'Giving Away the Collection Plate...gives a great apologetic for believers and the church to be generous agents engaged in God's mission.' Ed Stetzer, President of LifeWay Research 'This book will confront you with the clear biblical mandates of what the church, as the body of Christ, is to be in the world.' Jerry Rankin, President Emeritus, International Mission Board, SBC 'Read this book only if you want your norm to be wrecked by the generosity of Jesus.' Jason C. Dukes, Author of Live Sent: You Are a Letter and Beyond My Church What would happen in your church if you gave away all of the tithes and offerings for a week? What if God pushed you further and asked you to give everything away for an entire year? One small church plant in Mississippi felt that push from God. As they prayed about how to accurately depict Christ to their community, they were prompted to give away their tithes and offerings for an entire year. Giving Away the Collection Plate exposes the work of Traceway Church and explores the dynamic relationship between generosity and spiritual growth. Regardless of your background, this book will inspire you to consider missional generosity. It will force you to ask, 'How can our church become a better physical representation of Christ in our community?' It may even provoke you to the point that you become radically generous, as God is generous toward us.

Hearing a young attorney speak of the faith-based reasons for which he had just made a substantial monetary gift to a community youth center, Clif Christopher asked the speaker if he would consider making a similar contribution to the congregation of which he was an active member. "Lord no, they wouldn't know what to do with it" was the answer. That, in a nutshell, describes the problem churches are facing in their stewardship efforts, says Christopher. Unlike leading nonprofit agencies and institutions, we too often fail to convince potential givers that their gifts will have impact and significance. In this book, Christopher lays out the main reasons for this failure to capture the imagination of potential givers, including our frequent failure simply to ask. Written with the needs of pastors and stewardship teams in mind, Not Your Parents’ Offering Plate provides immediate, practical guidance to all who seek to help God’s people be better stewards of their resources.

A deeply wrought and joyful debut poetry collection from an exciting new voice Looping exultantly through the overlapping experiences of girlhood, Blackness, sex, and personhood in America, award-winning essayist and poet Kendra Allen braids together personal narrative and cultural commentary, wrestling with the beauty and brutality to be found between mothers and daughters, young women and the world, Black bodies and white space, virginity and intrusion, prison and freedom, birth and death. Most of all, The Collection Plate explores both how we collect and erase the voices, lives, and innocence of underrepresented bodies—and behold their pleasure, pain, and possibility Both formally exciting and a delight to read, The Collection Plate is a testament to Allen’s place as the voice of a generation—and a witness to how we come into being in the twenty-first century.

Everyone knows that stewardship is more than money and finances. Nevertheless, seldom do we give time to explore the profound concept of stewardship in its many dimensions, including stewardship of time, work, body, mind, spirit, community, technology, and more. Beyond the Offering Plate does just that. Written by ten engaging pastors, seminary professors, and church leaders, this unique resource offers a diverse and holistic approach to stewardship. In ten accessible chapters, readers will learn how they can faithfully and practically discuss and engage with stewardship on a regular basis. Ideal for church leaders, seminary students, and pastors, this book includes questions for reflection and applications for life together at the end of each chapter. Copeland adds a special section with biblical references and preaching themes at the end of the book. Featured contributors include: Margaret P. Aymer, Associate Professor of New Testament at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Austin, Texas Kathleen A. Cahalan, Professor of Theology at Saint John's University School of Theology and Seminary in Collegeville, Minnesota MaryAnn McKibben Dana, author of Sabbath in the Suburbs David Gambrell, Associate for Worship in the Office of Theology and Worship of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) David P. King, Karen Lake Buttrey Director of the Lake Institute on Faith and Giving and Associate Professor of Philanthropic Studies at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana Neal D. Presa, pastor and former moderator of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Ellie Roscher, Director of Youth and Story Development at Bethlehem Lutheran Church Twin Cities in Minneapolis and author of How Coffee Saved My Life Mary Hinkle Shore, pastor of Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd in Brevard, North Carolina John W. Vest, Visiting Assistant Professor of Evangelism at Union Presbyterian Seminary in Richmond, Virginia

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