The Hottest Thing this Summer (Part 2):Ask the Right Questions
With national events as chaotic and disturbing as they are, it seems like last week’s blog, was a million years ago. But it wasn’t!
I’m sure you remember the post was a plea for you to keep telling your congregation’s story over the summer.
Why tell stories? Because they
Remind us of who we are (and Whose we are),
Give us insight into people and programs we may not know all that well and
Can inspire generosity.
After last week’s post, I received a question from Rev. Grace Casola of Lutheran Church of the Covenant in Dale City, VA:
I love getting your Inspiring Generosity newsletter emails. As a first call pastor, they really help me think intentionally about generosity and storytelling in the congregation. I definitely know the importance of sharing stories of impact, but I feel like I struggle to hear how my church's work is impacting others.
I love the ideas you offer in this article, and I'm wondering if you have any more concrete tips about how to "collect" stories of change and transformation. I have a feeling I'm either not interacting with people enough or not asking the right curious questions if I'm not hearing how the work the church is doing is impacting people.
What should I ask/say to people to tease these stories out of them?
Thanks for your help!
Pastor Grace
Such a great question, don’t you think? Here’s how I responded to Grace’s question (shared with her permission and with a few edits):
Hi Grace -
Collecting stories can feel like an overly formal process. But it doesn’t have to be. My guess is that you are hearing stories of change and transformation frequently - you just need to tune in to them. Be on the lookout and let your ears perk up when someone talks about something interesting.
Here are some additional concrete ideas:
#1: Be up front and tell people you are looking for stories about their journey. People love talking about themselves - if they are asked.
#2: If you want to get some good stories, be ready to ask the probing and curious questions:
I know you’ve been at this church for a while; can you tell me how you started coming here?
How has this congregation made a difference in your life?
Why do you keep coming to this church?
Why do you give to this church?
What do you like most about our congregation?
If you had one word to describe us, what would it be?
You can ask a few people to write down their answers and use their responses in quarterly giving statements. See an example here and another one here. These stories were short enough to fit on a third of a sheet of paper to easily stuff in an envelope. You can also use this same approach for your church newsletters. Folks love to learn about those who are sitting next to them in worship.
I hope this helps and gets your creative juices going.
- Cesie
Thank you for letting me encourage all you fabulous readers to be curious, attentive, and sometimes straightforward about asking for stories. Let me know what questions you like to use when talking to people in your congregation.
Grab a lemonade with a church member, ask some questions and, as Sly Stone (RIP) would say, have some Hot Fun in the Summertime!
Photo by Brett Sayles @ Pexels.com
Cesie Delve Scheuermann (pronounced “CC Delv Sherman,” yes, really) is a Stewardship Consultant for the OR-ID Annual Conference. She is also a Senior Ministry Strategist with Horizons Stewardship – helping with capital campaigns and encouraging more generosity. For 25 years, while working as a volunteer and part-time consultant, she has helped raise over three million dollars for numerous churches and non-profit organizations.
You can reach Cesie at inspiringgenerosity@gmail.com, at CesieScheuermann.com, or at cesieds@horizons.net. Want to schedule a meeting? She’s got you covered! This Saturday is No Kings Day. A line in this song by Iris DeMent is a great motivator for the work that needs to be done: “I’m working on a world, I may never see…”
Schedule a meeting now.
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