Stewardship

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Luke 6:38 reminds us to " Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure-pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you in return."

A leading note from Pastor Chris "When you give whether monetarily or by donating your time and talents, you receive an inner peace that you didn’t know you had. You receive so much more from God than what you give. Since I’ve been giving steadily and with joy, I have the funds for what I need when I need it, I have been blessed with financial calmness. God really does take the fear of not having enough and gives you a good feeling about what you do and who you are. Therefore I am asking you to prayerfully consider how much to increase your giving for 2026, or if you cannot increase financially, consider what you can do to volunteer, donate or overall support the ministry of the church. As we close in on giving Sunday, we think about the many things that your generosity supports. Not only does your giving support the everyday operation of the church, but did you know your gifts support the homeless, the quilting group in the church, and provides immediate aid to people needing assistance to obtain food and help with a utility bill".

Overview of 2026 CLC Stewardship Program

A reminder that this year’s 2026 Christ Lutheran Stewardship campaign will focus on supporting the 2026 general operating budget which will be formally presented by Council for Congregational approval at the January, 2026 Annual Meeting.

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Commitment Sunday

On November 16, you will be asked to indicate your personal stewardship commitment, indicating ways, financial and other, in which you plan to actively support the mission of Christ Lutheran Church in 2026.

We look forward to hearing that news: A “Victory Celebration” is planned for Sunday, December 7th, when we will celebrate the results of the stewardship campaign and also celebrate the 60th Anniversary of the founding of Christ Lutheran Church, Heath. More to come on the anniversary celebration!

A few facts about Christ Lutheran’s operating budget
and giving patterns:

10 year (2014-2024) Operating budget patterns:
1.3% avg. annual growth in expenditure over the ten years
.6% avg. annual growth in giving to the budget over the ten years
3% avg. annual inflation (CPI-U) over the ten years

Contact our Financial Secretary and your Council
Representatives to make sure your budget concerns are taken into consideration
as they begin the difficult process of preparing next year's budget

We are pleased to report 2025 Actual gifts
received for the operating budget thru September 2025
are in line with what is required to fully fund the 2025
$279,678 Operating Budget!

Current actual operating expenses
YTD are running slightly behind what would be expected
through nine months of the year which is also positive.

The white paper below is offered to help you make a 21st century giving decision that you can challenge yourself each year as the Lord continues to by our Time , Talents, and Treasures as you participate as a CELC Team Member.

A current paper from ELCA Resources Library on Giving and Tithing

Time and Talent Needs next year

EXCEL Proposed 2026 Budget for Christ Lutheran Heath.

2026 Budget Summary Table

2026 Budget Summary Pie Chart.

Please watch one or more of these three
short 2026 Temple Talks which are also contained

in Streaming format on our CELC Heath YouTube

Playlist channel.

or non compressed form on this site.

These HD Mp4 downloads may be slow.

Rhonda

Hank

Caleb

Ways to Give to Christ Lutheran Church

Place your gifts in Offering Envelopes collected during worship services each week.

Mail a paper check along with your membership number (from your envelopes) or a Bill Pay check from your Bank Bill Payer account to us:

Pay with Debit or Credit Card Not currently implements: See rational below:

Customized Methods: Our Church Administration will work with you on a plan that fits your unique giving situations.

PROS – There’s something that feels good/right about placingyour gifts in the offering plate when it’s passed during the worshipservice. This is traditional and still the most popular way to give.The numbered offering envelopes you receive from the church each year are specific to you (numbered),creating a secure andaccurate record of allyour gifts whether in cash or by check. It also helps the Financial Secretary provide you with an annual summary of your gifts which you’ll want at taxtime.

CONS – Travel plans can interrupt church attendance making it a challenge to make your planned gifts in person.

PROS:_ Just Mail it to or set you Bill Pay Target to:

Christ Lutheran Church

732 Hebron Road

Heath, Ohio 43056

Our budget depends on a steady cash flow. This allows you to keep your commitment when you can not attend services.

CONS: Please allow 1 week for you contribution to clear whether you mail it or your Bill Pay Feature at you bank sends it.

Cons: Making purchases on-line with our credit cards has become second-nature to all of us. A question many churches are contemplating is whether to extend this same option for church gifts?

Cultural trends almost guarantee we’ll want to do this at some point. However, at this point it does not appear to be a burning issue for many at Christ Lutheran, and doing so has both expense and regulatory compliance issues for the church. We will keep an open mind and explore options for future adoption. But in the meantime, we hope one or more of these more traditional ways of making your gifts will work for you:

Cons: Most of these customized methods require advance planning and may require time to set them up for a future taxation and giving year.

Pros: One popular way for retirees is using the current IRS provision for Qualified Charitable Contributions (QCD) together with their Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) or Tax Sheltered Annuities (TSAs) :

Current IRA rules allow any IRA owner who wishes to make a QCD for 2025 to contact their IRA trustee soon so the trustee will have time to complete the transaction before the end of the year. For example, if Fidelity Investments happens to serve as your IRA trustee, begin by contacting them. You’ll find all the major investment firms that offer IRA’s will be very familiar with the QCD process and canassist you. Normally, distributions from a traditional IRA are taxable when received.

With a QCD, however, these distributions become tax-free as long as they're paid directly from the IRA to an eligible charitable organization (which includes Christ Lutheran). QCDs must be made directly by the trustee of the IRA to the charity. Any IRA distribution, such as an electronic payment made directly to the IRA owner, does not count as a QCD. Likewise, a check made payable to the IRA owner is not a QCD. The QCD option is available regardless of whether an eligible IRA
owner itemizes deductions on Schedule A. Limited Transferred amounts are not taxable, and no deduction is available for the transfer. ”Additional IRS changes pertaining to QCD’s were recently made that have to do with split interest gifts like Charitable Remainder Trusts and Gift Annuities. You may want to discuss these with a tax advisor if you’d like to know more.

Special Designated Funds:

Please contact the Church Council if you desire to set up a directed giving fund or memoriam.