Image source: National Geographic

This scene from Sindh, Pakistan reveals an unexpected after-effect of the huge floods which hit the area during 2010.

As water levels rose, thousands of spiders took to the trees to escape. Because the flooding had such a devastating effect and has taken so long to drain away, many trees have become cocooned in the spider’s webs. Local inhabitants say that they have never witnessed such a phenomenon before.

It’s fair to say that a lot has happened since this flooding took place in 2010. It can be so easy to forget the hardships faced by those who live through the aftermath of a natural disaster. When the worldwide news teams move on, does our generosity follow them out of the country?

When we feel a personal conviction to respond generously to a particular cause, should we continue encouraging ourselves to remain sincere to that need until we are certain that our personal contribution is no longer required?

And does our personal contribution stop at our finances?

If you can pray, if you can write a blog post or update your Facebook status to raise awareness, if you can hold a garage sale and donate the proceeds, then you can stretch your contribution way beyond that initial donation.

Or, why not go deeper still? Maybe next time you could also search out and follow the progress of some of the charities that are responding, or make your own personal links with a local charity or Christian worker working in the most hard-hit areas.

In that way, you can continue to stand with the cause, even when the cameras stop rolling...

Photo by 'through my eyes only'. Used under Creative Commons licence.

If you happen to be one of those serious marathon runners who thinks little of fitting in a quick 10 miler before breakfast, then you’ll probably already know about the negative split. For the rest of us trapped beneath the duvet, an explanation: the negative split means deliberately running the first half of the race slower than the second, giving yourself time to find a pace and then improve on it, planning to have enough in the tank and cross the finish line knowing that you gave everything you had in those final miles. The negative split is the discipline to master if you’re serious about going the distance.

Jesus taught that true generosity is not a matter of who gives most, nor is it a question of easing off once we have given ‘enough’. Generosity plays by a different set of rules. Generosity, it seems, has far more to do with our response to our heavenly Father than the specifics of our finances.

Which brings us back to the idea of the race. If we see generosity as a one-off event only to be engaged when we feel sufficiently guilty, we won’t be fit for purpose. We were made for more than just ‘doing our bit’ or offering ‘the least we could do’. We were created in the image of an overwhelmingly generous God, so is it any wonder that we should feel the urge to give? Forget all you’ve seen of the way the uberwealthy live - with their high gates and privacy glass. What we have should not isolate us from the world around. Instead, it should draw us closer to others.

But what about those negative splits? This innate urge to give needs training. Just as discipline and preparation matter for the serious runner, so it can help us to be deliberate in our acts of generosity. Spontaneous giving is good - just like the quick burst of pace that is called for by unexpected changes in the race - but aren’t the best givers among us the ones who have woven generosity into the fabric of their lives? Don’t we want to be part of a community of generous givers that keeps on going, keeps on giving, keeps on growing?

That’s why 40acts matters so much this Lent. Sign up and you’ll be joining with thousands of others who are choosing to make generosity a priority, not just a passing fad. Each day of Lent the 40acts email will offer a challenge that will bring you closer to your community and your environment, strengthening your generosity for the years to come. Join us, and together we’ll get better at being generous.

For those who regularly travel on the London Underground, tubes can sometimes feel a tad unfriendly. There’s nothing like spending your commute squeezed into someone else’s back to ensure you arrive at your destination a little flustered. 

However, over the past seven months, The London Underground have been displaying a series of posters by the artist Michael Landy, inspired by people’s stories of nice things that have happened to them whilst travelling on the tube as a result of the generosity of others. Here’s just a few of the countless stories Landy has received so far:

“I was made redundant on my birthday. I was feeling pretty deflated and the staff at Pimlico noticed my change in mood. Imagine my joy and surprise when they presented me with a massive chocolate birthday cake! That gesture really gave me back my sense of self worth. I took some back the next day with cans of pop for them at break times. Our tube workers are everyday subterranean heroes. Thank you.”

“I lost my gloves on the Central line. A good three months later I was about to get off the Tube at Mile End and a passenger said, "I think these are yours?". They were mine and they were/are special gloves to me. As I was getting off I only had a second to say, "thank you". I have not seen him since, but he had taken those gloves on to the Tube every day for 3 months hoping to reunite them with me. A true act of kindness that I still say a BIG THANK YOU for.”

 “I was on the way to a party where you had to be smartly dressed when I realised my shoes were dirty. I was frantically trying to brush them clean with my hand and noticed the woman opposite me rummaging in her bag. She whipped out a brand new suede brush and asked "could this be what you need?". It was exactly the thing. I walked off the Tube with clean shoes and a big smile! I wonder what else she had in her Mary Poppins bag!”

