When clergy and church leaders are equipped and empowered to help believers become disciples of Christ, stewardship can thrive. Stewardship Services help shape leaders by:

• Working together to identify ways to weave stewardship into the church’s culture
• Connecting clergy and laity to share best practices
• Taking steps to decrease fear and anxiety around money
• Sharing resources from our ecumenical and other partners
• Financial training specific for clergy and church leaders

Stewardship Services can help you educate your members by about stewardship by:

• Facilitating workshops that help people have a holistic understanding of biblical stewardship
• Connecting you with educational resources
• Leading congregations through structured processes to identify resources and assets important to ministry
• Helping individuals, congregations, and agencies envision and clarify their future ministries
• Assessing the feasibility of various ministry options

Stewardship is so much more than an annual financial appeal; thriving stewardship ministries focus on gifts of time, talent, testimony, and treasure throughout the year. MMFA can help you view your stewardship with fresh eyes by:

• Looking at the congregation’s gifts: how they’re being used and how they make a difference
• Working with you to create a year-round stewardship ministry that incorporates congregations gifts, enhances minisry connections, includes communication strategies, and connects with the church’s mission and vision for the future
• Helping you learn best practices for investing, budgeting, and planned giving

• Discernment: Meeting with the pastor, joint board, and stewardship committee to understand what your church’s ministry of stewardship currently looks like, what you would like it to look like, and how we can help. We also conduct a stewardship health analysis of financial and membership data, as well as spiritual, ministry, and stewardship-focused indicators.
• Focus groups: We lead conversations for members to articulate their understanding of stewardship, what it looks like, and what it accomplishes. We also discuss valued ministries and the challenges the church is facing, as well as the church budget, giving patterns and levels. Our report to church leaders summarizes our observations and recommendations, which may include advice on educating members, strengthening ministry connections, stewardship communication and how to incorporate gift planning.
• Stewardship messaging: We help your church inspire members to grow in their commitments of time, talent, and treasure by developing language, materials, and activities to support stewardship efforts throughout the year.
• Project-based feasibility studies: We listen to members to gauge the climate for capital fundraising, which includes assessing satisfaction with ministries and programs, determining the awareness and acceptance of the proposed areas for fundraising, and measuring the volunteer and financial potential for the campaign.
• Planned giving emphasis: We work with church leadership to identify ministries or funds for future gifts, create policies and collateral, and implement a plan to educate the congregation about planned giving and encourage gifts.
• Workshops: The 4 Ts of stewardship, year-round stewardship, asset mapping, narrative budgets, financial and gift planning, general giving, and more.