A Must Mailing
by Rusty Lewis, Senior Generosity Strategist - Generis
www.rustylewis.net

The purpose of this letter is to encourage and thank the members of the congregation. The letter should be sent to everyone in your church family – not just those who have given financially during the year. A letter of encouragement can only have a positive effect on year-end giving.

I suggest this letter be sent no later than the first week of December. It gives people time to plan for a gift and/or to catch up on a capital commitment. I strongly encourage that you enclose it with a copy of their 11-month contribution statements.

The following is a suggestion for the paragraphs of that letter to help you get started:

Paragraph #1

• Acknowledge that these remain challenging times in the life of our country (Afghan war, unemployment)---I would not use the word “difficult” in this paragraph
• Thank you for your faithfulness in attendance, serving, and giving this year
• God will honor your faithfulness and continue to grow His kingdom

Paragraph #2

• Let me give you some incredibly good news about your investment in God’s work through our church.
• This paragraph ought to give an update on the positive things that have occurred this last year in your church.
• Include some numbers/statistics that reflect changed lives---baptisms, new members, missions, etc.
• Include stories of life change - individual lives affected by a specific ministry of the church
• Talk about ministries that have been especially effective

Paragraph #3

• This should be a paragraph about vision and what is ahead expressed in light of the ministries of the church
• If you are building, paying off debt, purchasing property, etc. a brief update is appropriate

Paragraph #4

• This paragraph could be used to encourage the congregation to pray about a year-end gift.
• Highlight your online giving page on the website (you have online giving, don’t you?)
• It could be used to encourage new people to give to the capital campaign
• Consider a reminder about the value of donating appreciated securities
• You may want to remind people to catch up their giving pledges
• This paragraph may be used to merely say thank you again
• This paragraph may be used for a personal note

This letter needs to be no more than 2 pages and there is more listed above than can be done in a single page. Choose what is appropriate for your congregation.

About the Author:
Rusty Lewis, CFRE
Senior Generosity Strategist, Generis

“Every initiative requires its own uniquely creative approach to ignite passion for a project that will ultimately drive ministry expansion and effectiveness.

I relish opportunities to partner with leaders of growing ministries whose vision is big enough to demand attention. From the first meeting to final completion, I help leaders and organizations create strategies that promote awareness, build momentum and stimulate action.

In a culture bombarded with marketing toward materialism, my ultimate calling is to foster environments where people desire to earnestly seek God to become unselfishly, even lavishly, openhanded toward a common purpose."