Your church could be headed for a train wreck!
What if there was a way to get your church out of debt AND increase your ministry opportunities at the same time? Now there is! I am working on a new initiative to help churches get out of debt and provide revenue for the future. First, let me tell you what is motivating me.
Giving to the church as a percentage of Americans incomes continues to shrink every year! At the current rate of decline by 2050 Americans will give just 1% of their disposable incomes to the church. Church attendance is declining at the same time which in part is a key reason in the decline in giving. Your church could be headed for a train wreck! Why?
The lagging economy has investors spooked. What this means is that your members are less willing to contribute from their savings or stock based upon the volatility of the markets. This creates a huge problem when it comes to capital campaigns. For a capital campaign to see pledging beyond one times a churches annual budget you must have multiple five and six figure gifts. Those types of gifts are not as easy to come by post The Great Recession.
The Baby Boomer aging phenomenon. Baby Boomers are now the largest contributing group to charities in America including churches. Yet, 10,000 Baby Boomers turn 65 every day and will for the next 20 years! What this means is that the group giving you the majority of your money for ministry is moving into retirement. Retirees make significantly less and thus will be able to give less.
The fear of outliving ones money. The good news is that Americans are living longer. The bad news is most retirement plans run out before we die out! In interview after interview we have heard this sentiment from retired people. This fear causes what once were very generous donors to pull back on larger gifts.
I believe the Church in America has about a five to ten year window to build what they need and to pay it off. Yet, the key points above will make it difficult for churches to accomplish this. So what is my answer?
Churches need to think outside the box about ways to assure revenue AND do ministry at the same time. With 10K Baby Boomers turning 65 every day they ultimately will need a place to retire to. Assisted Living complexes are now one of the fastest growing trends in America. It is a great means of ministry for the church. At the same time it could the path out of debt for your church
South Biscayne Church in Florida one of my clients recently took that path. After a relocation and build out of their facility they were left with a large amount of debt. The church sat on several acres of land. Not long ago they sold 9 acres of that land for almost $1 million dollars to allow for a Senior Assisted Living Complex called, “The Springs at South Biscayne.” Check it out at…
http://www.thespringsatsouthbiscayne.com/
https://www.facebook.com/thespringsatsouthbiscayne/?fref=nf
Now, every year until Jesus comes back South Biscayne Church will get around $250K yearly! We are now talking with them about how they can build another unit and increase their yearly net operating income to be several millions a year!
400 Conversions! That is how many people lay volunteers at South Biscayne Church have led to the Lord over the last few years as they ministered to Seniors and their support staffs in the Sarasota area. So not only is this a huge money initiative it is an incredible mission opportunity. You could have hundreds of new people to minister to right across your parking lot!
Right now we are building out this plan to a select group of churches across the country. I am partnering with The Alpha Group. You can find out more about them at, http://www.alphaplanning.com/index.html
If you have spare acreage and would like to talk to me about this email me at, Mark@thecharisgroup.org Lets get your out of debt AND provide increased ministry opportunities for you and your church!
Mark Brooks – The Stewardship Coach
