Groups Grow Generosity

Adam Erlichman
5 days ago
3 min read

Many churches struggle with discipling their congregation on the topic of generosity. Too often, the conversation around generosity gets reduced to budgetary needs—“how can we raise giving to meet expenses?” But that’s not the heart behind this discussion. The true goal is to cultivate disciples who live with ridiculously radical generosity. One of the most effective ways to disciple people in generosity is through groups. At Build Groups, we’ve seen again and again that churches that grow their groups also tend to grow in generosity. The correlation between the two is significant and measurable.

1) Groups Grow Generosity

Groups create environments where discipleship happens best—life on life, people encouraging one another, learning together, and serving together. As people grow in discipleship, they also grow in generosity. When relationships deepen, faith expands, and commitment to the mission of the church strengthens, people naturally give more of their time, talent, and treasure.

2) New Volunteers Grow Generosity

It’s not only groups that grow generosity—new volunteers do too. Every time someone takes a step into service, they begin to feel ownership of the mission. They stop being consumers and start being contributors. This shift in mindset consistently leads to greater generosity, both in time and in financial giving. Global Trends in Giving reports that 85% of volunteers also give to the non-profit they serve.

3) Groups Grow Volunteers

And here’s where the cycle feeds itself: groups grow volunteers. When people get connected to a group, they are much more likely to step into serving roles. Groups provide the relationships, equipping, and encouragement that move people toward deeper levels of involvement. A connected person is an engaged person, and engaged people volunteer.

4) Volunteers Give Time and Treasure

The numbers don’t lie. On average, for every family / single who joins a group or serves in a ministry, you can conservatively expect them to give $50–$57 per week. That translates to about $2,600–$3,000 per year. Think about it: if your church assimilates 50 new people into groups or volunteer teams, you could conservatively expect annual giving to increase between $130,000–$150,000. On the lower side, even a conservative estimate of $80,000–$100,000 holds steady. We’ve consistently observed this trend across churches in diverse demographics and geographies. While not true for every single church or geographical area's demographics, it’s a decent rule of thumb that we’ve tested, verified, and found reliable in many contexts.

5) Grow Your Groups & Grow the Congregation's Generosity

The bottom line is simple: when you grow your groups, you grow disciples. When you grow disciples, you grow generosity. Groups disciple people. Discipled people volunteer. Volunteers generously give both their time and treasure. If your church wants to cultivate a culture of radical generosity, don’t just focus on the offering plate or capital campaigns—focus on discipleship through groups. Because when groups grow, generosity grows.

What's Next?

With greater needs arising in local churches of all sizes, finding reliable help in practical ministry areas, such as groups, volunteers, and assimilation, is challenging. At Build Groups, we have consultants who help churches all around the country mobilize people into groups and volunteering by 30-50% in 6 to 12 months. If you would like to learn more about how we serve churches in this way, please visit www.buildgroups.net/consult

Join us at the National Small Groups Conference in Dallas, TX, on November 13-14th!

www.nationalsmallgroupsconference.com

AUTHOR

Adam Erlichman

Chief Consultant Officer and Author at Build Groups in Dallas, TX. Adam has served in Executive, Discipleship, Groups, Young Adult, and Youth ministries. He now lead co-pastors a church plant in East Dallas to reach the nations in the backyard of Dallas, TX. 6-time best-selling author of Christian leadership and discipleship resources. See more about Adam's consulting services on the following topics:

WANT MORE . . . ?

If you enjoyed this article, you can find even more great content by subscribing to our blog and checking out Adam's newest book that releases in October, "Group Leader Training: A Biblical Manual for Group Leaders and Teachers in the Local Church." Or, share a comment, question, concern, correction, or compliment below.