Lake Institute on Faith and Giving
The following stories are part of Lake Institute’s story collection, The Faithful Generosity Story Shelf, which highlights congregations and other religious organizations who have sought to use their assets and resources in creative—and sometimes surprising—ways as an expression of faithful giving.
Each entry in our Story Shelf is short enough to be read and discussed during a committee meeting or other group gathering. Our hope is that these accessible vignettes will spark new questions, conversation, and imagination among clergy and laity about what might be possible with the funds, buildings, land, and other resources in their care. Learn about Ways to Use the Story Shelf. If you know a story that should be included in the Story Shelf, submit it here.
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A story about a Cooperative Baptist Fellowship congregation that is home to no less than five Birmingham-area nonprofit organizations and aside from the congregation’s weekly worship service, four other churches gather there on Sundays.
A story about a Cooperative Baptist Fellowship congregation using a preschool model that is not only self-sustaining but also provides some financial benefit to the church.
A story about a Cooperative Baptist Fellowship congregation who received a gift of land in Eastern North Carolina and discovering that it would be suitable for solar farms.
A story about two Cooperative Baptist Fellowship congregations who offer examples of rethinking the profit there is in pavement.
A story about how one Cooperative Baptist Fellowship congregation sold their land to reduce debt.
A story about how one Cooperative Baptist Fellowship congregation imagined using their space in a new way.
A story about what happened when a church learned to see its money in a new way.
Two Lutheran churches in Baltimore partnered to provide no interest loans up to $2,000 to community members.
Leaders of a church in Pennsylvania launched a Year of Contagious Generosity, and what happened next surprised a lot of people. Money raised benefited the local fire department, school district, and helped rebuild a community playground.
Austin church turns a $100,000 gift into $10 million in medical debt relief.
Insights, a bi-weekly e-newsletter, is a resource for the religious community and fundraisers of faith-based organizations that provides: