stewardship for all seasons
Developing Successful Stewardship In Your Church
A proven approach to engage your congregation to living and giving generously.
1
Increase weekly giving year after year
We’ve helped over 300 churches in just a few years grow their giving by 10% or more in the first year alone.
2
Change your church’s culture of giving
Change congregation’s attitude from scarcity to abundance. Guide people to experience the joy of giving.
3
Fully-inclusive process to reach your goals
Learn directly with an expert GSB consultant as your guide. Our comprehensive handbook will be your roadmap. Create effective materials using proven templates from our digital library.
The Stewardship For All Seasons was a game changer for our church. I got involved because I’d personally seen how it radically improved giving in the church in which I grew up in Richfield, Minnesota. Here, giving went up over 13% the first year. Now, years later, it is up far more than that despite a capital campaign (done concurrently) which raised pledges of 2.5x our annual budget. This past year, we had over 80+ first time pledges. Challenging your people to give financially in a way that helps them to do so is at the heart of discipleship.
Andy Romstad, Sr. Pastor, Cambridge Lutheran, Cambridge MN
Overview
We teach core principles and methodologies learned through 40 years of success guiding development programs of church-related organizations.
It is effective in diverse settings – large, small – rural, urban.
What Makes It Work? Your dedication to a two-year timeframe. Your knowledgeable GSB consultant is committed to your success. Typically, expect a 10% or more increase in annual giving during the first year. Your continued engagement will mean continued increases. Our strategy is proven. In the last few years, we’ve helped over 300 congregations like yours fund their mission, change the culture of giving, and increase the generosity of their people.
Here’s what to expect with the initial two-years:
Year One
Work sessions with our consultant, pastor and congregation’s Stewardship For All Seasons Team will:
- Prepare all aspects of the Annual Giving Appeal
- Monitor and support Appeal activities as they unfold
- Direct the Appeal follow-up effort
- Review and evaluate the completed Appeal
- Prepare recommendations for improving next year’s Appeal
- Design the annual Stewardship Development Calendar
- Conduct Special Gifts Appeal
- Create the multi-year Stewardship Development Plan
Year Two
- Nurture and equip the Stewardship For All Seasons Team to improve effectiveness in working with donors
- Launch or enhance Planned Giving program for estate gifts
- Assess need for and timing of a capital campaign
- Prepare and carry out the next Annual Giving Appeal
- Assure the Stewardship Development Calendar is followed
If this sounds like something you’re already doing, is it working for you? Do you believe you can do better than you are? Do you wish more people understand the importance of giving like you do? Over the course of the two-year initial working relationship, a GSB consultant will challenge you, motivate you to think deeper, and truly consider big “what if” ideas your congregation might have.
Two years ago, we jumped on board the Stewardship For All Seasons program after hearing how great this program was from colleagues of mine in Iowa. In our first year (2018) as we were finalizing our 5 year long term plan, we saw a dramatic increase in pledging: 40 new families pledged and we increased our giving by $45,000. In our second year (2019) we saw an increase in pledges by another $45,000, which shocked and delighted the congregation.
Rev. Carey Hovland, Peace Lutheran Church, Beavercreek, OH
Results
Through your investment with Stewardship For All Seasons, you will transform your congregation. We’ll guide you through the steps to maintain effective stewardship on your own. GSB often continues to serve congregations seeking to move into more productive development activities, creating deeper generosity and generating more giving.
We have experienced the following results and transformations in the congregations, synods, districts and conferences we have helped.
- Vision and mission of the congregation clearly communicated and understood.
- More money generated each year to fund ministry.
- Your knowledgeable GSB consultant is committed to your success
- Team of leaders gain experience and skills to build their congregation’s on-going stewardship program.
- A path to comprehensive stewardship development including annual giving, capital campaigns and endowment funds is created and implemented
- Hand-tailored, customized, holistic, multi-year stewardship plan for the congregation.
A Congregation’s Story
Setting:
First ring suburb. Membership declining. Primary givers retiring. New members have fewer financial resources.
Factors:
Pastor and leaders committed to learn and apply the Stewardship For All Seasons method and principles.
Results:
Giving grew significantly each year over seven years. Pastor and leaders gained skills and experience which led to a comprehensive and productive giving program for their church.
Year
Actual Giving
Giving Increase
New Giving Total
Year One
$382,000
$72,960
$456,960
Year Two
$456,960
$50,266
$507,226
Year Three
$507,226
$9,130
$516,350
Year Four
$516,350
$83,444
$599,800
Year Five
$599,800
$100,200
$700,000
In short, your culture will transform from one of “paying for salaries and lights” to “how can we enrich the lives of our people and community?”
GSB worked with our leadership team to implement a comprehensive stewardship plan, encouraging us to address stewardship year-round and helping to empower congregational members to share stories of generosity. As a result, our giving has increased by nearly 25%, and more importantly, there is a greater consistency in giving. The year after our first campaign, our congregational income never failed to exceed our expenses, even with the drop in attendance during the summer. We continue to see our stewardship grow and improve beyond what we could have ever hoped for. I wholeheartedly recommend GSB!
Pastor Desirée Uhrich, Christ Lutheran Church, Minot, ND
What's Included?
Your investment in GSB’s Stewardship For All Seasons includes the following:
1. Dedicated GSB Consulting Team
Our team brings years of experience and results to help fund your mission. Your primary guide throughout the process is the committed involvement of GSB’s congregation experts to train and guide you, answer questions, help shape the process to fit your unique plans, and keep your team accountable and on schedule. Single churches and small groups will typically work with one of our consultants through the process. Larger clusters will typically have a 2 or 3 person team supporting them. The Stewardship For All Seasons process includes training for you and your leaders – lasting, foundational skills that will help serve you well throughout your ministry.
2. Stewardship For All Seasons Handbook
GSB has created a 129 page Handbook that each congregation receives to help reinforce GSB’s guidance. The Handbook is your roadmap. It provides all the detailed information of the multi-year process for building a stewardship development program including:
- seasons in the development year.
- How-to-guide to conduct an annual giving appeal.
- Leader's Manual with step-by-step action plans, sample materials, calendars and checklists for the appeal.
- Evaluation And Planning to learn from stewardship activities and to progress every year toward more productive annual, capital and endowment efforts.
- Study resources recommended to deepen understanding of Christian stewardship.
- preparation for a capital campaign, special appeals, promoting and securing estate gifts for endowment, and increasing giving through assets and current income.
3. Digital Library
Includes samples of letters, brochures, planning tools, checklists. You will be able to use proven language and approaches to get the results you need to fund your mission.
4. Online Community
Congregations can be connected online through our project management platform. Here you can share documents, ask questions, see your calendar, and interact with others in your group and GSB consultants. You can access webinars, video conferences, updates and new ideas that work.
5. Bible Study & Stewardship Resources
Dr. Kay Conrad, a GSB Associate, has written Faithful Living/Joyful Giving, a thought-provoking study, suitable for small or large groups. It ties in with the six-week annual stewardship appeal. A Leaders Guide is included with a three-ring binder. You can also purchase a guilt-free stewardship guide by Dr. Conrad.
Order ResourcesI don’t think I have ever, ever, enjoyed Stewardship as much as I have with SAS. What SAS gave to our Stewardship Team is “Permission to be creative.” By the SAS Team taking on the tasks of dollars and cents, charts, letter writing, what to ask for, when to ask for it, etc, along with the design and printing of the materials, and keeping us on task, our team was free to create, and create we did. Our Stewardship Team is made up of people who have specific gifts. We stepped out of the box completely even with the music – always tying it back to stewardship. The congregation loved it! Last year was fun, but this year was amazing…laughter, joy, creative energy filled the community. The guidance, support, knowledge and now the ability to keep it “alive” through the year and not just six weeks, all comes from being part of SAS. I’ll say it again, I have never enjoyed stewardship as much and look forward to seeing where God leads us next year!
Carol Gates, Lamb of God Church, Ft. Myers, FL
Investment
Changing the stewardship culture in a congregation is a process that takes time. We’ve seen too many congregations try something new one year, achieve great success, and then forget about stewardship until their giving starts dipping a few years later. Then the cycle repeats. We want you to achieve an ongoing cultural change around giving that frees you to focus on the growth and mission of your ministry.
We achieve results through a commitment. The initial contract between GSB and congregation(s) or groups covers a twenty-four month period. The typical agreement includes consultation services, three copies of the Stewardship For All Seasons Handbook, and custom designed materials for the Annual Giving Appeal.
Congregations have found great value in coming together to learn and experience Stewardship For All Seasons. While GSB often arranges to work with one congregation at a time, options are available for congregations to join together. Groups of congregations (called “Cohorts”) can be convened by synods, districts or conferences – or by informal arrangement. In the group setting, your team will gather for planning workshops to learn how to conduct Stewardship For All Seasons and encourage and learn from other groups as they build their stewardship development programs.
After years of doing fall stewardship campaigns to fund the annual mission budget, we chose to participate in the GSB Stewardship for All Seasons program. It fully engaged our leadership team and congregation. We saw growth in commitments. And the big surprise was that the Special Appeal phase coached by GSB raised $227,000 in cash for parking lot updates - an accomplishment no one expected.
Kent Stillson, Sr. Pastor, Lutheran Church of Our Redeemer, Watertown, SD
GSB Team
Consultants who are your partners and guides though the entire process.
Our GSB team is committed to strengthening charitable causes to change the world through generosity. We can’t change the world without changing the culture of giving in the church. Your dedicated GSB consultant will walk alongside you through this process.
Our experience will help you understand what parts of the process are crucial to getting the results you need, as well as how to modify the process to fit your unique situation. The Stewardship For All Seasons Handbook empowers you to understand and participate fully in the process. We work with you. It’s our goal that once you’ve implemented Stewardship For All Seasons and benefited from our GSB coaching, you will continue leading this process on your own.
We work with congregations, synods, districts and conferences across the country teaching and guiding Stewardship For All Seasons programs.
Scroll through to meet our team.
Because of our work with GSB, our congregation is in a very strong financial position. We had a surplus last year that we could add to our reserve fund, and it takes worry away from us in this time. The stewardship work we have done has made this not as worrisome as it could have been. Our first three months this year put us well ahead of where we were before.
Rev. Nathan Rice, St. Luke Lutheran Church, Summerville, SC
READY TO GROW YOUR STEWARDSHIP?
Take the next step!
Fill out the form to learn more about Stewardship For All Seasons and see if the program is right for your church.