Kristine Miller’s and Scott McKenzie’s new book Bounty: Ten Ways to Increase Giving at Your Church is aptly titled, but it delivers so much more than ten ways to increase your congregation’s giving. They have laid out a guide for stewardship ministry leaders to lead others, and be led, from merely being givers into the transformative blessings of generosity. They deliver straight talk about money, its place in our lives, and its place in the congregational conversation that demystifies the ministry of congregational stewardship formation. And all in six short but bountiful chapters in this 127-page book (including an appendix and notes pages)!
Miller’s and McKenzie’s work draws from real life stories, practical successes, and solid biblical theology. The structure of each chapter makes putting their concepts into practice highly accessible for the stewardship ministry team, church board, finance ministry and clergy staff. They have included useful resources and templates for implementing these ideas along with a check list at the end of each chapter, instilling confidence in even the newest of stewardship ministry leaders. But don’t let the practical nature of the book fool you, it also is a deeply spiritual book that can help to shape a faithful stewardship culture in any congregation. I believe this is because Miller and McKenzie have placed stewardship at the heart of building God’s kingdom, rather than building church budgets. And I believe the results of utilizing their work in this book will be bountiful.
– the Rev. Canon Lance Ousley
Canon for Stewardship and Development
