Browsing by Rob Blezard

Asset-Mapping Stewardship

Asset Mapping is a one hour to half day guided conversation that can best be described as a way of brainstorming real actions (the things we can do by putting existing assets together in new ways) and empowering people to do what their hearts tell them to do. From the Free Methodist Church in Canada.  […]

Earth Sunday Resources for Worship & Education

Earth Day, April 22, falls on a Tuesday this year, so why not plan an Earth Sunday — or Creation Sunday — on April 20 or April 27? You can make it a celebration of the natural environment in worship, and a special teaching opportunity for your Sunday school. Here are some places to get ideas and resources. (NASA photo: Public domain)

Essentials for a Successful Stewardship Strategy

Nearly every church faces two great challenges — developing more leaders and developing more resources to fund the ministries of the church. This video training series presents a plan for overcoming both of these challenges even as you increase your church’s effectiveness in carrying out the Great Commission. This training is divided into 13 short segments. Show all of the segments over a period of time or simply pick and choose those segments that best meet your church’s needs. (Photo: Rob Nguyen, Creative Commons)

Best Practices: Handling Church Offerings

Because not everybody is honest, even in church, congregations ought to have guidelines for handling the offering. Guidelines protect the church, the offering and the counters themselves. Here are some suggested guidelines from the West Ohio Conference, UMC. (Photo © James Steidl – Fotolia.com)

Stewardship is Rooted in Relationship

The starting point for stewardship is our relationship to God, says Methodist writer Larry Hollon. A vibrant, flourishing life occurs when we are in a right relationship with God and with others. These relationships inform us of our own value and the value of the gift of life, and its meaning and purpose.

Study Finds Link Between Happiness and Church

A scientific study suggests that joining a religious group could do more for someone’s “sustained happiness” than other forms of social participation, such as volunteering, playing sports or taking a class. Good news, from the Washington Post. (Photo © Maksim Bukovski – Fotolia.com)

Embracing Stewardship

“Why is stewardship so stinking difficult?” That’s a question you hear many congregational leaders ask, and it’s also a chapter in the new resource offered by Charles R. Lane and Grace Duddy Pomroy. “Embracing Stewardship” addresses that age-old question by offering both a solid theoretical/theological grounding and practical, down-to-earth approaches for making stewardship an everyday part of a congregation’s life together. An accessible, affordable resource.

Free E-Book: Stewardship Under the Cross

What you’ll get in this book is the experience and advice of one pastor struggling to remain faithful to God’s Word while leading his parish through a rough financial patch. There are plenty of stewardship programs out there – some good, some bad, and some ugly. While I do lay out the program we used at my parish, this is not a book about a program: it is a book about how to think about and teach stewardship as a Lutheran; a book about Law & Gospel, vocation, and liturgy. (From the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod. Photo © Pei Lin – Fotolia.com)

Stewardship as a Lifestyle

This brilliant and insightful workshop by former ELCA Presiding Bishop H. George Anderson helps bring church members into a fuller understanding of holistic stewardship. “Stewardship is like a magnet passing over the jumbled pins and needles of our life, organizing them into a meaningful pattern. Stewardship is the Christian lifestyle.” (Photo: Mimi_K, Creative Commons)  

Stewardship Grants Deadline Nears

The deadline is looming — March 15 — for applications in the latest funding round of the Stewardship of Life Institute’s grant program. SOLI grants provide money to help plan and implement projects to advance stewardship in the ELCA. Applications are submitted online. See details inside! (Photo by FrankieLeon, used by Creative Commons license.)