“The underground, such a public place to be hit by private grief. I just couldn’t help the tears. I had to get off the tube, onto the platform and aim for a seat. A stranger in the rush asked me “are you ok? Can I help?” She had already.”

“As I leapt through the closing train doors at Finsbury Park, my left foot was caught and one shoe fell off onto the platform. I sat down, one shoe missing as the train pulled away. ‘I’ve just bought these’, said a woman opposite, opening a Russell & Bromley bag. ‘See if they fit’. They were perfect. The woman gave me her address so I could return her brand new shoes. Which of course, I did.”

What is striking about these acts of generosity is their simplistic nature. None required much of the giver, but open eyes and a giving heart.

As we approach the period of Lent, many people will be looking at those things they may want to give up. Here at Stewardship we are challenging people to go one step further this year and to not only give something up, but to give something out to others as well in an act of generosity. 

Over 40 days, we will challenge people to take part in 40 simple acts of generosity. Will you join the 40acts movement? Sign up at www.40acts.org.uk or visit www.facebook.com/40acts for more info.

To read more stories of kindness on the underground, please visit the TfL website here.

To kick off our new charity campaign series we ask: how do you turn baking into an alternative fundraising drive? This month, Spark+Mettle's 'Flour-ish' caught our eye and made our mouths water. Read on to find out why.

About the charity

Spark+Mettle is a start-up organisation who help people to - you guessed it - flourish. They give less-privileged young people an opportunity to unleash their potential and harness it to a fulfilling career through their training programmes and resources.

About the campaign

The third Monday of January is typically heralded as Blue Monday (the most depressing day of the year), so Spark+Mettle enlisted the help of Delia Smith, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Prue Leith to create a website full of recipes designed to help people 'flourish' and beat the blues. We really liked the Toffee Apple Cake. You can also use a text-donation service to donate to Spark+Mettle's work. Visit flour-ish.org.uk to find out more about the campaign.

If you think your charity campaign is worthy of a mention in next month's blog, or you've seen one that made you look twice, drop us a line at enquiries@stewardship.org.uk or leave a comment below.

To kick off our first '3 mission minutes with...' series, we spoke to Petra Wainwright from El Refugio Ministries in Colombia about the challenges and joys of working with underprivileged children, being held at gunpoint, and South American chocolate:

When did you first join El Refugio ministries?

I came to Cartagena in Colombia after several years working in other countries on a more short-term basis training and language learning. All that preparation led me here in January 2010. El Refugio is a children’s project in one of the poorest neighbourhoods of Cartagena in Colombia.

What do you know now that you wish you’d known at the start?

I was very blessed in the way God led me into full-time mission through various short term missions: each one gradually lasting for longer and in different cultures which meant I had a gradual introduction into life as a missionary. So I can’t really remember ‘starting’ as such. But I would thoroughly recommend anyone thinking of life as a full-time missionary to spend time on short-term mission at first, if possible in a similar locations to that which you feel called to long-term.

What’s the most inspiring story to come out of the ministry so far?

It is hard to think of an inspiring story, working with children from a community with so many social, economic and cultural issues such as we do at El Refugio. During my 2 years or so here we have had some children and families who have made small breakthroughs and they to us are big! Kener is one young boy whom I call to mind: he is in the middle of a family of 8 siblings, mostly boys, the older ones all left school early with no encouragement to study from the family. Kener has many behavioural problems which caused him to fall behind at school and he was expelled without being able to read and write. Last September we had a teacher working with us who was able to take a small group of children who were not at school and teach them the basics of literacy; Kener was one of this group. After a tough beginning, all of the kids got used to a class environment and with lots of encouragement and creativity in the teaching we saw Kener start to make rapid progress in his studies and to show a lot of intelligence. After time, encouraged by his own achievement he also began to improve in his behaviour, even telling the others to behave as he wanted to study. Unfortunately though, he has begun to slip away with the pressure of his elder brothers to join in their life of crime.

Assuming you already have a bible, what’s the one thing you couldn’t do without while in Colombia?

My laptop. I was unfortunate enough to have my laptop stolen at gun-point at the beginning of the year but thankfully God provided a new one brought over from England in May by my Mum. However, during the months I was without one I realised how important it is, not just for work purposes, but also for social needs: watching DVDs, communicating with friends and family and even being able to attend my home church through their live streaming. I have also been blessed with a near constant supply of Cadbury’s chocolate which is also a definite need! Latin chocolate just isn’t as good!!

What’s the largest challenge you’ve faced so far?

Personally the largest challenge was the armed robbery: having a gun pointed at you is not something you overcome easily. However God was faithful and through the experience He was able to bring about a resolution to my biggest ministry challenge which was with our youth. As I have mentioned, this community put a lot of pressure on their children to drop out of school, become involved in sexual promiscuity, drinking, drugs and gangs. So starting our first youth group was a challenge because these young people are very much at the edge of the temptation to follow that path. Also, youth in any culture can be very difficult to please. I found myself in a position where the youth didn’t respect me or my authority; they would laugh at me and misbehave or have a bad attitude. The robbery took place during a youth group meeting in front of all of them, and since then they have all changed their attitude and now have a lot of respect for me.

How have you found the experience of raising your own support?

Raising support was very difficult for me in the beginning, issues such as my British reserve coupled with the fear that others will react negatively, expecting that you should get a paid job and not ’live on handouts’. Also while I was training it was hard for people to see the purpose in what I was doing. Since actually being in ministry it has become easier to raise support and when I came to Colombia in 2010 for the first time I had enough support to pay my basic needs. After going back to the UK for Christmas 2010 armed with videos and stories, I was able to increase my support to a level where I am now comfortable.

What’s your favourite part of Latino culture?

I love the openness of the people here, despite their problems the people I work with are so open and friendly and they accept me for me. The same goes for the team I work with who are mostly Colombian. I also love the liveliness and colour of the culture with the music and dancing.

If people want to support you, how can they do that?

People can support me through my Stewardship Account. (a/c number 2009 0351)

Where do you see the ministry being in 5 years?

It is my vision to expand the current ministry to work with girls who have become involved in sexual exploitation. It is estimated that there are 2000 underage girls being used in prostitution, mostly sex tourism, in the city of Cartagena.

Thank you for taking the time to speak to us! Any final thoughts?

I have a very good friend and supporter who supports not only me but another missionary. He has often said that when he hears missionary stories he feels like he should also be on the field doing something, but doesn’t really have a call to mission. It is something I believe God puts in the hearts of all his people, to “go into all the nations” however, it is my belief that he calls some people to “go” and some people to “enable”. Someone once said it is like the bees and flowers: the bees travel around spreading the pollen, but if there weren’t any flowers to pollenate what would the bees do? My friend is a flower that gives in order that I and others can fly around spreading God's love. The mission supporter is a very important person in the life of a missionary and is often undervalued. I have 16 very special people who give me a little of their income each month so I can fulfil my calling and I hope I never undervalue or dishonour them in any way. I know many missionaries, especially Latinos who work with me here, who are not so fortunate. More Christians at home need to realise that this is a very valuable and much needed way of fulfilling God’s great commission.

Follow Petra's story on Twitter: @Petrat76

El Refugio Website (Spanish)

Churches up and down the UK run many thousands of events every year. If you're an event organiser, did you realise that there are legal considerations to take into account?

The Churches Legislation Advisory Service (CLAS) has just produced a very helpful free 9-page checklist,  covering various legal requirements and matters that need to considered when a church plans an event. It includes considerations such as Safeguarding, Health and Safety, Insurance, Food Safety, Alcohol Licenses, and more.

Stewardship works closely with the Churches Legislation Advisory Service. They are an ecumenical membership organisation that seeks to communicate with and influence Government on legislation  and other matters which directly affect churches, and to act as a channel through which Government can consult the churches as a whole. They also comment on the impact of proposed legislation, as well as acting on churches/church ministers’ behalves to seek to cure anomalies and bring about a regime that is as fair as possible. To find out more about membership of CLAS, click here.

To obtain your copy of the Occasional Events checklist, visit the CLAS website and select the ‘Publications’ tab. From there, you can download the document.

"As a chartered surveyor in Local Government, I enjoyed a good salary and loans with preferential rates. Then God called me into the ministry. Living by faith in Bible College was somewhat different!”. Restructuring debts and taking on a second job, whilst working for the church, seemed like the only option. “We ended up using credit cards to buy groceries, we felt we had no other choice; we chose more debt rather than allow our children to go without.”

This is how Julian’s story begins; one of a number of Church ministers who have found themselves reaching out to Christians Against Poverty’s debt counselling service in recent years. And Julian isn’t alone. Our own anecdotal research suggests that debt amongst senior church leaders and ministers is rising, with many feeling forced to suffer in silence.

“Being in debt is a massive taboo subject especially for a church leader – who can you confide in? You worry that your ministry will be affected if people in your church learn of your struggle and not everyone has a family friend they can turn to.”

Which is why this week we are celebrating the launch of CAP Money Ministers - a new, confidential service for senior church leaders experiencing personal debt issues, working in partnership with Christians Against Poverty.

Mike O’Neill, Stewardship’s Chief Executive, adds “We often hear from church leaders who lack confidence in their own finances and in their ability to speak confidently about money with others. That’s why we are so thrilled to be partnering with CAP to launch CAP Money Ministers; a service which we hope will release hundreds of church leaders from financial worry and, in doing so, free them to do the same for their congregations."

For Julian, the lifeline came when a friend referred him to CAP, who quickly worked to turn his situation around.

“The great thing that CAP did for us was to give us hope: hope that we could sort out the debt, hope that it wouldn’t last forever. There is a way out of debt.” Read the rest of Julian's story here.

Anyone can struggle with their finances and fall into debt, particularly in the current economic climate; those that lead churches are no exception. Even those leading churches, who are expected to be perfect all the time!

If you are in a ministerial position and need help with money management, contact CAP Money Ministers’ confidential helpline on 01274 760780, or click here to find out more.

One of the frequent questions that we are asked at Stewardship is about trustees in churches, and how that role interacts with those of the spiritual leaders; ministers, pastors, elders etc. This issue can create confusion and even at times tensions between people. As a result it is an important issue for those involved in church leadership to understand.

The confusion and tension comes out of what the church is; not only a community of Christians working together to evangelise, love and disciple principally governed by the teaching in the Bible but also, very often, a charity governed by UK law. The Charity Commission has guidance for trustees and the Bible has principles for good leadership. These need to work together if the church is to be well governed in both aspects.

It is important in each church setting to work out how these leadership principles are best achieved. This will depend on the type of structure a church has, and who the individuals are in the team. We find that when these are understood and there are good relationships between the people on the team, the different roles work well to support each other and achieve good spiritual direction and good legal governance. Where there is misunderstanding or poor relationships (and one tends to lead to the other), there can be gaps or frictions leading to problems in either or both of the spiritual and legal leadership of the church.

If you want to read more on this area, please refer to our free briefing paper entitled 'Guide to churches on spiritual leadership and trustees'. If you think your own church could improve in this area we do recommend you humbly ask God for help, seek to understand the others in your team and work to see this resolved in line with the teaching of Ephesians chapter 4. If you would think it may help to speak to one of Stewardship’s Consultants, who have practical experience of being involved in both spiritual leadership and trustee roles, please contact enquiries@stewardship.org.uk

As churches and charities increasingly look to seek new opportunities for working in communities, including tendering for new contracts to deliver community benefit, they must do so with their eyes open to the legal realities. One of these ‘realities’ is the TUPE risk. ‘TUPE’ refers to the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations.

In 2011, the 700 Club, a charity in the North East were caught out as they hadn't appreciated that TUPE would apply them. They, along with the Salvation Army, provided hostel accommodation for homeless people in Darlington and both charities were funded by the Local Authority. Due to funding cuts, the Council invited both to tender for one remaining available contract, which 700 Club won. The Salvation Army centre was closed.

According to reports, 700 Club did not change the service that they were providing and were not bidding to take over the Salvation Army contract, but rather to retain their funding. One report quotes Reverend Dr John Ellison, the 700 Club's founder as saying "We made it very clear that in tendering we were tendering for work we already had a contract for - in no sense were we taking over the work of the Salvation Army." However, the Tribunal stated that the charity was expected as a result of the tender to take on the services previously provided by the Salvation Army. As a result, they inherited a reported £250,000 liability in respect of  Salvation Army redundancy payments, on a contract worth only £190,000.

Where a charity takes over the provision of a service from a local authority or other provider, TUPE is likely to apply to transfer the employment of all staff who have spent the majority of their time working on the service.  This will mean the new provider picks up all employment liabilities for those staff.  In a transfer from a local authority this can include an obligation to match the employees existing final salary pension rights – which is a very significant cost by itself. If the church/charity is going to remodel the service they will need to honour any contractual redundancy entitlements and any attempts to "level down" employees’ contractual rights could well be unlawful.  

Matthew Wort, employment lawyer at Anthony Collins, warns that it is crucial that charities carry out a careful analysis of the employment information provided by the outgoing contractor before tendering for work and if they don't have sufficient information to ask more questions. If significant risks are identified it could sink the project. They should consider either not proceeding with the tender or alternatively negotiating with the organisation awarding the contract over a way to manage those risks.  

For the full article click here.

Matthew Wort is a senior associate at Anthony Collins Solicitors. He specialises in Employment Law with a focus on Equality and Diversity matters and has advised a number of charities on TUPE matters. He is Chair of Trustees of Oasis Church Trust, Birmingham.

New year, new you! Lose weight, feel great! Ditch the smokes! It’s everywhere at the moment, isn’t it? As soon as the indulgence of Christmas ends, people start wagging the finger of resolution, promising it’ll make you happier. And we all know that a hastily-made resolution to give up chocolate only lasts until M&S slash the prices of their Yule logs. Surely real resolution – real transformation - ought to last longer, and have more of a domino effect, than that? Is it really just about how we as individuals transform?

Over Christmas I sit and evaluate all that has happened during the previous school term. Hard work, exhaustion, receiving verbal abuse, physical assault and very little thanks! Then I remember the lives of those kids; the broken homes and disappointment they carry. I remember with a warm glow that those same kids are now moving forward, feeling loved and beginning a life of transformation.

