Yesterday once again my Director of Marketing Tom Holloway and I discussed how pastors and churches are so slow in making decisions.  If you have read my blog for any length of time you will realize that this is a familiar rant of mine.  It is one of the biggest stumbling blocks to growth that I encounter as I work with churches.  I commented to Tom that if we had a dollar for every time we had discussed this issue we could eat at the best place in Atlanta.  There are times that in frustration I want to shout, “What are you waiting for?”  So it might be the same hymn but different verses but here is my perspective on this.

What are you waiting for, when building costs are at their lowest and interest rates are at their lowest? There has not been a better time to build that next project than now.  Prices are at all time lows compared to recent years.  You are going to get more building for less dollars than in recent memory.  Builders and architects are hungry for work and have slashed their prices.  On top of that interest rates are at an all time low.  The price of borrowing might never be this low again.  The low interest rate will save you thousands of dollars over the course of your loan.  When you add both of these advantages up you have to wonder what churches are waiting for.

What are you waiting for, when you know you will ultimately build? We speak almost daily with churches that tell us they have delayed the start of their building for whatever reason.  As a result they see no need to begin raising funds for a building that might be twelve to twenty four months out.  You could not be more wrong!  We always tell our clients that you raise money not based upon brick and mortar, the building, but upon a compelling vision.  My former boss John Maxwell, when he was a pastor raised millions of dollars for a relocation project that was years from becoming a reality.  The fact of the matter is that you will need lots of cash to even begin your project.  You will be amazed at how quickly the bills will mount even before you move one shovel of dirt.  So, the sooner you start raising money the better you will be positioned to meet those needs.

Additionally, while bank loans are at an all time low, getting one is a challenge.  We have been repeatedly told by bankers that they are requiring much more of a cash reserve than ever before.  We have two clients who are struggling to get loan approval simply because their banks are requiring $500K held in reserve.  This is almost one half of a year’s budget for each of these churches!  While your bank might have a different criteria you can be sure that if you have a healthy cash reserve you will get better terms and more interest in loaning you the money.  Waiting to begin raising funds will only cost you in the future.

What are you waiting for, when the need is so great? If you need additional facilities and are delaying for whatever reason you are in reality endangering your momentum.  The fact of the matter is that growing churches need additional facilities.  There is just so many services you can hold, so many people you can pack in the chairs and so many temporary trailers you can put on your property.  I am reminded of the businessman in Michigan whose church was considering building a new sanctuary.  Many of the leaders in the church were questioning such a move given the economy of Michigan.  When I asked him his opinion he said, “This has been the worst three years of business for me in the last thirty.  Yet when I think about the needs of people hurting in this economy I know they will be looking for answers.  I think we have to build the new sanctuary to meet that need.”  The first Sunday in June I was in that new sanctuary for the dedication service.  Already this church is experiencing great growth as a result of seeing a need and not waiting.  If a church in Michigan, one of the hardest hit states in this recession, can build a new sanctuary, what is your excuse?

So, let me ask you, What are you waiting for?  The economy to get better?  The election to come and go?  The sun to shine brighter?  If God has spoken, and that truly is the key issue, what are you waiting for?  While waiting at times makes sense, make sure that the reasons you are waiting for are legitimate and not a lack of faith.  As my pastor once said, “If fear and failure were not an option what would you do?”

What are you waiting for?

Mark Brooks

Founder and President

The Charis Group

Not long ago I was at lunch with a pastor who had contacted us about helping his church.  At one point in the conversation about our three year proposed partnership he asked how he could trust me.  My response back was to ask him how I could trust him?  It was as if I had punched him.  While he was recovering from the shock that I would question him or his churches trust I went on to tell about all the times churches have failed to meet their end of the bargain.  While it happens infrequently it does happen.  I quickly moved past that fact and addressed his original question.  My advice to him is I think good advice to us all as we seek to partner with others outside of our church.

