In recent years, several studies have put giving habits under the microscope. Hearing stewardship sermons and participating in congregational life led to higher giving. Participation in small groups or Sunday school classes was especially linked to higher giving. These findings are echoed by Mic hael Meier of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Division for Congregational Ministries, who works on stewardship issues with congregations in the Pacific Northwest. Church members need to know what their giving can accomplish, Meier says.
People give to other people and to mission.
Knowing what their money will do for someone else helps givers experience the joy of giving, which Meier says the church must convey. Similarly, we can teach the scriptural call to grow in generosity. Teaching takes on added urgency when the giving patterns of younger generations are compared with those of their elders. Wuthnow foun d that Baby Boomers tend to give less than their parents, and Generation X-ers give even less. The life cycle is partly responsible for this pattern.