Wyden Your Horizons!

The Newsletter of VanderWyden Consultants, Inc.
We Specialize in Fund-Raising Through Faith-Raising
Cleveland • Boston • Atlanta • Los Angeles • Hartford • Philadelphia
Toll-free: (888) 245-5826 • Email: Bill@WydenYourHorizons.com • Web: WydenYourHorizons.com

Providing Professional Giving Counsel
for Churches & Non-profit Organizations

Capital Fund Campaigns - Operating Budget Campaigns - Planned Giving
Wyden Your Horizons and Find The Joy of Generosity

September 2009 - INSIDE THIS ISSUE. . .

1. Now is the Time to Conduct a Capital Fund Campaign Click
2. Insightful Quotations about Giving Click
3. About VanderWyden Consultants, Inc. Click
4. Subscribe / Unsubscribe Instructions Click

In this edition of Wyden Your Horizons! we share our experiences about how and why many churches proceed with Capital Fund Campaigns in the midst of national economic recessions. We also share a variety of quotations about Giving, which you may find helpful in your teaching and preaching about the Joy of Generosity.

Our Consultants provide a unique service that enables churches to conduct inspiring Faith-Raising and Fundraising Campaigns, which not only raise more funds per campaign than our competitors, but also raise faith among members that God provides abundantly when you step out by putting your faith in front of your fears. If you would like to have a no-obligation discussion about how our process may help your church, or if you have any other questions about our services, don't hesitate to contact us through our toll-free line, (888) 245 -5826, or by email, Bill@WydenYourHorizons.com.

We are always happy to share our insights and learnings about the wonderful ministry of fund-raising through faith-raising. We delight in enabling individuals, churches, and non-profit organizations to Wyden their Horizons by finding the Joy of Generosity. In our ministries we use programs that involve no-pressure on individuals to give, but which instead are pleasant and painless. We have found that when members and donors give because they want to, rather than being pressured to, they give wholeheartedly and far more generously. We are also happy to share the insights of our readers in this newsletter. If you would like share your experiences drop us a line through our email address. May God continue to bless your ministries and community service programs.

Now is the time to conduct a Capital Fund Campaign

We have received a surge in requests for Capital Fund Campaign assistance in the past two months. We have experienced this same phenomenon in previous economic recessions over the past 22 years during which time we have provided this specialized ministry. Initially when a recession is first recognized by the American public, there is a time of uncertainty about the economy and some churches delay their plans to conduct Capital Fund Campaigns. Then, after a few months, many of those churches who have delayed their plans decide to move ahead, and we have a surge of requests for assistance because of this pent up demand. There are several reasons for this significant increase in launching of Capital Fund Campaigns in times like this:

	Significantly lower construction costs. Many of the churches we are hearing from are telling us that they have realized that they can do their projects at much lower costs than they originally anticipated, because many of those involved in the construction industry are looking for work, and are willing to provide sizable reductions in costs to those who move ahead now. This opportunity will probably continue for at least 1-2 years longer, because even if the "recession is technically over", as some in the public media are now proclaiming, its effects will be felt for quite awhile. Unemployment especially lags behind other improvements in the economy as it takes time for employers to retool and re-employ to meet increased demand.
	Churches realize that they can no longer delay urgent repairs, or renovations, or additions that are essential for the future of their churches, and they decide to step out in faith and move ahead with their projects.
	Economic recessions cause companies that are marginally functioning to go out of business, and consequently those that remain pick up a larger market share. The same is true for churches. Economic recessions hasten the demise of churches that are limping along financially and providing minimal ministries, and those that step out in faith by increasing their facilities and ministries will increase the amount of individuals they can help.

	Not all wealth disappears in times like these. Churches that are moving ahead with their plans now are also acknowledging that all wealth has not disappeared in these times. Even though most have significantly less funds "on paper" than before the recession, Churches that are moving ahead are realizing that there are still many in their congregations who have more than most, and who admit that they have a responsibility to give of those funds to show their appreciation for their blessings and to respond to help their churches provide increased ministries, when so many of their neighbors are in need.
	Many church leaders decide to put their faith in front of their fears, and stop agonizing about the economy. Instead they decide that they need to come to terms that this is the way things are going to be for awhile, and make the best of the situation, by inspiring their members to grow in their faith in tough times by increasing their giving, so that the church can provide increased ministries to the many who are in need.
	Many congregations realize that the church needs to be a beacon of hope when many are struggling, and when the media is proclaiming doom and gloom. Church Capital Fund Campaigns can inspire your community by illustrating the fact that you have faith in the future and are striving to respond to the economic crisis by increasing your ministries. A Capital Fund Campaign can also provide work and hope for those involved in the construction industry.

