Build a congregational team for the annual stewardship appeal
by Angela Emerson
Mountain Echo, June 2008

Start now—not July, and not August, and not September. Start building your congregation’s team now. “Building” is the key word here. “Building” suggests a process, not a single act. In fact, building a stewardship team is about multi-tasking. It involves making a list of the skills needed on the team, developing written job descriptions, face to face “recruiting” interviews, a program of Bible study, and active support and encouragement along the way.

A priest need not attend each committee meeting or lead the work. However, the willingness of the pastoral/liturgical leader to participate actively in building a team can significantly facilitate this work. The opposite is likewise true. If the pastoral/liturgical leader is not willing to “build” the team, the work will be much less effective.

In order to assemble a team that will organize and carry out an effective campaign, a leader is needed with a skill-set appropriate for stewardship development. This person, in the ideal world, should be a tither, or a committed proportional giver with an ability to talk about his or her own struggles with money. The stewardship chair is the theological anchor, who is actively supported and nurtured by the priest.

The chair needs to be committed to opening and closing the meetings with prayer and putting Bible study at the core of the training for Stewardship Committee members. The Scripture passages for study can be selected by the chair and priest in consultation. If a theme has been selected, choose Bible passages that will help the team grow in their understanding of the theme and what it means for the congregation.

To be effective, the chair needs another person who is good at planning and has an eye for details, someone who can gently but effectively keep everyone on track. In addition, is there someone in the parish who is gifted in “recruiting” others to help with the work? The committee needs such a person. The more people that are involved in carrying out the campaign the more results the campaign will yield. The team also needs someone who loves liturgy, who loves (or is willing to learn) to write special prayers of the people and help plan the liturgical aspects of the annual commitment campaign. This is an often-overlooked opportunity to enrich the educational component of a stewardship campaign. Rounding out the core of the committee should be someone who is creative and fun-loving, someone who is always interested in celebration and fun! Others can and should be recruited as needs/skills are identified.

The team assembled to work with the stewardship chair must work together to plan the campaign—including the development of a timeline and task list—manage the allotted budget, plan and tend to all the logistical details, and be welcoming and friendly participants in the program. Recruit. Do not beg and do not take random volunteers. Be a thoughtful recruiter. Take time to develop real job descriptions and sit down face to face with the people who have the needed skills.

The task of the pastoral leader is to deepen the theological understanding of the committee members about why Christians need to give and to help the committee members share their stories—stories of the joy that comes from giving of oneself, one’s time and one’s money, and stories of challenges faced and of how God has worked in their lives. They in turn can create opportunities for members of the congregation to share their stories.

If a congregation accomplishes these things and nothing else, it will have a group of more committed givers who will joyfully share their stories with others. People who experience the deep joy of giving give more, and they invite and inspire others to do the same.

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