Fact check the firm. All firms should give you a list of references for you to contact.  Don’t just take the firms word on how wonderful they are, check it out.  Call the references that they give you and ask penetrating questions.  Ask the references the questions that you might have uncertainty about in terms of the firm fulfilling its promises.  Then ask them if you can talk to someone else.  Why?  Any reference given to you is going be on friendly terms with the firm.  Why else would they give you the reference?  Ask if they know of other churches that you might contact.  Go deeper than just the simple questions that might come to mind.  In the end you will be glad you did.

What questions should you be asking? I find that most churches ask the wrong questions when it comes to references.  This might be that the decision has already been made and they simply want confirmation not real information.  So, if I were you, what questions would I be asking of my references?  Here are some for consideration.

Were they true to their word?

Were you pleased with the value you received overall?

Did they work to fit to your culture or did you have to adapt to their culture?

Did they stay with you until the end of the engagement?

Did you have the same consultant throughout or were you never quite sure who was your consultant?

When was the last time they called you to initiate a conversation?

Did they enhance your ability in areas that you were weak in?

Would you use them again?

Would you recommend them to a friend?

Checking references is the only way to tell if a firm has a history of standing by their word or not.  If they were faithful in the execution of a partnership with another church it gives you a better reason to trust them with your church.  Don’t just blindly take a persons word.  After all the fee you will pay is a result of some donor’s contribution to your church.  As such you must be a good steward of the money entrusted to you.  That includes engaging outside help.

Also, make sure that you hold up your end of the bargain.  The Scripture says that the laborer is worthy of his hire.  That includes outside firms you contact with for services.  Pay your bill on time and fulfill your end of the trust equation.

Mark Brooks

Founder and President

The Charis Group

The reality of building projects is that they cost much more money than can be raised with one capital stewardship campaign.  I often cite my work with Joel Osteen’s church, the largest in North America as an example.  To move Lakewood into Houston’s Compact Center took about $100 million dollars.  To raise that amount took more than one campaign.  If the largest church in North America needs more than one campaign to raise the needed funds why do we think we can do it in one?  You need a plan of action to crack the nut of the cost of your potential project.  You have to be ready for the reality that one campaign alone will not pay for the project.

So, what do you do after the first campaign is over and you still owe the bank?  Here are the most common approaches that churches and ministries take.

1.  Write the debt into the budget. This approach is followed by many churches.  It appears to be the easiest but in the long run it is one of the worst decisions you could make.  Why?  For one thing it adds additional strain to your budget.  One pastor we recently talked with had a debt payment written into his budget of right at $400K a year!  We asked him what he could do with an additional $400K a year.  Would you fund ministries, hire more staff, give more to missions?  Another reason this is not the best way is that it makes paying for debt the project impersonal.  It limits your ability to continue to cast a compelling vision and to challenge your members towards faith based giving. That debt can be a weight upon your shoulders that makes life difficult and ministry sometimes impossible.

2. Bridge Campaign. Often churches will try to build some time between one campaign and the next thinking they will give the congregation a rest.  The thinking here is that your members are tired of giving to a campaign and you want to give them some rest between major pushes.  So, you ask your leaders to extend or continue on in their giving for another year thus bridging the close of one campaign with the start of another.  The thinking is that you are giving the congregation a rest.  However, your debt payments still need to be met so you still have to generate income to meet that payment.  Asking leaders to extend their giving is an “ask.”  You are not really giving them any rest at all.  An ask is an ask is an ask!  The other thing we find is that bridge campaigns never raise the money ministries think they will.  That is because your leaders are smarter than you give them credit for.  They know you will come back with another major appeal later.  So, if you are not challenging them to step up they will hold back until you do.  Most bridge campaigns as a result have to utilize budgeted monies to make up the short fall.  There is a better way!

3.  Consecutive Capital Stewardship Campaigns. The absolute best approach is to have another capital stewardship campaign.  To begin with another campaign gives you the unique ability to recast your vision.  Since you began the first campaign to the present time you have had numerous new families join your ministry.  A capital stewardship campaign is a great time to get everyone focused on the same vision.  It also gives you the best opportunity to capture the most dollars.  Industry standards show that ministries will capture between one to three times their yearly budgets over three years.  This is far better than a bridge campaign could do.  Finally, you will be able to pay the short term debt off much faster with a back to back campaign strategy.  This allows you to save money on interest and it allows you to position yourself better for whatever the next phase of building might be.

Part of the reason that churches and ministries sometimes shy away from capital stewardship campaigns is the negative experiences they have had in the past.  The issue is not a campaign the issue in most cases is a partner that either did not understand your environment or did not have the time to give you what you needed.  That is why you should make The Charis Group the first call you make!  We might not all be facing what Joel Osteen is facing but we do face the same issues.  How we approach and settle those issues is the key to our funding success.  Let us help you strategize and plan your next campaign.

Mark Brooks

President and Founding Partner

The Charis Group

Recently a church that has been talking to us for the last year sent the following note to us for our input.  As you read it you can tell this pastor is about to give up on a dream that God has placed in his heart.  First, I want to share with you the note and then I want to share with you my answer.  Perhaps my advice to this young pastor will help you to not give up on your dream.

A pastors dilemma – Here is what the pastor wrote …

“As we began meeting with builders, there were two things that came up repeatedly. First, to build a facility that minimally meets the needs of our church, it will cost at least 4 times the amount of our annual budget. Second, according to each builder, there was a general consensus that a church can expect to raise, on average, somewhere in the neighborhood of three times our annual income.   That leaves a significant shortfall. While some debt may be reasonable, it would be foolish to take on debt with no plan of repayment.

It was suggested that we settle for a lesser building that would only serve as a worship center (able to seat about 225 people) and not a multi-purpose center. Then maybe 5-10 years from now, we’ll do the rest of what we need. However, I have a problem with spending a million plus dollars only to gain 25 seats in our sanctuary.  That’s why we haven’t done anything up until this point. I still want us to build and believe we need it as a congregation, but feel squeezed between two immovable rocks. If you can help me figure this out, I welcome the input. This is all new to me.”

An answer to the dilemma – Here is my response…

Pastor,

First, let me say that you are wise in counting the cost before blindly forging ahead. I was speaking at a conference last week and one of the things I shared with those in attendance was the most common mistakes we see churches making.  One mistake is what I call funding fantasies.  Too many simply think that their congregation can and will support the building they are planning for.  All too often we get ourselves in a ditch with unrealistic expectations of what might be accomplished.  So, my first response when I saw your note was that you are wise in your caution.  However I would say that from my limited perspective on what I know it is not impossible for you to achieve what you are after.  In this note I want to show you what is realistically possible and then talk about a plan of action to achieve that goal.

Set realistic expectations. Let me say that I am always in disagreement with those that say a church can raise three times their annual operating budget over three years.  Anyone who states that statistic to you is either uninformed or disingenuous.  Stewardship companies typically say that the average is one and a half times your operating budget to three times your operating budget.  Perhaps the builders are simply quoting the firms that give this statistic.  No one has ever studied factually how much churches raise in capital campaigns.  Stewardship firms make up that average hoping to convince you the church to go with that firm.  It is a sales answer.  Some churches do indeed achieve three times their budget but it is the rare church that does that.  These churches achieve that level due to large gifts.  So, if you have several wealthy people in your church then perhaps you too might achieve that level.  However if you have a middle class donor base then a great campaign for you would be twice your budget.  Frankly during this recession pledging has been less so anything over one times a churches annual budget is a success in my book.  A realistic expectation on your part will keep you from getting in the ditch with your members.  Don’t try to paint an overly optimistic picture so that the congregation will support the building.

Develop a plan of action. This does not mean that you cannot pull this off.  They key thing that you have to communicate is first a sense of need for the facility.  Show members how having this facility is crucial for you to continue to fulfill God’s plan for the church.  Then you simply have to show them a plan by which it is possible.  I see no reason why a project four times your operating budget should dissuade you from moving forward.  That is well within your capacity to raise over time.  The key is to have a debt that is manageable and can quickly be repaid.  In my twelve years of working in this field no church I have ever worked with, including Joel Osteen’s the largest church in North America, has ever raised the amount needed for their building in one campaign.  It always takes two to three campaigns.  I have two clients that are now in their fourth campaign to pay off the original building.  While that might seem a long time we as Americans are used to thirty year mortgages as a means by which we can buy the house we need.  If the church can build its house and pay it off within ten years why is that bad stewardship?

Don’t wait to raise funds. While on the surface it appears to me that a building four times your annual operating budget seems well within your budget one key issue is financing.  The good news is that interest rates are at an all time low.  The bad news is that it is difficult to sometimes find a lender that will even talk to you.  One thing we are hearing from numerous banks is that they want to see a healthy cash reserve.  So, it is wise and prudent for churches, even if the project is a year away, to begin raising funds.  This will allow you to amass a healthy reserve and give you additional leverage as you approach a bank.  Tragically the vast majority of churches thinking about a project are ignoring this advice and missing out on raising thousands of dollars.  Don’t make the same mistake.  People give to a vision not brick and mortar.  I have worked with many churches that began to raise funds before the project was finalized.  The leadership simply told the people that whatever project, land or building they were planning for would take maximum dollars.  The people saw the need and gave.  Don’t mistakenly think that you have to have all the answers before you start to raise funds.  Tell the people what you know at the moment and promise to keep them informed.  If it makes sense they will support it.

Answer your donors two key questions. We always counsel that donors are asking two major questions of the leadership. Does this project make sense?  In other words, they want to know if it fulfills your vision God has given you and it is needed for that vision.  Secondly, they want to know if you can pull it off?  They are wanting to know if you have a plan of action that can make this dream become a reality.  Answer these two questions and you can raise the funds needed.  As we always say, the question is not can you raise the amount needed for that building.  The question is how long will it take you?  A good stewardship plan can help you rally your people and raise the funds.  I see no reason why you cannot move forward.

Finally, never settle for less when God gives you a vision. Do you need what you originally planned?  If so, never settle for anything other than what you need.  Settling for less will only cause you to raise less.  Big visions get big dollars!  Small visions get chump change.  Communicated a big compelling vision and your members will gladly respond to support it.  The Kingdom of God never advances with lesser dreams.  Don’t make the mistake of lessening your dream!

Hopefully this pastor will not give up on his dream.  While it might take him longer to achieve it is still possible.  The above advice just might be what you need as you contemplate your next project.  You don’t have to give up on your dream!

Mark Brooks

Founder and President

The Charis Group

Do you segment your donor base?  Most churches don’t.  In fact most pastors will argue with me that segmenting donors violates Scripture.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  A failure to segment your donor base could result in you losing thousands of dollars to another ministry.  While churches fail to understand this key to raising funds other ministries utilize the concept to bring them fund raising success.  The truth is we segment our congregation all the time except when it comes to financial matters.  Let me illustrate.

As your worship leader plans for worship this week you expect him to put together the best music possible right?  The songs are picked with great care.  At the same time he makes sure that the right people are up front leading the church in worship.  If there is special music you want your best to sing.  You will not come and ask someone like me to sing.  I have a great voice for the congregation not the choir or the praise team and certainly not for a solo.  You are trying to attract people not run them off!  Am I offended that you have segmented me out of the equation?  No, in fact I count you as wise stewards of the resources that God has given you.  We readily expect and accept segmentation in the church for all areas of ministry.  Your task is to find those with the right gift mix and talents for the job at hand.  Why should it be different when it comes to giving?

Most do not segment their giving base because they fear that they will show favoritism.  In fact you may have already thought of the key passage most will give to tell me how wrong segmentation is.  It is James 2:1-4 which says, “My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don’t show favoritism. ²Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in shabby clothes also comes in. ³If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” ⁴have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?” The emphasis here is favoritism not segmentation.  You violate Scripture if you allow big donors up front seating or parking or do what they tell you to do.  However every large donor I have ever known does not want those perks from their pastor.  They only want assurance that their gift will matter for the Kingdom.

George Barna in “How to Increase Giving to Your Church,” states, “Effective fund-raising churches refuse to treat all people as equals – and people truly are not when it comes to giving.  Most of these churches develop some kind of segmentation strategy in which they categorize the congregation into types of donors.”  Treating all your donors the same ignores the fact that not everyone sees and feels things in the same way.  The key to raising significant funds is knowing not only the different segments of your congregation but how to appropriately communicate with them.  This is a skill set that no one teaches pastors in Bible college or seminary.

Putting the right person on the platform this Sunday will make all the difference from being on key or off key.  When it comes to music we don’t treat all members the same.  If you treat all donors the same in terms of how you communicate to them, don’t be surprised if your giving comes up off key.  Start segmenting your donors so that you can have success in raising the funds needed to fuel your ministry dream.

Mark Brooks

Founder and President

The Charis Group

P.S. We at The Charis Group are experts in how to help you identify and communicate with your top end donors.  We do this in a way that is appropriate to each setting.  Call us today to see how we can help you segment your congregation and then build a plan of communication to bring you success in raising dollars.

In sports if you can “psych out” your opponent half the battle is won.  Many times a competitor has convinced themselves they don’t have a chance before they ever hit the field our court.  Then they simply go through the motions waiting for the defeat that they have predetermined by a negative attitude.  Getting psyched out can happen not just in sports but in every aspect of life.

Currently the American public is psyching themselves out when it comes to the recovery from this past recession.  We are so fearful of a double dip recession that we will not be happy until our fears are realized.  Despite signs to the contrary most are fearing a double dip in the economy.

Consider the following…

• The number of Americans signing up for unemployment benefits fell to the lowest level in two months a sign that companies are not resorting to deep layoffs.
• The trade deficit narrowed significantly in July as exports climbed to the highest level in nearly two years.
• Real final sales to private domestic purchasers grew at a robust 4.3%.

These facts and other rays of sunlight caused economist Chris Rupkey to say, “At the moment, we can rule out a double-dip for the economy.  The economy is not out of the woods with this new data, but things look better than they have in several weeks, and there is no danger of a new downturn in activity.”  Imagine that, we could actually be seeing a recovery!  Still when I talk to people all I hear is the fear that the recession will continue on or if we truly are out we will lapse back into recession.

I would say that most pastors are prone to this belief as well.  What results is that much like consumers who are withholding spending churches are often delaying much needed projects.  This is happening at a time when material costs are the lowest in years.  Builders are hungry for work and striking great deals and banks have some of the lowest interest rates ever.  Yet many out of fear of what might be are psyching themselves out of this great opportunity.

I don’t advocate being frivolous or unresponsive to the times we live in.  However many are simply frozen by fear of what might be waiting for the sky to fall in upon them.  I worry we in the church are missing a great opportunity.  We have moved from operating by faith to being psyched out by what might be.

What about you?  Are you responding by faith or being psyched out by fear?

Mark Brooks

Founder and President

The Charis Group

The other day  a banker called me to tell me he had recommended me to a very large mid-western church that needed to raise funds to pay off $10 million dollars.  He said, “They are interested in a fall campaign.”  Fall campaign!  It is a little late to be thinking about a fall capital stewardship campaign.  We are now working with churches on their spring campaigns.  This mega church is way behind in planning.  While there might be reasons they have not planned ahead for a campaign their failure to plan will probably cost them months of momentum and thousands of dollars.

In my experience most churches do a terrible job of planning for the future.  I suppose it is because our colleges and seminaries train pastors to understand the importance of the Council of Nicea and how to parse the Greek.  Little is done to teach practical matters of church administration.  All ministerial degree plans that I know of have a course on church administration.  One course does not prepare a potential pastor for much of the unglamorous realities of leading a church.  If long range planning is even addressed, it appears to be a lost art when it comes to most pastors and churches.

