Six Tips for Fundraising
Many aspiring (or existing) church planters tend to be anxious about how they’ll support themselves or raise enough money to get their church off the ground. As they prepare to plant their new church, they may feel completely overwhelmed by all of the financial needs it will require and whether or not they’ll be met. But it’s important to remember that, just like church planting, fundraising is a lifelong journey—every financial problem won't be solved right after your calling is affirmed. And that journey takes a trust that God will provide. It takes replacing fear with faith.
A potential church planter shouldn’t fear that God won't provide. Why? Because building churches is God's work. In Matthew 16:18, Jesus tells Peter he is the rock on which he will build his church. We are God’s workmen, but God is ultimately the one doing the building.
This isn’t to say that planters can sit back and let God do all the work. We need to be faithful, but we still need to be workmen. Countless pastors forgo learning to fundraise or speak about funds because they’re afraid to discuss money with those who pay their salaries. But consider this: Good seed produces good fruit. Bad seed produces bad fruit. But there is no fruit to be had in soil we never even try to work. Therefore, making fundraising a part of our toolkit is important.
Here are six tips on how to begin the fundraising that new ministries require:
1. Study what the Bible says about money.
If I were to redo my journey as a prospective church planter, I would make myself do a word study of all the times that Jesus talked about money. Jesus talked about money more than nearly any other topic, and he didn’t think it was a terrible thing or a necessary evil. And yet I held very negative views about fundraising and money.
Having the right biblical understanding of money would’ve helped me understand that we're all stewards of what God has given us. We're stewards of our different incomes and skills. We're stewards of relationships. All of these things—including money—belong to God. But he allows us to steward it for him, and he holds us accountable of that. If you go out as a potential church planter and start building relationships, the day may come when you share the vision with these people and they get excited about it and give toward it. Then, you've helped them be good stewards.
Moreover, there are many biblical episodes that encourage us not to worry as we fundraise. Jesus sees that a group of five thousand is hungry. They say to him, "We have only five loaves and two fish." They bring him the bread and fish. As you know, he does quite alright with five loaves and two fish. The disciples were worrying about how much money feeding that many people would cost—and yet God provided so much that there were leftovers! God can do whatever he wants.
When Jesus finds the coin and teaches his listeners to “render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's,” he reinforces the fact that there's going to be enough money to be able to handle the mission God gives us.
And Jesus freely identifies when money has become an idol for people, too. When the rich young ruler approaches him, Jesus tells him, "Sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me." The young ruler is dismayed by this. Instead of stewarding his wealth, he idolized it—and Jesus was okay with confronting him about it!
Church planters all over the world feel uneasy about talking to their friends and congregations about stewardship, the need to tithe, and the idol of wealth. They worry that they simply won’t get enough finances to do what God wants them to do. But keep Jesus’ instruction and encouragement about these matters fresh in your heart. Learn by his example and be confident in what God has said he will do.
2. Remember that you’re not alone. Networking is key!
We can’t start churches by ourselves. Just as God works in the life of somebody called to start a church, God works in the lives of the people that are going to give the money. He's calling people to do different things in order to get the church started. Because of this, you're not by yourself, even when you think you are.
Look and see what God has placed in your hand—your friends, your family, and your home church, for example. Church planters may also look to trusts or foundations for seed money. Find people who will champion your cause and work with you. For example, you may ask if the pastor of your home church knows any friends or other churches that could help this vision. These people may then become your champions to others that they know. This is one of the ways that God can multiply what was in your hand at the very beginning.
Always look for opportunities to grow your sphere of relationships. Do this not to use people, but to build genuine friendships with them and explore the exciting possibilities of collaboration. Broadening your circles is like dropping a pebble in water and seeing it ripple.
A wide network of relationships ensures that everyone, by God’s grace, has someone to turn to. Supporting each other this way is a part of discipleship—a part of getting to know our creator, getting to know Jesus Christ, and understanding what he wants us to do. And stewarding our gifts and finances is a necessary aspect of that. Remember that even in relationship-building, you are not alone. The Holy Spirit moves amid this process. He opens doors and he closes doors in his wisdom.
Even before you were called, God has given you relationships that you’ve probably never thought about in monetary terms before. Remember that there are people within the body of Christ who have been given the gift of generosity—and they may not even know it yet! God is already at work in others.
However, you may not experience that until you go out and share the vision.
