About this new blog

Welcome to Church Development’s “Ask Denis" blog where I will share the latest research on stewardship and success stories from churches we serve around the country that are just like yours.

       I know you are busy, so my goal for the blog is provide you with really helpful, practical info about stewardship to help your church increase in generosity of time, talent, and treasure...without fundraising.

       What can you expect from upcoming blogs? We will cover topics like: how stewardship transforms lives, the secret lives of tithers, teaching kids about stewardship, and stewardship insights from some of America’s greatest business and ministry minds.

The Secret Life of Generous People

Becoming generous

Church Development’s most recent research project is working on better understanding how tithers made the shift from being casual donors to deliberately generous people.  We even have a guy with lots of letters after his name (as in a guy with a doctorate) designing the study.

Imagine how your stewardship effort with your congregation would improve if you knew how tithers grew from casual donors to fully engaged, generous stewards.

Over the past 30 years in the stewardship business, I have had the good fortune to meet many self-proclaimed tithers. After we finish our interviews, we’ll let you know who they are and why they are so generous.

The research

Church Development’s initial research on tithers indicates that while their incomes and life circumstances vary, tithers tend to behave in predictable patterns that are counterintuitive:

• Instead of complaining or begrudging a new fundraising initiative, tithers take on the air of investors and ask probing questions.
• Rather than concerning themselves with the obvious question of “where am I going to get the money to make a donation to this?” tithers want to know the details about the human impact of the project.
• Tithers display an attitude of anticipation, not one of exasperation and resistance.

This is fascinating information. What actually motivated you to give more? Was it scripture like Malachi 3:10 that challenges you to “test and see?” Does it have to do with Kohlberg’s stages of moral development or Maslow’s hierarchy of needs? Make sure to check out my future blogs to learn about the results.

An adventure

In my youth, I once leapt at the chance to go cave spelunking in the South African Drakensburg Mountains. To reach the first cave, it required me to squeeze through a narrow, damp, claustrophobia-inducing passage before opening up to a cavern that was a scary scene that looked like it was from Dante’s inferno. The second crevice called for squeezing sideways through a dark, slimy fissure before opening to a ballroom-sized cave with a reflective pool and stalactite chandeliers. As I approached the ensuing doorway to the next cave, I noticed my heart was beating with anticipation. I did not mind the cold slime of the mountain or the exertion of exploring; I could not wait to see what my hard work would yield.

Just as stewards anticipate the impact of their generosity, I am looking forward with excitement to what insights will come from our research on stewardship. The results are Kingdom changing!

Understanding stewardship

That is what Church Development is all about: The confluence of scripture and research around the topic of stewardship. Our ministry is church capital stewardship campaigns, but our passion is stewardship. Please tune in regularly for more insights on stewardship.