
Charity, which finds contemporary expression in community outreach programs, is a core component of the Christian faith. Churches and Christian organizations require substantial amounts of money to embark on outreach efforts. However, the conventional fundraising means of churches collecting tithes, offerings, and periodic levies often prove inadequate. This state of affairs has influenced the rise of innovative fundraising means to enable Christian bodies to achieve their charitable objectives.
Festival-based challenges are a creative means by which churches and Christian organizations can raise money with relative ease. Given that Christmas, one of the biggest holidays of the year, is associated with giving, Christian bodies can develop a donation challenge in line with the season. Penitence and generosity are also synonymous with Lent, the forty days preceding Easter. A donation challenge linked with a major Christian festival provides church members and external donors with a stronger incentive to give to those in need. Given the mass appeal of a festival-based donation challenge, a Christian body can prescribe a modest minimum amount to encourage donations.
Christian bodies, especially local churches, can secure additional funding by either organizing local sports competitions or providing viewership for major sporting events. With the former option, local churches can charge entry fees and approach members for event sponsorship beforehand. Local churches can also charge small business owners, members, and non-members alike, interested in booking stalls. Additionally, local churches with many young children may also charge for babysitting, depending on the length of the competition.
Local churches may also organize skill acquisition initiatives. Church leaders may enlist professionals among the congregation to facilitate different sessions. For a well-rounded experience, church leaders may also reach out to professionals outside the congregation. Churches may charge a fee for interested members and make registration open to non-members. This would serve to offset operational costs and pay for the facilitators’ services, where the facilitators insist on payment.
Furthermore, Christian bodies may also collaborate on art auctions. Church leaders may incorporate art auctions into festivals like Christmas and Easter, during which church members have a greater incentive to create season-appropriate artworks. Homemade craft pieces and embroidery can also be sold at art auctions. In addition, church leaders can encourage local artists outside their congregation to showcase their pieces in the auctions. An art auction may be silent, meaning that bidders write their bids down for an artwork, with the bids concealed from other bidders. These auctions may also be online, which enables interested bidders residing far from the church in question to participate. Churches may derive funds from donated works, the commissions on artwork sold, or from entry fees.
Christian bodies may also provide a suite of services such as car washing and snow shoveling in their communities in exchange for donations. Church leaders may assign these tasks to their younger members while appointing supervisors to oversee them. Ideally, a local church seeking to provide temporary car wash services may find a local business that will let them wash cars on their property. Local churches can also save on operational costs by asking members to contribute the cleaning or shoveling equipment at their disposal.
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