All those years ago I was one of those kids, worse than most of them!

After a life of crime and drug addiction I found myself in prison, serving five and a half years for armed robbery, but God had a transformational plan for my life that I could never have seen coming and it was much more powerful than any resolution I’ve ever tried to stick to by myself. While in HMP Wolds I attended an Alpha course and Jesus broke into my life. From that day on I have lived for Him and use my testimony to reach those who think they are beyond reaching and inspire the Church to reach further than they thought possible.

I joined Hope Corner Community Church on the 4th August 2000 and I am now a minister with Assemblies of God. I am responsible for running Xcel Youth Ministries and The Progressive Social Inclusion Project (PSI) - our award winning and highly successful social action project, working with excluded and marginalised young men and women in Runcorn, Cheshire. We are currently building a new centre to house the growing project and congregation. The new building will also house the Hope Corner Academy - a church-run independent SEN school.

I am married to my beautiful wife Rebekah and I have two children – Benjamin and Lydia-Grace. I graduated Mattersey Hall (bible college) and received full ministerial status with Assemblies of God (Pentecostal) in 2009.

If you had told the man I used to be that such a transformation would happen, I would have thought you were mad. All this has come about because of the faithful, generous believers coming into the prison, with their testimony of transformation on their lips. Through them Jesus found me and through me Jesus is reaching others; what an incredible domino effect!

God is now using His story in me through my book ‘Unreachable’, and in just two months since its launch 100s have responded to God’s invitation. They have begun their story and I’m sure they will pass it on too, but will you? You have an opportunity this New Year to allow God to help you make a worth-while resolution, and in doing so, achieve a transformation that ripples beyond what you could ask, hope or imagine.

Spend the start of the New Year in prayer. Ask God to show you how you can show His love in your community, with the aim of creating lasting transformation not only in your life, but in the lives of those around you. Use the topic of New Year’s resolutions as a talking point with your colleagues, friends and family, and share your vision of a resolution that leaves a legacy far beyond the cold mists of January.

> If you would like to support our ministries you can find more details at http://www.hopecorner.co.uk

> Or join me on the journey through twitter http://twitter.com/PastorDHCCC

Image source: Flickr: Easterbilby

Did you know that online giving among the good people of Great Britain experienced an increase of 75% between 2008 and 2011?* Pretty good hey?

A survey published this week by the Evangelical Alliance also revealed that within the UK evangelical Christian community, over half of those respondents surveyed said they had made online donations to a charity or ministry in the last 12 months.

The survey also reports that direct debits, standing orders, traditional cash or cheque donations still remain much more popular whilst another pioneer giving technique – texting – remains low in the popularity stakes with just 13% of survey respondents saying that they have given in this way in the last 12 months. Text-giving was, however, more popular among women and the 35-55 age group.

Here at Stewardship, we have been encouraged by the popularity of our own online giving service, successfully launched a year ago. During this time we have seen over 8591 people logging on to use their Stewardship giving accounts and in just 12 months, £7 million in online account donation requests have been fulfilled.

Over a third of all one-off gifts made into Stewardship accounts are now made online and last year £6,000 of online donations were made on Christmas day! Take a sneaky peek at how YOU could join the ever-growing generous bunch of online givers at www.stewardship.org.uk/give-funds.

So how do you like to give? Do you prefer the good old traditional giving techniques or have you dipped more than a toe into the ever expanding cyberspace giving community? Leave us your comments!

*Source: www.ncvo-vol.org.uk/sites/default/files/clickable_UK_Giving_2011.pdf

Our recent international survey of full-time Christian mission workers has revealed that 27% of those surveyed rely on an annual income of £10,000 or below.

Of those Christian workers who took part, the average income for survey respondents was revealed to stand in the region of £15,000 per year.  This is at a time when the average salary in the UK is reported to be £27,415 (Source: PayScale).

When queried on perceptions of a ‘suitable’ level of income; mission workers regarded an annual income in the region of £21,500 would be adequate in meeting their financial needs and those of their family. The results of the survey conducted by Christian charity Stewardship, an organisation who supports a network of over 2500 individuals in or studying for ministry, serve as a reminder that the financial needs of many Christian mission workers around the world are not being sufficiently met.

Michael O’Neill, Chief Executive of Stewardship comments;

“The figures from our latest international survey suggests that a large percentage of Christian mission workers are surviving on an income which is a third less than they require.  As an organisation we are committed to seeing mission work generously resourced, however these survey results will certainly challenge Christian mission workers, their supporters, sending agencies and churches and reveals that we still have a long way to go.”

Read the full survey breakdown here.

