Why Your Church’s Giving Isn’t Growing (And Why It Has Nothing to Do With Money)
For many pastors, there’s a quiet fear that’s sitting just beneath the surface of Sunday attendance reports: Why isn’t giving growing the way our church is growing?
More people are showing up, but the budget isn’t moving. The ministry vision is expanding, but resources aren’t. You’re preaching faithfully, leading diligently, praying for breakthrough, and yet your financial reality feels stuck.
It’s easy to assume this is a “money problem.” But, what if it isn’t?
What if your church doesn’t have a money problem at all? What if your church has a discipleship problem specifically around Biblical stewardship and generosity?
That’s the tension we’re exploring here: the real root issues beneath stagnant giving.
Let’s remove any pre-conceived notions of guilt or failure. This is about clarity. Because you cannot solve a problem you haven’t named.
The Generosity Gap No One’s Talking About
As Mark Venti, longtime pastor and co-founder of Generosity University, explained in our conversation on Distilled, the gap between attendance and giving is widening across the country.
Not because people are less spiritual or churches less effective. Rather, it’s because the culture around money has fundamentally shifted.
Today’s congregations bring new dynamics with them:
1.Trust in institutions (including churches) is at an all-time low.
This isn’t just a “church thing”, and we’ve all seen it. Culturally, trust has eroded across Western societies. People are skeptical, cautious, and slow to commit financially. This undermines generosity even among people who love their church deeply.
2. Pastors are more hesitant than ever to teach on money.
We’ve heard all the common excuses: I don’t want to sound self-serving. I don’t want people to think I’m just after their wallets. I don’t want to trigger past church hurt.
So teaching on generosity becomes infrequent, apologetic, or situational (usually tied to budget shortfalls or special events). The result? A congregation left without the discipleship they need to practice Biblical generosity with confidence.
3. Younger generations were never discipled in Biblical stewardship.
This may be the biggest factor of all. Twenty years ago, consistent teaching around giving and generosity was normal within the home and church. Today, many young adults entering your church have:
- Never heard a teaching on tithing
- Never been equipped to manage personal finances
- Never seen generosity modeled consistently in church or family
If we aren’t discipling people in generosity, we can’t expect generosity to grow.
The Financial Reality Your Church Is Up Against
Even when people want to be generous, many feel like they can’t.
Discipleship around generosity and discipleship around financial literacy must work together. In most churches, neither are happening consistently.
67% of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, and 38% of individuals who are in debt report being in a financial crisis.
People aren’t withholding generosity out of apathy. They’re often drowning financially.
If we preach tithing without addressing financial literacy, we’re unintentionally asking people to give from fear, shame, or scarcity instead of freedom.
You cannot expect generosity to grow when financial bondage remains unaddressed.
Why Fundraising Events Can’t Fix the Problem
Many churches try to bridge the gap with annual giving campaigns like a year-end offering or spring giving campaign. While these can be helpful, they’ve become a kind of “budget bailout” strategy that’s not sustainable.
Generosity that is dependent on events is not Biblical generosity; it’s reactive generosity.
And, if we’re all honest, it’s exhausting.
True generosity builds sustainable ministry. It comes from consistent, biblically formed habits of giving, rooted in trust, conviction, and freedom.
Recap: Giving Gap = Discipleship Gap
To sum it all up, if your giving isn’t growing, it’s not necessarily a sign that your church is unhealthy. Instead, it might be a sign your church is experiencing the same discipleship gap most churches in America are facing.
People cannot practice generosity when:
- They’ve never been discipled into generosity.
- They are financially bound.
- Pastors feel held back from teaching it.
This is the discipleship crisis beneath the giving crisis, and naming it is the first step toward changing it.
Coming Next: The Solution to the Generosity Problem
Our next article in this series will unpack how churches can cultivate a sustainable culture of generosity. One that’s rooted in Biblical teaching, trusted voices, and financial literacy that unlocks real freedom.
Because generosity isn’t just a financial strategy. It’s a discipleship strategy, and when churches get this right, everything changes.