Administration, Financing and Construction Resources

to Help Manage the Business of the Church

Capital Stewardship Campaign Tips and Resources

A Church Capital Stewardship Campaign is a key part of a financial strategy for church construction.  Most churches can benefit from a capital campaign consultant, even if they have done it before.  A professionally executed capital campaign will typically raise, over a 3 year period, between 1.5 and 3x the church's current tithes and offerings, allowing your church to more quickly retire debt than without the capital campaign. This differs from church fund raising in a number of ways.

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A professionally facilitated capital stewardship campaign is carefully designed to help your  church:

• Raise the capital needed to accomplish church building goals through a professionally facilitated capital stewardship campaign plan.

• Assist in securing church financing.

• Secure 3-year pledges totaling 1½ to 3 times the current annual tithes and offerings.

• Educate congregation members on the Biblical aspects of stewardship and the spiritual blessing of worship through giving.

• Strengthen your leadership and staff in Biblical stewardship.

• Increase the congregation’s awareness and understanding of the church vision though the capital campaign.

• Clearly communicate the need to build and establish a case for action as part of the capital campaign plan.

• Increase regular tithes and offerings in addition to meeting your capital campaign goals.

• Validate your vision, mission and long range plans as part of the capital campaign.

• Identify major donors, and improve relationships with old ones.

• Create a capital campaign that will serve as the catalyst for change.

• Create a strong church, focused on God, eager to accomplish the vision and make the building project a success.

Preparing to Build contains an entire chapter devoted to Capital Stewardship and fundraising.

Many capital campaign clients regularly raise 1½ to 3 times their current annual tithes & offerings in 3-year pledges to the capital campaign. In addition, most churches find that they also receive an increase in regular giving, due to an increased awareness of Biblical stewardship during the capital campaign. This is spiritual work and comes from purposefully executing the capital fund-raising campaign plan.

A church's capital campaign is a key part of a church construction & church financial strategy. However, the term capital campaign can be a bit of a misnomer, as your capital campaign is less about money than spiritual understanding and growth. A capital fund-raising campaign is about helping your people understand: what and why you need to build to accomplish God's vision mission for your church, what their responsibility is as a member of that body, and what God's Word teaches us about giving. If you do those things well, by God's grace and the power of the Holy Spirit, the money will take care of itself.

While nuances differ between capital campaign vendors, the capital campaign starts slowly and increases in excitement as it continues through the three month campaign. The program uses numerous tools: letters, sermons, testimonials, newsletters, videos, announcements, posters, mailings, meetings, postcards, personal visits, and more, to immerse the congregation in the vision of the ministry, and the need for financial support during the capital fund-raising campaign. While all of this is happening, considerable time is spent in prayer and fasting to understand God's will during the process. All this leads to an exciting celebration that prepares the congregation to make generous pledges to support the vision of the church through the church capital campaign.

If the capital fund-raising campaign is executed as designed, a professionally facilitated campaign will involve, educate and excite your people and help them grow in their faith.  A good capital campaign will clearly describe what can happen if the vision is met and what their generous pledges will do for the long range future of the church and for each individual within the church. A capital campaign communicates to your people that the church can be successful, and shows them how they can be part of that success though capital stewardship.

A capital fund-raising campaign plan will help church members experience the communion of a shared goal, the excitement of success and the power of faith, all in a context consistent with your church’s vision and goals. Individual members and the church body as a whole will experience Christian growth through prayer, focused Bible study and an opportunity to actively support the things that God wants for both the church and the individual.

Many churches raise much more money than they thought possible through a capital stewardship campaign, and are able to start on their church building program earlier and with less debt than originally planned. The church can realize growth plans and start programs and ministries that make real differences in people's lives due to a professionally executed capital campaign.