I’m often asked by pastors, business managers, and other parish leaders what is the No. 1 thing that a parish can do to “increase” stewardship.
Of course, there are many initiatives a parish can implement to help develop stewardship. But there is only one way to answer the question.
The answer is to conduct an EFFECTIVE stewardship renewal, and to do so once a year.
The stewardship renewal, in a nutshell, is a process that entails parishioners making concrete pledges of their time (commitment to prayer), talent (commitment to ministry involvement), and treasure (commitment to the offertory) once a year.
Sounds easy enough. But, in order to be truly EFFECTIVE:
√ The Stewardship Renewal needs to be done with equal emphasis on each of the three Ts: Time, Talent, and Treasure, and there needs to be proper follow-up so as to welcome people into parish ministries with open arms.
√ Hospitality needs to permeate the parish at all times.
√ It needs to be a process that educates parishioners and offers parishioners an invitation to grow in their faith.
√ And, above all, it needs to be a positive and formational time during which parishioners put more of their trust in Christ and take concrete steps in their faith.
If each of these steps are carried out, the results can be no less than miraculous:
√ You will see inactive parishioners return to practicing their Catholic faith and see parishioners who sporadically attend Mass suddenly begin attending each Sunday.
√ You’ll see parishioners young and old becoming more involved in the life of the parish.
√ Your ministries will see significant increases in participation.
√ Your parishioners who have never given anything financially will suddenly begin giving regularly, and those who are already giving regularly will increase their financial contributions.
√ You’ll see individual parishioners beginning to increase their personal prayer and hear stories of parish families now regularly praying together.
These amazing results are not too good to be true. I’ve witnessed similar transformations in hundreds of parishes all over the country, and I know firsthand that these types of results are attainable for any parish.
For the past 16 years, it has been a great joy of mine to be able to assist hundreds of parishes across the country, and across the world for that matter, to increase the practice of stewardship. Whether you have tried in the past to run your own “renewal” with limited success, or if you’ve never before conducted a renewal, I would be happy to learn more about your parish and share with you how conducting an EFFECTIVE and LIFE-CHANGING Stewardship Renewal can become a reality.
As always feel free to contact me at eric@catholicsteward.com and I’ll share with you what I can to help you and your parish.
