Vision Fulfillment

How to make a dream come true.

by John R. Throop

After much study and prayer, the elders of First Church determined they should expand their facilities. They estimated they needed $600,000 to complete the project. They also decided they didn't need any outside help to raise the necessary funds. They could do it themselves! That was a year ago. Today First Church is struggling to bring momentum, structure, and consistency to its building program.

Across town, the session at Grace Church confronted a similar challenge. They, too, knew they needed to expand their facilities, and they knew they had to raise nearly a million dollars to realize their vision. Unlike First Church, they determined they really didn't know how to raise that kind of cash. They decided to call in a capital fundraising expert to do the campaign for them—completely. But, to date, they haven't found an expert willing to take on the entire project without significant church involvement.

Both churches are learning that a capital campaign can be a defining moment in any local church—for good or ill. It is an extraordinary process that involves procedures and practices that are not a regular part of church life. Consequently, more than any other dimension of stewardship, the capital campaign requires professional assistance. That's why First Church continues to struggle. And, while Grace Church understands its need for outside help, the desire to turn building funding over entirely to an outside firm shows the church's misunderstanding of the critical partnership needed between a church and capital campaign firm to guarantee program success. A church does not hire a firm to "do" a campaign, but to coach church members in their project roles and responsibilities.

Every successful capital campaign, whether for new construction, renovation, debt reduction, or budget enhancement, has a structure and a timeline from inception to completion. While campaign lengths vary, four years is typical, and a capital campaign firm is involved at strategic points when expertise and organization are needed most.

Before launching a capital campaign, church leaders need to seek God's guidance on a vision for expanded ministry.

"George Barna says that the number-one motivation for sacrificial giving is a compelling vision," says Steve Johnson, director of Ministry Campaign Services in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

From this compelling vision will come direction on critical questions such as: What is the new facility going to facilitate? Are there nonstructural solutions to the space crunch? And are the need and the solution compelling enough to call church members to sacrificial giving?

Not surprisingly, it is essential at this initial stage to gain vision buy-in and commitment from leaders and influencers within the congregation. Mark McPeak, chief operating officer of IMPAC Services in Brentwood, Tennessee, notes that if there is any division regarding the vision, even the best-designed campaigns can be undermined. "It is important for the church to do due diligence, whether through meetings, retreats, surveys, or other ways, to determine readiness," McPeak says. "We don't study project feasibility from the standpoint of financing, but from attitude and spiritual readiness."

A strategic planning or envisioning process, carefully and prayerfully orchestrated, can clarify key choices and directions through assessment of ministry strengths and weaknesses, demographic analysis, member input, and church growth projections. Experts agree it is important to bring a professionally-trained facilitator from outside the congregation to assist local churches in this vision-casting process. There are denominational resources, as well as contacts in the Christian Management Association, the National Association of Church Business Administration, and the Christian Stewardship Association. Or a capital campaign firm may work with such professionals. The process can take several weeks to several months, depending on planning.

Many stewardship experts urge building committees or ministry leaders to bring in a capital campaign consultant at the vision stage, even before working with an architect or contractor.

"What should happen," notes Del Rogers, Jr., president of The Rogers Company in Dallas, Texas, "is that church leaders bring in an expert on fundraising to help them understand what they can afford and then give an architect [or builder] a funding range to work with. What happens all too often is that church leaders talk to an architect about what they want, and then, after a design is finalized, they look at the fundraising question—and all too often become discouraged."

"If you're trying to raise more than two or three times the annual budget, the project may be out of bounds," notes Jim Sheppard, president of The Genesis Group in Fayetteville, Georgia. "Sometimes the presence of major gifts suggests more money can be raised, and the congregation sometimes is willing to mortgage a little as well. But the annual budget is a good guidepost."

After the vision and plan are in place, and an architect has developed a site and building design, the church is ready to begin the intensive work of the capital campaign itself.

Choosing a capital campaign firm. Depending on specific denominational requirements, church elders, session or vestry members, or building committee members usually interview potential campaign firms. Interview three different firms to get a sense of your church's compatibility with a firm's people, style, and method. Most firms avoid a canned program, favoring instead an approach tailored to a congregation's culture, history, and size.

It is important for selection committee members to serve on the campaign or fundraising committee as well. Otherwise, the campaign committee might not know why the outside firm was chosen. Says Paul Gage, president of The Gage Group in Colleyville, Texas: "Let the senior pastor and the management staff work on the selection."

Assembling campaign leadership. Most stewardship experts stress that once a capital campaign firm is selected, it's time for the campaign committee to go to work. Members of this crucial committee need to be selected on the basis of spiritual maturity and needed skills, not on the basis of position or power. They will implement the programs that help raise the funds.

