Stan Toler and Elmer Towns, Developing a Giving Church. Beacon Hill Press, 1999.
Referenced in: Giving and Financial Stewardship
LifeandLeadership.com Summary
There are several guides to developing generous churches. The contributions of this volume are in the appendices which include a series of sermons, stewardship stories and quotes, and a “pastor’s stewardship checklist.” Stan Toler is general superintendent of the Church of the Nazarene, and has written over 70 books. Among them is Building Kingdom Stewards: A Complete Plan for Developing a Giving Church. (2003). This is a seminar on stewardship in notebook form, complete with audio CD, fill-in-the-blank worksheets, power-point slides, interactive sermon outlines, and interactive forms for use in the local church.
From the Publisher
Today pastors and church leaders have an unparalleled opportunity to shape a biblical vision for Kingdom giving. According to a Christian Stewardship Association survey, there has been a 26-year decline in giving percentages among evangelicals. Christian giving has shrunk one and a half to three and a half percent, with “only 1 or 2 out of 10 Christians” giving 10 percent of their income to the Lord’s work.
Based on the foundational premise that stewardship is the management of time, talents, and treasure, Stan Toler and Elmer Towns set forth a vision for pastors and church leaders to shape the thinking in the pews with biblical principles. Developing a Giving Church is designed to merge these principles with proven methods for creating a climate for giving through stewardship education.
A vital stewardship resource, Developing a Giving Church includes guidance for shaping a giving environment, suggestions for developing committed steward leaders, counsel on stewardship strategies, insights from respected leaders, and testimonies from joyful givers. Also included are stewardship sermons, anecdotes, and quotes.
About the Author
Dr. Stan Toler serves as the General Superintendent of the Church of the Nazarene. For several years he taught seminars for John Maxwell’s INJOY Group, a leadership development institute. Dr. Maxwell calls Stan “a pastor to America’s pastors.” Stan has invested his life in the higher calling of mentoring and training pastors. He served in Florida, Ohio and Tennessee before he settled in Oklahoma, spending 25 years building Trinity Church of the Nazarene from a congregation of 200 to more than 1000 persons.
Toler has written over 70 books, including his best-sellers, God Has Never Failed Me, But He’s Sure Scared Me to Death a Few Times; The Buzzards Are Circling, But God’s Not Finished With Me Yet; God’s Never Late, He’s Seldom Early, He’s Always Right on Time; The Secret Blend; Practical Guide to Pastoral Ministry; Total Quality Life, his popular Minute Motivator series, ReThink Your Life, (which debuted at No. 23 on the CBA Christian Living Best Sellers list), The Pastor’s Wedding Planner, and The Inspirational Speaker’s Resource.
He and his wife, Linda have two sons, Seth and Adam, daughters-in-law, Marcy and Amanda, and one grandson, Rhett.
Dr. Elmer Towns serves as dean of the School of Religion at Liberty University, Lynchburg, Virginia, which he co-founded in 1971 with Dr. Jerry Falwell. He holds degrees from Southern Methodist University, Dallas Theological Seminary, Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, and Fuller Theological Seminary.
***For additional information on this resource, including reviews, click the bookstore links. Check the reference at page top or the links below for resource guides on related topics.***
Other Ministry Resource Guides on Church Administration:
See Resources on Over 100 Areas of Ministry Leadership: