For many charities and churches, it’s time to prepare charitable tax receipts. This blog continues a series on turning the chore of annual receipts into a blessing.

People *actually open* the receipt letter, or the email. They are paying attention! Please, please, please seize this opportunity to include a thank-you letter! The only exception I can think of would be if your church or charity doesn’t care whether this donor gives again or not. This blog begins a three-part series on turning the chore of annual receipts into a blessing. The goal is both accurate and grateful communication.

Here is a bit of encouragement for those who are working so hard at year-end to make sure their ministries, churches, organizations, and causes have the resources they need to continue making a difference. Thank you.

Let’s imagine your charity is behind budget. You’ll be cutting programs and laying off staff next year if more money doesn’t come in. What to do?

Don’t be afraid to ask for what you need. Be specific, like the man asking for three loaves of bread in Luke 11. Here’s my suggested steps to take before sending the email, and a template that might be a helpful starting point.

Making it less weird to talk about gifts in wills

A charity might ‘accomplish’ more by taking advantage of volunteers and low-paid staff. A charity might achieve higher fundraising targets by burning through staff. Is that stewardship? No, it’s exploitation masquerading as efficiency

If you are Christian who fundraises, this books is for you. If you are working for an organization that regards fundraising as a necessary evil, you might need to buy more than one copy!

The wisdom from Beatles' lyrics to Hey Jude “take a sad song and make it better” apply to charity finances. 

I’ve heard a couple of sad songs about charities running deficits in their operating budgets. Let's start with an organization I'm intimately involved with - my family. No matter what else is going on--university, saving for a big trip, fixing the roof--we put money aside each and every month to pay the bills. You probably do too. Paying the electricity bill is not glamourous but everyone benefits from attention to that little detail.