If you would like to investigate whether this may be a good time for your church to conduct a Faith-raising Capital Fund Campaign, give us a call through our toll-free number, (888) 245 -5826, or email Bill@WydenYourHorizons.com to discuss the possibilities. Top

Insightful quotations about giving

"I have held many things in my hands, and I have lost them all. But whatever I have placed in God’s hands, that I still possess."
Martin Luther

"Stewardship is the act of organizing your life so that God can spend you."
Lynn A. Miller, author

"Nothing is more dangerous than to be blinded by prosperity."
John Calvin, French theologian and reformer

"A person has made at least a start on discovering the meaning of human life when planting shade trees under which you know full well that you will never sit." D. Elton Trueblood, American author, educator, philosopher and theologian

"We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give."
Winston Churchill, British wartime prime minister and statesman

"If you haven’t got any charity in your heart, you have the worst kind of heart trouble."
Bob Hope (1903-2003), American comedian

"Jesus said, ‘For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.’ This verse seems to indicate that the way a believer spends money may be the clearest indication – perhaps like a thermometer – of the heart’s spiritual condition. If that is the case, then one might conclude that if one does not give money to the church to help others, one falls into the category of those who do not have the fruits that ought to accompany the presence of grace in their lives. And if the tree is not bearing fruit, is the root itself good?"
John Ronsvalle, American researcher

"I never would have been able to tithe the first million dollars I ever made if I had not tithed my first salary, which was $1.50 per week."
John D. Rockefeller, Sr. American industrialist and philanthropist

When you give to God, you discover that God gives to you.

There's no good reason to be the richest man in the cemetery.
Col. Sanders, creator of Kentucky Fried Chicken

What I kept, I lost. What I gave, I have.

"I have observed 100,000 families over my years of investment counseling. I always saw greater prosperity and happiness among those families who tithed than among those who didn't. "
Sir John Templeton, Chairman of Templeton Funds

God looks at the heart, not the hand – the giver, not the gift.

Seek joy in what you give not in what you get.

Real charity doesn’t care if it’s tax deductible or not.

The Dead Sea is the dead sea because it continually receives and never gives.

Charity begins at home and generally dies from lack of outdoor exercise. Top

ABOUT VANDERWYDEN CONSULTANTS, INC. . .

VanderWyden Consultants provide professional fund-raising guidance to churches and non-profit organizations throughout the United States who require assistance with their fund-raising. We provide professional guidance for Capital Fund Campaigns, Stewardship Operating Budget Campaigns, Planned Giving Campaigns, Comprehensive Financial Feasibility Studies, and Workshops on the dynamics of stimulating growth in membership. If you would like to meet with us, since we provide our services throughout the United States, we can be available to meet with your leadership. If your church would like to host one of our Professional Workshops for churches or non-profit organizations in your area, we can provide a discount in our services for your church.
Or if you would like to explore how our services may help you to meet your needs, don't hesitate to call us through our toll-free number (888 -245-5826) for a no obligation free professional consultation.

Our staff has conducted over 350 successful campaigns throughout the United States. Our "Joy of Generosity" Capital Fund Campaign program enables churches to raise as much as 13 times existing giving levels, and our "Wyden Your Horizons" Operating Budget Stewardship program results in increases of 15 - 45%.

All ideas and commentaries in Wyden Your Horizons are copyrighted. Quotations may be freely used when the source is cited. Top

SUBSCRIBE UNSUBSCRIBE INSTRUCTIONS. . .

To subscribe to this newsletter, send any email to Subscribe@WydenYourHorizons. com. To unsubscribe from this newsletter, and to remove your name from our database, send any email to Unsubscribe@WydenYourHorizons. com.

Doing so will generate automated replies from our database, requiring a confirming click. Email providers occasionally place this reply email in your Bulk, Junk, or Späm folders -- so be sure to look there. If you do not receive or click the link in the reply email, you will not be subscribed or unsubscribed.

You can also contact me directly by replying to Bill@WydenYourHorizons. com. I will be happy to respond promptly and accommodate your requests. Please forward this to family, friends, colleagues, and co-workers who may be interested in subscribing themselves.

Blessings,

Rev. P. William VanderWyden, CFRE
President VanderWyden Consultants, Inc.
Headquarters -118 Westchester Drive, Amherst, Ohio 44001
Toll-Free Phone: 888-245-5826 (888-Bill-Van)
E-mail: Bill@WydenYourHorizons. com
Web: www. WydenYourHorizons. com

Top