- I’m afraid if I make a pledge, I won’t be able to fulfill it. . . . A lot of us feel that way, but we still have car loans and mortgages, we sign rental agreements and buy things on credit. Can we extend to God the same commitment we extend to our bank?
- The Bible says not to let our right hand know what our left hand is doing. That means we shouldn’t pledge. . . . Jesus was speaking out against people bragging about their good deeds. Jesus never spoke out against thoughtful planning and wise decision making. Just as it helps you to know what your salary is going to be next year, so it helps our session to have a good idea of how much money to expect next year. It helps guarantee sound cash-flow and wise decisions.
- I’m so broke, I can’t afford to pledge. . . . Look at all the things on which you spend money. Is there anything, anything at all, that you care about less than you care about God? If you can find one thing that is less important than God, then stop spending money on that thing and use it for your pledge. If you can’t find anything that is less important to you than God, then you should stop and think about how important God is to you.
- The pastor will look at me funny if I fall behind on my pledge. . . . The pastor has no idea who pledges or how much anyone pledges. Only those who actually enter the data or actively monitor it (usually just one or two) know who has pledged and whether or not they are keeping up with it. Sometimes, in VERY rare circumstances, the pastor may be told that someone has significantly fallen behind on their pledge, though never by how much. Significantly falling behind on a pledge frequently means there is a need for pastoral care. Perhaps someone in the family is ill and the hospital bills are high, someone has lost their job, they have become disillusioned with our church and are withholding their money in protest. With the proper information, the pastor can make discreet overtures and try to bring hope and healing to the situation.
- Pledging is too complicated. . . . If you’re not familiar with computers, it can certainly seem that way. The good news is that if you call our church office, someone will be glad to walk you through the process. You can always use the old-fashioned pledge forms. You can make your own pledge form. Or you can just call the church office and make a verbal commitment over the phone.
- I make my pledge, but I keep forgetting to actually give the money. . . . That’s one reason why we have time for an offering every week! If you give electronically, you can set it up for automatic payment. The US Mail carries checks to our door. And you can always drop by during office hours and hand over your donation. (Though if you bring it in loose change, we may need you to help us count. 😊)
- You keep talking about money, but pledging is more than money. . . . . You’re absolutely right. Good stewardship is always about more than money. And I sincerely hope that you will pledge your time and energy to our church’s missions. Many hands make the work light! But just as stewardship is always about more than money, it’s also never about less than money. We can’t talk about stewardship and pledging without talking about money. It makes our world go round. If we were still hunter-gatherers living by our wits in the forest, we would talk about sides of beef, baskets of vegetables, and salt. But we can’t pay the electricity bill with baskets of vegetables and salt. And our staff would rather receive money than sides of beef.
- I don’t like the word ‘pledge’. It sounds both legalistic and smarmy. . . . How about ‘commitment,’ ‘intent,’ or ‘joyfully promise’ instead? They work just fine.
- I’m afraid that if I let go of my fear of pledging it will make me generous in every other aspect of my life and bring me unexpected joys and abundant blessings. . . . Hmm. In that case, you better not pledge!
