foreign ownership of our debt, world terrorism, two wars, potential epidemics or nuts with nukes. The biggest long term threat is that people are becoming and have become disheartened…” She then went on to explain that this mood exists because first, people do not think they can make it better and secondly because the problems seem too big.

Never one to be shy about my opinions let me weigh in on the failures that have put us in this position.

Our political leaders in both parties have failed us. Politics has always been divisive in American life. However if there is one unifying thing, a result of the current political crisis, it is that Americans are becoming one in their distrust of anything from Washington D.C. None of the above is fast becoming the party of choice. A president that was elected with such high hopes now sees his ratings at an all time low, near fifty percent.

Frankly the Democrats who now control all three branches of government can not even agree amongst themselves on how to govern. They can blame the past administration all they want but the truth is they have controlled Congress for nearly four years and the White House for nearly a year. They have showed nothing new to the American public and that public is growing restless. Republicans have fared none better and are simply seen as the party against whatever the Democrats are suggesting. You have to be for something not just against something.

Most Americans, including myself, feel that our politicians are too removed from real life issues. How many of them have actually run a small business? How many of them have had to worry from pay check to pay check about whether they can make ends meet? They seem to have lost any sense of reality of what Americans truly experience in day to day living. We desperately need leadership and it is not coming from Washington D.C.

Our greed was and continues to be our down fall. Let’s stop pointing fingers at the very few on Wall Street that received large bonuses. The rich are not the reason for our down fall. We need to look no further than our own sense of greed to find the culprit. We have chased a lifestyle that was unsustainable and are now surprised that the house of cards collapsed. Rather than take responsibility for our own stupidity in buying too large of a car, too big of a house and too many luxuries we seek to blame someone else. No bank forced you to sign that loan. Americans did it to themselves.

It’s time to stop blaming everyone else and start finding ways to live responsively. Here is the Churches big opportunity and we better not blow it. Teach those in your sphere of influence how to live responsible biblical lives and hope will return. Of all institutions ours should be the leader in this time of discouragement.

From Wall Street to the board rooms of business on Main Street the mood is caution. The result of this mood is that many projects are put on hold as business waits to see what will happen or when a return to normal will occur. Those same men and women then go into their churches board meetings and spread their fear and caution to the leadership of their church. As a result as never before the church is responding not with faith but with fear. We have let the mood of the country set our agenda rather than leading America with Godly vision. All our teaching on living a life of faith has gone out the door as we too often walk by sight rather than faith.

I am certainly not saying we should not consider the times we live in. Nor am I saying we should not listen to the voices of our lay leaders. I am saying it is more important have the mind of God through this time than the mind of man. My belief is that too many are frozen by fear in a time when we desperately need faith.

That faith can be found in a few places. Two years ago I began working with a church in Michigan that had already been feeling the impact of the recession. As they were preparing to build a new sanctuary many in the church questioned the timing of such a bold project. I had the pleasure of interviewing one businessman in the church about this. Here is what he said, “This has been the worst three years of business for me in the last thirty. Yet I think that as people are hurting they will be looking for some place for an answer. We must build this building to be ready to meet that need!”

Wouldn’t you like that kind of guy in your church? Who wouldn’t? I believe he was that kind of guy because his pastor was that kind of leader. What kind of leader are you? Are you the kind that inspires faith and action? Or are you the kind that causes others to shrink back in fear? A lot is riding on your answer to that question. Some see the glass as half empty and others see it as half full. How do you see the glass of this recession? What is your plan of action?

Mark Brooks
Founder and President
The Charis Group

Yesterday the Stock Market drop a hundred points. It’s now off its brief climb above 10,000 points. One of the main causes of the decline was the surprising fact that consumer confidence dipped after rising for several months. Just when we thought the end was here many are now expressing doubts about a recovery. As I have written before, when there are doubts on Main Street in consumer confidence you can be guaranteed it will effect your offering plate.

We in the Christian church appear to be little different from the world in that we seem to long for the return of the “good old” days. We are waiting for the return to normal before we move forward. Each day as we hear more depressing and negative economic news we wonder what our next step should be? This recession will recover slowly and continue to impact us for many more months. So the question must be what will you do?

Here are some thoughts…

Have the right perspective. Our hope as believers is not in the economy or in Washington D.C. Our hope is in the risen Lord! This is not the first recession the church has gone through. We made it through those just fine and we will make it through this one. If a recession is the worst hardship we have to bear we are blessed indeed. Around the world other churches are faced with much greater difficulty. Your perspective impacts your attitude and that spreads down line through your leaders and to your people. Now is the greatest time to embrace the hope that we have as believers.

Adapt a plan of action. Too few churches have any plan of action when it comes to stewardship. You can not simply roll with the punches during times like these. It takes smart decisive action. What are you doing to meet this challenge? What plans do you have? How much time are you personally spending on this plan? Too many have no plan at all and are simply hoping things get better. Hope is not a strategy!

Work your plan. Casey Graham in his blog post the other day talked about his time with New Life Church in Little Rock, AR. That church has been listed as one of the fastest growing churches in the country. Casey listed several things they were doing right. The first one was, You never quit talking about money. That might surprise you. My new book on Stewardship Myths has a chapter that deals with the myth that the church talks too much about money. The truth is we do not talk about it enough. What is essential is how you talk about it.

My point here is that you not only have to have a plan you have to work your plan. It can not be a one time thing. It has to be a year round thing. You as the pastor must be in the plan and you have to work the plan. It is just as important to work your plan as it is to have a plan. A hammer in the tool box does you no good if you do not use it.

Frankly no one knows how these next few months will shake out. There is a lot of conjecture about what the donor world will look like after the recession is over. At this point you and I can not wait to find out the answers. Growing churches grow despite the circumstances. Yours can too. Stop putting off acting now to avoid problems tomorrow. Hoping things will get better will not solve your problems that are fast coming your way. Prepare now for the future. The future is now!

Mark Brooks
Founder and President
The Charis Group