The Christmas Tree is an advent gift from Stewardship to you.

Inspired by the tale of two trees; surprise gifts for two unsuspecting families, we offer simple tales of miracles, hope and generosity.  We hope to inspire you.  To remind you of the wonder of Christmas; a celebration of generosity, of God’s greatest gift to all mankind.

Take a moment to explore our Christmas tree.  Play. Sing along. Giggle. Be inspired. Share.

Wishing you a blessed Christmas.

Stewardship.

Debbie:

As a mother of four girls I used to look forward to Christmas the same way my mother - also of four children - did: with doom and gloom. Rather than a glorious celebration of family, feasting and fun, all I looked forward to was the endless lists to tick off, novel presents to buy for my ever-growing family and innumerable God-children. Cards, presents, food preparation, decorating the house, let alone fitting in nativity plays, Christmas concerts and church prayer evenings. When did I ever turn into such a scrooge and such a kill joy? It all had something to do with setting my sights on perfection. The perfect day, present, outfit, family gathering, the perfect meal, - oh and let’s not forget the perfect homemade Christmas card. My pursuit of perfection of course never quite happened, and each year I vowed I would start earlier, plan better, buy a bigger freezer perhaps. I had become a slave to the ‘perfect Christmas’.

Last year that all changed. A friend’s husband suffered a critical life changing stroke in early December and it turned their family life upside down: Christmas was put on hold and suddenly the real priorities in life appeared. I was caught up short! I couldn’t believe how my relentless pursuit for a perfect Christmas had so subtlety enslaved me and how I had become so ‘way off the mark’.

Where was my perfection and planning in that nativity scene? Mary and Joseph were refugees, Jesus was born in an animal shed as no hotel room had been booked - there was no forward planning for them! But in all of this God’s glorious generosity was on display, his outpouring love showered upon us, breaking into our world in the form of a helpless babe. It was if the scales fell from my eyes, and instead of looking inwards, I now look outwards and upwards. I still have my lists (I can’t completely abandon to a free-wheeling existence, but perhaps I’ll be persuaded by Advent Conspiracy this year) but now my eyes and my heart are fixed on Christ – God made flesh. That jaw-dropping, miraculous event has become the centre of my preparations and the centre of our Christmas.

Sam:

Perhaps it is when you hear ‘Slade’ blasting out across the supermarket floor, or when you first pull on that maroon coloured turtle neck sweater. Maybe it is when the Z-list celebrity ('He starred in Doctor Who, he was the guy on the left in the mask, oh, and he was once in Paddington Green, do you remember?’) arrives to switch on the village lights. Maybe it’s when you finally get the tree up and the tinsel on, dreading the following six months of hoovering up pine needles from behind the sofa. Perhaps only Marmite causes as great a war of opinions as the question of when the Christmas season actually begins. ‘Far too soon’, you scrooges out there cry; ‘Not soon enough!’ reply the romantics who have been wearing knitted Rudolf socks since mid-August.

For me, however, Christmas begins when the adverts kick in. No longer is it acceptable to simply add a cheesy Christmas hit to a standard advert in order to sell your Christmas stock, no, it seems inherent now that a Christmas advert must get Mike Tyson reaching for the Kleenex. And when I saw the John Lewis Christmas advert the other week I was suitably impressed. I had heard rumours of grown men reduced to tears in front of their television screens (something unheard of outside of relegation battles, F.A Cup Finals and the odd episode of the X-factor) and it did not disappoint. The advert ends with the tag line ‘For gifts you can’t wait to give’. Ultimate cheese you may say, and you probably have a point, but the adverts message has an echo of something a Nazarene bloke said over 2000 years ago; ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’. This guy was counter-cultural; he turned the world upside-down, everyday thinking turned on its head. Like the advert, with Jesus the ‘ending’ was not what the beginning might have suggested. A new King born ends up dead on a cross, the ultimate sacrifice; the ultimate gift.

Christmas is about generosity; not my generosity, nor yours (and definitely not that of the fat bearded man in the red coat), but the generosity of our God, who sent his only son into our broken world to pay the ultimate price for our sin. Generosity that was not changed despite the full knowledge that his son would be ridiculed and abandoned and the gift would go unappreciated by millions. If that isn’t enough to encourage us to be generous this Christmas then what is?

Debbie Wright is Head of Content at Stewardship. Sam Gibb is our guest author this month: click here to see his bio.

Our popular Guide to VAT especially written for churches has been completely re-written and expanded to provide a useful, readable reference guide for various interactions that churches have with the VAT system. There have been a number of major changes to the VAT system which affect churches and this Guide is up to date as at 31 October 2011. Whether the church is VAT registered or not, there are tips on how to avoid paying VAT unnecessarily which, in the case of building projects and property rents, has saved some readers many thousands of pounds.

Whilst this 38 page Guide is detailed, it seeks to distil the complexities of VAT whilst avoiding being overly technical. Rather than cover VAT as a topic, it covers only those areas that will typically be faced by churches (and Christian charities).

Separate sections cover: Introduction and General Principles, VAT Planning, VAT Registration, Property Acquisition, Use and Maintenance, VAT Reliefs for Charities, Churches Registered for VAT and Frequently Asked Questions, plus a useful contacts and addresses section. Six Appendices provide copies of the Pro Forma VAT Certificates that your church may be asked for, or may be required to provide (for example in order to gain VAT Zero rating).

We are grateful to the senior VAT Consultants at Crowe Clark Whitehill for their help in producing this Guide and ensuring that it remains an authoritative text for Churches and Christian charities.Click the link below to order the new guide.

VAT for Churches – a detailed guide

Camel-hair shirts and the locust diet.

A long time ago, in a garden overflowing with goodness, a naked young lady was convinced by a talking snake that she wanted more.  This lie was an enormous whopper the like of which no-one had ever heard because, in reality, this young lady wanted for nothing.  All of her needs were met.  But from the moment the lie was heard, she itched for more.

The problem spread down the centuries and into every human heart until, one day, a desperate crowd stood by a desert river and said to a man,

“What should we do?” (Luke 3:10)

The man was John the Baptist, a desert preacher who had no possessions whatsoever.  He ate locusts and wore a robe made of camel-hair.  He dedicated his life to not wanting, so he was qualified to speak on the matter.  He answered,

“Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.” (Luke 3:11)

Notice that John didn’t say give all your shirts, just the ones you don’t need.  But I bet no-one who heard him speak that day offered him a shirt or topped up his supply of locusts.  But that’s OK; it wasn’t a literal instruction – it was massively more important than that.

Giving away half your wardrobe does not immediately give you spiritual and personal fulfilment.  You do not become perfect by donating to charity shops.  So we can’t ignore the next tsunami or stop giving to the DEC because we cleared out our least fashionable shirts.  Rather, John the Baptist was talking about a life of absolute generosity where everything we own is to be halved and shared with those who don’t have enough.

That was a tough calling, but the people responded.

John the Baptist was immediately surrounded by a host of ‘sinners’ asking for individual advice and direction.  ‘But what about us tax collectors?’ ‘What about us soldiers?’  Every answer he gave was different in the detail but the same in spirit. 

Use only what you need and give the rest away. 

This message was so radical (apparently) that people began to wonder if John the Baptist was the Messiah (Luke 3:15).  They hadn’t even met Jesus, the real Messiah, who would set the bar at the highest level.

Give back. Give more. Give yourself. Give from the heart.

The itch of want will take over and blind us to the need of others, if we let it.  Giving generously helps undo the process.  So I suggest we start small and build up. 

The generosity challenge:

First, throw open your wardrobe door and pull it all out.  Find the good stuff that (for whatever reason) you just don’t wear.  Bag it up, and give it away to a worthy cause.  I know John the Baptist didn’t mean this literally, but why not, eh?  Give it a go.

Secondly, when you’re queuing to pay for your coffee, count the money in your wallet or purse and divide it by two.  Pay for someone else’s drink even if it means changing your own order.

Thirdly, look for an opportunity to give a substantial amount to a cause.  Make personal sacrifices so that you feel the pain of giving.  Forego a pleasure or want so that you can fulfil the need of another.  If your wealth is in time, hospitality or skills, give from those.  If it is financial wealth, you know who to talk to.

This blog series is the next step on from Stewardship’s Lent initiative, 40Acts.  We don’t have to restrict sacrificial and generous giving to the time of Lent.  Why not carry on the Lent challenge throughout the year?  Find an opportunity to give – and I mean really give – this October.

Despite making a conscious effort each year to avoid the Christmas consumer frenzy and keep my mind focused on the real meaning of Christmas, the reality is that it’s very difficult to keep an eye on spending during the festive season.  It’s a bit like hoovering up the needles under the Christmas tree, just when you think you’ve finished, more appear! 

Even if you rigorously scale down on present giving, only send e-cards, or make all your own decorations, there are plenty of other little extras that can catch you by surprise and eat up your cash. 

To avoid being tangled up by unexpected expenditure, why not take some time out over a coffee and review your Christmas spending with the help of our Christmas budget challenge?

There is also another lurking danger which may not be quite so obvious: that faced by the overt message of commercialism we can refuse to participate at all and stifle the Christian message of generosity so apparent in the Christmas story.  If you’re in need of an antidote to commercialism or feeling a bit ‘bah humbug’, perhaps take a look at a short clip from Operation Christmas Child following a journey of a shoebox.  Volunteering to fill and check boxes is a small act of generosity which happens every year in churches around the UK.  Maybe there are similar opportunities near you that might be able to give a little time to?

Giving our time to preparing for Christmas, whether it be planning activities or budgeting spending could help you to maintain a clear head when faced with the seasonal onslaught and give you that important head space to concentrate on the real gift of Christmas – one that never tarnishes, runs out or disappoints.

On 1st October 2011 at 8.30pm, sixteen members of the Stewardship staff will gather at the O2 in Greenwich, London, to complete (probably) the longest walk of our lives. The Shine Walk traces the London Marathon route for the complete 26.2 miles, and participants walk through the night to raise money for Cancer Research UK.

We have set a fundraising target of £5000, with each of us aiming to raise varying amounts. All of us have a story to tell, and you can head to the following pages to read them, see who has already donated, and make a donation yourself:

Frances' Page

Daniel's Page

Alex's Page

Joanna's Page

Greg's Page

Christine's Page

Jules' Page

Lisa's Page

Kirstie's Page

Lots of our family and friends have already made donations - and we're so grateful that they believe in us! - but one particularly encouraging story of generosity emerged from a social network - Twitter. One of our supporters attracted the attention of a complete stranger - a Secret Millionaire in fact - on the social network, and asked him if he could advertise the fundraising effort via his Twitter account. Given that philanthropists and celebrities tend to get these kinds of requests on a daily basis, it came as a really lovely surprise to see that the Millionaire in question not only advertised the fundraising effort to nearly 700 followers on Twitter, but also made a donation himself. 

Thanks so much to those who have given so generously; we look forward to seeing some of you at the finish line, and will blog the full story (with photos!) after the event.

Take a look at 2 Corinthians 9 and you’ll come face to face with some bumper sticker verses: ‘whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly’ (verse 6), ‘God loves a cheerful giver’ (verse 7) and ‘God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work’ (verse 9).

If you weren’t a fan of context you could take these as fuel to fire a prosperity gospel: after all,  if we give a big enough offering with a big enough smile we’ll surely end up with a whopping great blessing on our lives, right?

Sadly, that’s not quite what Paul has in mind, but the passage is still dynamite when it comes to the subject of our giving.

Paul’s right when he says that we reap what we sow, but we should remember that Paul’s using the agricultural term metaphorically here, and so we are not meant to take the words literally. Instead of giving as a transaction, Paul paints a picture of a bolder, brighter way of being, one where our choices are motivated by our heart rather than our wallet. Each of us should give ‘what he has decided in his heart to give’. As the late John Stott commented, ‘there is a sense here of a settled conviction about how much to give; of a decision reached after careful consideration, and always with joy and cheerfulness.’ 

Stott also made the link between this passage and Paul’s earlier letter to the Corinthians where he encourages planned, systematic giving (1 Corinthians 16:1-3). While there’s nothing wrong with spontaneous, Spirit-prompted acts of generosity, we primarily need to approach the matter with care, prayer and time. Decisions about what, and how, we give should not be left to spur-of-the-moment emotions, just as a harvest cannot be reaped when the farmer feels ‘in the mood’.

Harvests, like generosity, take time, purposeful planning and an eye for the long game. As well as making us more efficient in our giving, this also allows for a greater connection with God through the process. As Paul says,

‘This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God.’(verse 12)

We 21st century Christians have such potential. We have the power to become informed about so many areas of need, and the possibility to plan our giving in ways that make a sustained, effective difference right where we feel God is calling us. We have the opportunity to share our stories with others across the planet in an instant, and the chance to let our generosity become one of the driving forces in our faith. What a great, indescribable gift!

Take action:

Engage more with this harvest time: go to www.biblefresh.com and read more of Stewardship’s blogs. 

Take stock of your budget and accounts and spend some time reviewing your giving.

Tinned goods have become ubiquitous at harvest, but tin cans sitting in the back of dusty cupboards are poor symbols of God’s abundance and generosity. This autumn let’s reconnect with the idea of celebration and generosity, go to or even run a harvest supper or harvest celebration.

Not to be confused with Hope Corner, Hope Centre is a story just as inspirational. 39 churches in the Macclesfield area came together to inspire hope in the local community, and out of it was borne the Hope Centre - a coffee shop and Christian bookshop designed 'to respond to human need by loving service'.  In addition to serving up quality coffee and Christian literature the Centre has also been able to respond to prayer requests. 'We're reaching out to lonely, isolated people in our community.' Bob Boland, Chairman of the Trustees, said.

Stewardship was pleased to be able to provide a £20,000 grant which contributed to the start-up costs and we look forward to hearing more stories of hope as the Centre moves into new areas of outreach.

For more information about Hope Centre, visit their website.

You can support Hope Centre using your Stewardship account, using account number 20118387