Too often I fear we are captured by the tyranny of the urgent and give little time to what might be coming at us months from now not to mention years from now.  When churches do adapt long range plans they typically are long on hope and short on practicality.  Hope is a good thing to have and it sure beats despair.  Hope without a plan of action is only a wish.  Wishes sometimes come true. The chances of your dream becoming a reality are much better with some planning.   So here are some thoughts on how to make your hopes become a reality.

Regularly schedule time for thinking ahead. My mentor in the stewardship field Dave Sutherland use to tell us that his weekly duties were filled with meeting the needs of the present.  His Saturday mornings, long before his family rose, was his time of reflective thinking on future plans and projects.  What about you?  Do you have a time where you discipline yourself to think ahead?  Are you planning for and praying about the next year?  Find time in your schedule for thinking ahead.

Realize that it is later than you think. In the last twelve years of working with churches I have observed that most think they have more time than they actually do.  Part of this problems lies in the fact that many do not do any type of forward planning.  Too many react to whatever crisis hits them at the moment.  For instance if you wait until the first of next year to plan for the year you have waited too late.  Start now to avoid last minute crisis.  While you cannot anticipate every problem or crisis you can be prepared for many things.

Review your plans constantly. We live in a fast changing world.  Decisions that made good sense last year now might be outdated.  Don’t engrave your plans in concrete and then be surprised at the change in the wind.  Our theology doesn’t change but our plans need to be flexible and adaptable.  When the recession hit I had to change the growth plan for my company.  Your plans will probably need updating as a result of the recession and other events.  Don’t be afraid to scrap the plan that looked so brilliant just a few years or months ago.  The Word of God is unchanging not your plan!

So start thinking about next year, now! In my field, stewardship, the churches that are proactive in planning for stewardship success are the ones that have weathered the storm of this recession the best.  They have a stewardship plan of action which they work hard at fulfilling.  As a result their ministries are flourishing while others struggle.  In part it is due to forward thinking and good planning.  So, what are you waiting for?  Get to planning.

As always if you need help with your stewardship plan give us a call.

Mark Brooks

Founder and President

The Charis Group

College football season has officially kicked off!  I for one will be glued to my TV this weekend watching games non stop.  There is another game that gets officially kicked off this Labor Day Weekend, political campaigns.  While campaigning has now become a year round sport, traditionally Labor Day Weekend was the supposed kick off for full swing campaigning.  Whatever the start date it is officially underway.

Like it or not you are about to be bombarded with ads telling you this person is a Commie pinko liberal or that person wants to cut off Senior Adults retirement and give big business a free reign.  Your mail box is going to be filled with fliers showing smiling politicians flanked by their beautifully perfect families.  Even your telephone will ring at night with various celebrities telling you who to vote for.  This past year I have hung up on Sarah Palin and Pat Boone.  Well, not actually them but their recorded voice.   This invasion into our privacy will not stop until after the election.  Much like Alabama fans arguing with Auburn fans the sport of politics promises to give us a contentious fall.  I predict that this will be one of the nastiest campaigns in memory.  For what it is worth here are some thoughts.

Republicans sensing they might regain Congress will make the economy the number one issue. We are seeing some very positive things in this recovery.  Consumer confidence has shown a recent uptick.  Spending surpassed expectations and was ahead of last years same time comparison.  The Stock Market while still volatile remains above 10K.  Housing appears to have finally hit the bottom and may well be on the way up.  Yet despite positive signs all you hear about is negativity.  This will not change as we go into the full fledged campaign season.  Expect Republicans to focus on the weak economy as a means to rally support to their side.  With unemployment still well above 9% it will be hard to convince Americans that we are in recovery and that the recent legislation pushed forward by Democrats has helped.  Frankly Republicans don’t want the economy to get better before the election.

