Generous People: How to Encourage Vital Stewardship (Effective Church Series)

Our minister, Gray Norsworthy, is a reader himself who encourages others to read. Several years ago, when I became chair of the stewardship campaign, he loaned me several books, which were very helpful. When I became chair of the Stewardship Committee, I looked for resources to give guidance in educating a congregation about generous giving. I read several books, but "Generous People" was the best fit for our church. Shallowford is a very generous church; when asked to give for a special need, our members always give more than is asked for. The goal for the Stewardship Committee is to help these same people grow to approach their annual "estimate of giving" or "pledge" with this same attitude. After reading "Generous People," (and underlining much),I asked another member of the committee to read it. She liked it as much as I and also felt it was the right book for our congregation. I purchased 10 copies so that each member of the committee would have a personal copy. At the last meeting, several have read it and agree that it has good information, presented in a usable manner, which is especially appropriate for Shallowford.

The biblical term "stewardship" has been used so often to mean "fund-raising" that in my church we've had to stop using it in order to focus attention back onto its message that "The earth is the Lord's and everything in it," while "He has given us dominion over all the works of his hands." So it was with absolute glee that I discovered this unique book on true Christian stewardship. Eugene Grimm asserts, "Fund-raising is a financial matter. Stewardship is primarily a spiritual matter. Fund-raising is concerned with raising money for the budget. Stewardship relates to how we live out our commitment to Jesus Christ.... Stewardship is more than financial giving.... Stewardship is what we do after we say we believe." This book gives detailed, practical counsel on how to go about supporting the Lord's work in a local congregation, and it refreshingly insists that "When we look at principles for vital stewardship, we are looking at principles that can help people grow spiritually." Randy Alcorn writes more profoundly on the biblical principles underlying stewardship, and Larry Burkett provides more detailed advice for submitting our personal finances to the lordship of Christ. But after spending twelve years reviewing all kinds of literature on the topic of stewardship education, I know of no book that I can recommend more highly for pastors and church leaders who want to conduct an ongoing "stewardship campaign" that is intended not to raise money but to raise Christians.