MondayMorningInsight - Leadership & Encouragement for Church Leaders

The Average Church Goer GIves at 2.56%

Posted by: Todd
Posted on: Wed, October 07, 2009
Viewed 441
(64) comments so far

2.56%. Seriously. The new study just released said that if people would only give 10%, there would be an extra $161 BILLION dollars to work with...

The report, published by Illinois-based research firm empty tomb, inc., also found that congregations continue to keep more money for their own needs instead of "benevolences" beyond the four walls of a church.

The good news. The general population gives just 1.8%, on average, to any kind of charity.

said churches have become complacent -- "lukewarm" is the term the Bible uses -- and are no longer challenging themselves to do extraordinary things. There is a "lack of vision" and churchgoers have a hard time seeing how their contribution to missions can affect the world or its problems.

"One of the changes that seems to have happened to the church in the United States is that it has moved away from vision," she said. "It's not challenging itself to be great. Don't go to safety, go for faithfulness."

Example A: the Southern Baptist Convention, the nation's largest Protestant body, which has set a goal of recruiting 2,800 missionaries to contact all "unreached" people groups, but has not laid out a financial roadmap, or price tag, for how to get there, she said.

One solution the report offers is through the idea of "wholesale billionaires" -- individuals with an ability to donate large sums of money -- and "retail billionaires" -- individuals whose small contributions, when combined with others, can add up for big impact.

The report suggests that if wholesale billionaires make a pledge to match the total amount given by retail billionaires, congregations will see the impact of their individual contributions, and be more inspired to give.

(OK, they lost me there... I understand, but that's kind of a weird way to go with the research).

What do you think? Have you done the research? What does YOUR church give, on average?

Todd

Comments

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Roger on Thu, October 15, 2009

There is no indication that this was a one time experience for Abraham. It would seem to a demonstration of a normal practice. Why would one not want to tithe and do it with a heart that honors God?
Steve Long on Thu, October 15, 2009

Roger,
Please post other cites where Abraham practiced tithing. A most useful cite would be one where he used his own bank account. I don’t mean to sound harsh about this but I have heard assertions like the one you make from the pulpit all of my life and they just ain’t true. If you want to beleive that Abraham was a tither that is fine but can you make that statement to the family of God with a straight face and scripture to support it?
RIck Cadden on Sat, October 17, 2009

I read every comment and it was good to hear it all. The reality is people are giving less to churches and the tithe is not embraced any longer. Its not all the fault of the church, just partly. Today debt is huge and has put families in bondage to the lender. The majority of people in church want to give, they just can’t. They are in too much debt! I see the church has two challenges before them. Teach and train people how to become debt free and show them the value of giving to the church. I for one want to see what good is being done as a result of my giving. I give it no strings attached but what is being done for the Kingdom. The more solid results i see from my giving the more i would give. Make sense?
Luke Parsons on Sun, January 31, 2010

Where is the world do you even come up with the notion of modern day tithing, As tithing appears today, it is not anywhere close to what tithing was described in the Law.
By what authority do we have to change what God already ordained in the text of the Law?
If you are going to bind your church to the Law, then they had better be taught that they better observe the entire Law…. oh yeah, for them (and you) Christ died in vain.
I would hate to be the one to stand before his maker who led HIS sheep astray in the search for church funding. The End never justifies the Means, ever!