Stewardship resources for church leaders
Share these helpful resources with your stewardship team.
Advocate instructions:
- Clicking on the links will open/download the corresponding resource. Share these helpful resources with your pastor(s), stewardship team and other church leaders.
- You will be asked if you shared used these resources and if they were helpful to your church when you fill out your next report.
Resources for quarter three 2025
Message from an Everence expert
Investing in our faith: Are you looking for opportunities to grow in your faith? In your congregation? Wherever you are on this stewardship journey, the wisdom in Hebrews 12 remains relevant. Learn more by reading this quarter’s message from Colin Saxton, Stewardship Theologian and Director of Church Relations.
A church in South Bend, Indiana, was struggling to meet their budget. Then, they embarked on a two-year journey to change their view of finances and stewardship.
Learn more about how Prince of Peace Church of the Brethren worked with their Stewardship Consultant, Marlene Kroeker, and how Everence can help your church.
Stewardship ministry assessment tool: Due Sept. 1
Everence offers a Stewardship Ministry Assessment Tool to help your church reflect on its stewardship ministry now and make plans for improvements ahead.
What you need to do: Work with your congregation's stewardship team on the comprehensive PDF version. Then, officially submit your assessment answers to Everence via the online form by Sept. 1
ARCHIVE
The resources previous will continue to be available to for reference and use but are considered archived. These resources will not be referenced on your next report.
Resources from quarter two 2025
Why saying “thank you” is important
Does your church express thanks to its givers? Are you acknowledging all the people and ways they give? Director of Stewardship Education Beryl Jantzi shares why he thinks this practice is so important for church leaders.
A theological case for senior healthcare
The scriptural command to love one another (John 13:24), has always been central to mission of Everence. Today, matters of health and healthcare are often the most pressing pastoral needs in our communities, especially among our seniors. But how does contemporary pastoral care reflect the current cultural and economic landscape seniors face? Stewardship Consultant Franco Salvatori shares his insights.
Everence Journey Award
Do you know someone who is a role model when it comes to being a responsible steward of his or her gifts and resources – including time, talent, money, health and the earth? Then nominate them for an annual Everence Journey Award! Journey Award recipients receive a combination award gift:
- A donation to a nonprofit organization of their choice – $5,000 for national award recipients and $1,000 for regional.
- A "blessing cup" – symbolizing how Journey Award recipients are like vessels that hold and nurture resources for God's work during their stewardship journeys.
Nominations are due by April 30. Learn more here.
Resources from quarter one 2025
Stewardship ministry resource tracker
A vibrant stewardship ministry doesn’t happen overnight – luckily Everence is here to guide your church on its journey. At the beginning of each quarter, we send you a variety of resources in the newsletter, Stewardship and You; at the end of the quarter, we will ask you if and how you used those resources. This tool can help you audit your congregation’s use of Everence resources.
Use this resource tracker to note the resources from the newsletter, plan when and how you will use them, and keep any reflections about their value or success in your congregation.
Sermon resource: Stewardship Sunday 2025
Everence has put together an outline of a Sunday service to encourage stewardship in your congregation. We highlight three scriptures during the flow of the service. Revelation 22 is the call to worship, Genesis 2 is a focus text for the sermon, and Psalm 1 is referenced at the conclusion. Feel free to explore and expand on these texts as you take this outline and make it your own.
In our 2024 Stewardship Ministry Assessment Tool, only one in four congregations reported inviting end-of-life gifts through beneficiary designations on wills/trusts and retirement accounts.
In general, about one-fourth of a household’s lifetime giving is to their congregation, but only about five percent of charitable gifts made through wills goes to the local church.
A primary reason for this difference is because churches don’t promote these gifts as much as other non-profit organizations do.
Learn about estate gifts so you are equipped to answer questions from your attenders. And at least once per year (preferably quarterly), consider using a bulletin or newsletter announcement like the following:
Have you considered including our congregation in your estate plan as part of your final act of stewardship? Doing so can be as easy as naming the Everence Foundation as a beneficiary in your will, trust or retirement account and having a Charitable Gift Recommendation Form on file with them. Your Everence Financial or Stewardship Consultant can assist you with this and other estate planning considerations.
Online giving for congregations
We encourage your congregation to consider the option of online giving if you have not already. The flyer at the link below offers some guidance on how to start the conversation with your congregation and steps to make this initiative a success.