Democrats out of desperation will strike back with fear mongering charges. Polls are showing a wave of discontent may well wash the Democrats out of power.  Don’t count on that party to take that news lying down.  They have a huge financial war chest to spend on this campaign.  Here is how I predict their message will sound.  First, blame it all on Bush.  It was worse than we thought.  It is all Bush’s fault.  Even though polls suggest this tactic is not working Democrats can’t help themselves when it comes to bashing Bush.  The next attack from Democrats will be to continue to demonize the rich and big business.  This tactic has worked for them repeatedly since FDR and does indeed work with many.  After all who really likes the rich kid?  Who isn’t angry at big business and big banks?  Democrats will play up their belief that they represent the common man much better than the fat cat Republicans.  I find it funny that from our Democratic millionaire president on down to nearly every Democratic member of Congress they are part of the wealthy class.  In politics however it is not what you do but what you say that seems to matter.  The bottom line is that Democrats, who are very good at campaigning, will not go down without a fight.

Americans tired of the way things have gone will indeed send Washington a message. I am not sure the Republicans will win both the House and Senate.  They will gain significant seats.  What they will miss is the real message Americans are sending Washington, we are tired of nothing happening.  It is not so much that the country is turning Republican as it is they are turning away from Democrats.  In the same way Barrack Obama won because he was not George Bush.  Americans voted against something more than they voted for something.  I predict the same will happen this time.  However I hold little hope that things will really change in Washington.  Republicans and Democrats alike just don’t get it when it comes to the mood of the country.

If Republicans win big expect the Stock Market to climb and business to boom. Whether it is fair or not earned or not, Wall Street and Big Business hates this current administration.  As a result they have sat on the side lines waiting for a change in policy and direction.  They fear the new health care plan and how it will tax them.  They are holding onto tons of money waiting for a more business friendly environment before aggressively moving forward.  The day after the election if the winds of change have blown through the halls of Congress you can expect the economy to start rebounding much more quickly.

Not long ago I was talking to a small businessman about the fall election and what his hopes were.  He made an interesting comment.  He said, “I hope the Republicans take control of the House the way they did during the Clinton presidency.  That time was the best time for my business.”  Could the same thing happen all over again?  Many business owners are hoping for that repeat.  I am not so sure.

So what does this mean for your church? Like all election cycles it means we are leaders have to be careful.  No doubt I will get in trouble from some for the things I have written.  You as a pastor can expect much the same if you step on the political toes of your members.  On moral issues we are on solid ground.  It is pretty hard to argue against things like abortion, gambling, etc.  It gets harder to argue for or against one economic theory over another.  Yet as a pastor you cannot just sit back and pretend the political football is not being kicked.  So what would I do if I were you?  Well….

Preach the Word! Your members are going to hear a ton of negative news.  Give them something positive.  We need hope not despair.  No one in Washington or wanting to go to Washington can really give that hope.  Jesus can!  So, point people to the cross.  It is going to be a volatile time filled with uncertainty.  Point people to the things that are certain and solid.  We should view this upcoming campaign season as a perfect time for our message to fall on eager ears.

Encourage your members to vote just don’t tell them how to vote. My position is that if you have not voted you don’t get to complain.  So, I am voting so I can continue to complain!  Seriously, as Christian we should be the model citizens and that includes going to the polls and voting.

Realize that whether Democrats or Republicans win God is still on his throne. I hate to lose even in politics.  Yet down through the years as my candidates or my favorite political party has lost I have noticed that life goes on.  I am not saying this election does not matter because it does.  I am simply saying that my hopes, my plans and my actions will not be dictated by an election.  Our joy is to be  in Jesus not  our favorite politician.  Despite what happens at the polls the sun will come up the next day and God will still be on his throne.

Well that is my view and my take what is yours?  I plan on watching a lot of football in the next few weeks.  When political ads come on I plan on going for another Diet Coke or switching channels.  I know how I am voting, Sooners baby all the way!  Beat those Horns!

Sooner Red than dead,

Mark Brooks

Founder and President

The Charis Group