3. Be able to present your vision for your church.
Obviously, you need to talk about your vision if you want people to contribute funds toward it. Your presentation for your plant doesn't have to be fancy. It just needs to cover the need your church is going to meet and the opportunity for others to contribute and join.
Make sure you can answer the question, “Why does this church need to be built?” This “why” is more important than the “how.” Be able to articulate the needs of your community and how the church plans to answer them. There are several types of needs you can talk about: the spiritual need, the social need, the cultural need, and so on. Talk about who you hope to reach: where they're from, what their hopes and idols are, and why they need the gospel. Then, explain why funds are necessary to make this happen and how you plan to use them.
A friend of mine named Randy started a church in Atlanta. When we were in seminary, every Saturday afternoon Randy would go sit under a tree with his big legal pad. He was thinking about the needs of Atlanta and what his church would do to meet them. He was considering the city's values, whether they were good or not-so-good. He put the vision for that church on paper. Make articulating your calling like this a frequent practice as you plan your church and describe it to others. This way, you are able to answer questions like, “Why?” in any place at any time.
Of course, there are a lot of other logistics to consider, like an overall timeline, executive budget, and staff salaries, but these are all down the road for a planter who is just getting started. During this preparation stage, the ways that you start thinking about your vision, research, relationships, and trust in God are key parts of building disciplines that bear fruit down the road.
4. Set up boundaries on when to bring up money.
For some, talking to family and close friends about funding a church plant can get a little hard. Sometimes, the hardest people to ask money from are those we’re closest to. Setting up boundaries can help with this.
I remember walking with a close friend out in New York City, when I stopped him on a street corner and said, “You know, I don't want you to think that I'm going to ask you for money every time you see me.”
“Oh, that's okay,” he said politely.
“No, it’s not,” I said. “What if we decided to talk about financial needs once a year?"
This one decision made things much easier for us. When we got together other times throughout the year, he didn't expect me to bring up money. Interestingly enough, it made him into the one that brought up money! It wasn’t uncommon for him to be the one to ask, "What do you need?"
That boundary helped me, and I think it helps church planters, too. When you protect your relationships from simply being about money, they enjoy a higher degree of trust—and, ironically, a higher willingness to be generous.
5. Get some training.
Every church in the world was started by somebody. Talk to them. Continue what you’re doing right now—reading books and articles on funding a church plant. If you try to start a church without research and instruction, you're going to make a lot of mistakes. Thankfully, there are a lot of people who have done this before to learn from.
6. Think of fundraising as a joy.
Lastly, consider this question: what if we viewed fundraising as something to celebrate instead of something to dread? We have the joy of going out and giving the incredible vision of God building his church. We get to give others the opportunity to join in and contribute to that story. And in the end, raising money is part of our discipleship—getting to know our creator more and more and discovering how he wants to use us in wonderful ways.
Fundraising grows us as Christians. One of the richest opportunities for growth in our lives is having to trust God for money. When prospective church planters go out, give their presentation, and talk about what we believe God's calling us to do, we have the joy of finding out if God's going to move in others’ hearts to join or not.
This process is a lot like evangelism. We aren't responsible for saving anybody through our own efforts without God’s help. We try our best as we tell people about Jesus Christ, and leave the results to God. Just because there’s no reason to give up ministry because not everyone responds to the gospel, there's no reason to give up fundraising if you hear some no’s. It's a daily lifestyle that the church planter has to take on.
We may be a little fearful, but we don't need to fear. Trusting in God is part of the journey for us. After we do that, we let the Holy Spirit work. If it doesn't work with one person, then we go to another. If we're sure of our calling, we can keep on being persistent.
Church planters are always on a faith journey. When it comes many needs–not just money–this journey involves trusting God to provide. We have to remember that everything won't take place right away. This requires faith, and faith is hard when you’re stepping into a big unknown like church planting. It can often seem like you're stepping into a void because you simply don't know what's going to happen. But God is there to guide you.
This tension and faith are part of our lifelong journey. But this journey is still a rich one. You'll feel weak at times, and strong at others. You'll have to show humility with people, just as you’ll have to be bold and take risks. Remember that ultimately, it's not about you being good enough. It's about Jesus doing that for you. It's about the one great church planter who's building his church—we just get to participate with him.
About the Author
Jay Kyle (1951-2022) was a foundational pioneer for Redeemer City to City and the co-founder of China Partnership. His decades of service to the world of church planting were invaluable to both CTC and the Christian mission as a whole.