"A [fundraising company] consultant, working with the pastor and key members, will identify key qualifications and key leadership roles for a variety of campaign assignments and then suggest names to match those roles," says Cade Garrison, director of marketing and client development for Cargill Associates in Fort Worth, Texas. "We actually interview congregants for these positions."

Usually the team assignments include coordination of communications, prayer, special events, advance commitments, ministry emphasis, and stewardship education. A building committee liaison and a campaign chair are also needed.

Conducting training. McPeak of IMPAC Services observes: "The [capital fundraising] firm is a facilitator of the church's efforts. It is not the 'rainmaker' to bring more money. It is the leadership of the church that has credibility with the people. The firm equips and helps to recruit and train people for specific responsibilities." Firms will often provide direct training and coaching in basic tasks, using detailed manuals with step-by-step instructions and sample campaign materials.

"We work with the campaign team to design a master plan," says Sheppard of The Genesis Group. "Then our firm produces all their campaign materials and trains them, so they know all they need to know before the work gets started."

Ultimately, the goal of leader training is to equip the campaign team to communicate a compelling case for sacrificial giving to church members. In the end, Rogers says it all amounts to an in-depth stewardship course for members, with a lasting impact. "The team members," he says, "will be educating families on Scriptural principles of giving and what it is to be a steward—not just of dollars, but of time, thoughts, talents, and gifts."

As the campaign team prepares its stewardship education programs and communication strategies, it also develops a kickoff event. It could be a worship service or congregational meeting, a banquet or a tent meeting—anything to get church membership to grasp the ministry's vision and the resulting capital need. At this time, church and campaign leaders present information, answer questions, and seek to influence the congregation by explaining their critical role in helping achieve established goals.

Of course, prayer is critical at this stage (and all others). Intercessory prayer gatherings, prayer walks, and prayer concerts are common, in addition to individual and small-group prayer. Members may also want to pray at the site of the proposed facility. Every Christian capital campaign firm is clear: No project will succeed without the power of the Holy Spirit moving people to sacrificial giving.

Communication efforts. Churches employ a variety of methods to communicate details concerning the building project itself and the specific capital needs: messages from the pulpit, videos, small-group and one-on-one presentations, printed materials, even youth-oriented and Web-based presentations.

"The key is to find methods to contact every member," observes Garrison of Cargill Associates. "Some churches do a door-to-door canvass; some do small group meetings in homes. The bottom line is challenging individuals to buy into what the church is doing and to prayerfully seek what their giving role should be in the campaign."

All campaigns move intentionally and purposefully toward a major Sunday gathering, usually in the context of worship. At this celebration service, commitment cards are collected and consecrated—or, if they have been gathered during the weeks between kickoff and celebration, a total can be announced.

"The time frame between kickoff and celebration is not dictated by activities, but by the time it takes for the congregation to mature in their sacrificial giving," observes Ben Gill, chairman of Resource Services, Incorporated, in Dallas, Texas. One huge campaign—$80 million—took six months between kickoff and commitment; small campaigns in the $250,000 range can take six weeks to three months.

Pledge fulfillment. It typically takes three years for pledges to be fulfilled. Members adapt their lifestyles in faith to make good on pledges, says Dave Sutherland, president of INJOY Stewardship Services in Atlanta, Georgia. Some churches operate on a two-year time frame, if the project is not too large or if the church is rapidly growing and a new campaign can be conducted soon after with new members.

The successful completion of a campaign depends upon keeping the campaign in front of church members. Unless church leaders intentionally communicate regarding pledge completion, there is a risk that the campaign will not ultimately achieve its goals: a building built, a ministry developed or expanded, or a debt retired.

The capital campaign firm's relationship with a church goes through several stages over the campaign. First, it includes behind-the-scenes involvement with church leaders and architects or builders. Then, there's a three- to four-month period of nearly constant presence on campus. Finally, the firm may follow up with periodic phone calls and visits until the commitment period ends.

When choosing an outside firm, be sure to ask if they have a clear, thorough protocol for follow-up activities. To maintain excitement about God's blessings, campaign firms typically deploy follow-up consultants to coach leaders monthly in communication skills and records maintenance.

"The campaign is the sprint," says Sutherland of INJOY, "and the follow-up is the marathon."

Capital campaign consultants are enthusiastic about what God's people will do when presented with a case for sacrificial giving. Often, church members get so accustomed to giving that available funds increase for the church over the long term, even after the capital campaign is over. This money can be put toward international/national missions and community outreach. Or sometimes churches embark on another campaign just a few years later to help fulfill their growing opportunities. Some growing churches run nearly continuous capital campaigns for key ministry developments; members join in the stewardship journey as they share God's abundance in their lives.

In the countdown to capital campaign success, a Christian stewarship firm's coaching and expertise, in concert with a movement of God's spirit among the people, can make all the difference between a faint dream or a ministry vision fulfilled.