Communal generosity: The power of giving in community

The responsibility of stewarding resources wisely can often feel like a lonely and isolating experience. That’s why givers around the country are coming together to form giving alliances and communities. Learn what can happen when givers join forces to solve a problem together.

A community focused on a cause can involve inspiring each other and making a larger impact for God’s kingdom. When we give together, joy often results from generosity that is infectious and spreads to those around us.

Of course, anonymous giving has its place. In Scripture, God tells us, “donot let your left hand know what your right hand is doing” (Matthew 6:3). And sometimes, it’s necessary or desirable to give anonymously. People should give this way if God has called them to do so. Yet, in Matthew 5:14-16, Jesus says to let your light shine and not hide it. He explains that no one “lights a lamp and puts it under a basket.” Let your light (in this case, your generosity) shine, and it will cause others who see “to give glory to your father who is in heaven.”

Giving generously and openly can catalyze an entire community.

Look at King David

By the end of his life, David had accumulated wealth beyond measure. He had united Jerusalem and established it as a mighty city. His dying wish was to use this wealth to build a temple for God. Although his son, Solomon, would later be the one to build the temple, David’s story provides us with an astonishing model of public generosity. Not only did he commit part of the national reserves to the building of God’s house, but he also gave from his own stores of treasure. All for the joy of giving. This act of generosity was so great that all the leaders of Israel were compelled to join him and give – not only their possessions, but also their lives to God’s will “with perfect heart” (1 Chronicles 29). This public outpouring of generosity set off a chain reaction. When the people of Israel saw it, they broke out in spontaneous and worshipful celebration.

You may not be the King of Israel, but you have influence in your own realm, and your giving can inspire others, too.

Modern-day “Davids”

At NCF, one of our roles is to be conveners, encouraging givers in all parts of the country to create communities around the causes they’re passionate about.

Pacific Northwest

In the Pacific Northwest, our NCF community has built a safe, encouraging atmosphere, where stewards gather regularly to discuss what the Bible says about living generously. Every few months, they meet in homes to share stories and struggles involved with giving.

A few years ago, the Northwest giving community received a call they weren’t expecting. A man most of them didn’t know had heard how they practiced generosity together and wanted to join them. “I already have a private foundation,” he said, “but, I’ve met a couple people in your giving community, and I just really want to be a part of it. What do I need to do?”

Their answer? Just come. Be part of the group.

A group of givers in the same community felt called to stop human trafficking in their state. As their group grew, they were able to encourage ministries – which had been working separately – to work together. The ministries now cooperate through an organization called SAFE – the Strategic Alliance to Fight Exploitation. SAFE in Central Florida In 2019, three retired friends and colleagues from Orlando attended an NCF event where they heard speaker Heather Tuininga talk about how SAFE in Washington had been formed, had grown, and was working.

Having come from the business world, the three were familiar with the power of alliances and using the best of everyone’s skill set. But seeing this strategy applied to the nonprofit sector was revolutionary to them.

What opened their eyes and hearts even more was the revelation that their region ­– Central Florida – had the third-highest rate of human trafficking per capita in the country. A number of charities were working to solve the problem, but these friends knew really resolving it would require a joint, targeted effort.

Inspired by the alliance in the Pacific Northwest, these three NCF givers used their individual Giving Funds to launch SAFE in Central Florida – an alliance of businesses, churches, and givers combating commercial sexual exploitation. Despite launching in the middle of COVID, this Impact Alliance now has 60 members. In 2022, they wrote more than $150,000 in grants and are on track to surpass that amount this year. Indiana

In Indianapolis, IN, another group went about giving together in an entirely different way.

Kaleo grew out of a conversation between two women, friends and empty nesters, who realized they – along with many of their friends – were in a new phase of life. They recognized they had been given financial, spiritual, and relational resources for a reason, and there was a call on their lives because of it.

What began in 2005 has grown to a group of 279 women today who make a two-year commitment to giving $1,000 to the organization, which in turn invests it in ministries serving in the Indianapolis metropolitan area. What separates Kaleo from other giving circles is its urban workshop, which to date has matriculated 240 women through the eight-month intensive.

The women meet monthly for four-hour sessions and learn about those struggling in their community. They learn about kingdom theology and God’s heart for the poor. They take a bus tour of the city’s neighborhoods and visit ministries working there. One of the main goals, not only of the workshop but also the organization, is to build women up to be better stewards of what has been entrusted to them. Therefore, discipleship and spiritual formation in the context of relationship are also major components of the workshop. At its conclusion, members are challenged to invest their time volunteering and take what they’ve learned to their respective circles of influence. Since 2008, Kaleo has given away nearly $2 million to organizations working in the city’s urban areas and has funneled many Kaleo members into those organizations as regular volunteers.

They (with the help of NCF’s Indiana office) are bringing the Indianapolis community together to help marginalized women and children, fight generational poverty, care for the homeless and refugees, and strengthen the cause of justice in their city. They are actively recruiting the next generation of women to unlock their hearts to generous giving and their hands to generous service.

South Florida

With support from our South Florida office, a movement called Church United has become a strong support to their community. It began when a group of pastors who longed to be the hands and feet of Christ in their community came together to serve.

After the shooting that devastated Parkland, FL, in 2018, Church United worked together to create a prayer vigil for the victims’ families and friends. They worked together with givers, churches, and others throughout the area to renovate the campus at the high school where the shooting occurred and rallied to support families and friends of victims through sustained support that continues even today.

With more than 500 volunteers, their efforts caught on, and soon people were giving even more. Not only did they accomplish their original plan to renovate the campus, but they were able to pull together a teacher scholarship fund with the remaining donations.

The group, now about 150 churches strong, are serving in the aftermath of the devastating Hurricane Ian, having raised more than $750,000 to help meet the needs of churches serving families and other ministries in affected areas. Using a long-term strategy with players in multiple positions, they have seen the kingdom transformed and expanding during the recovery.

With NCF’s help, they’ve connected givers to their cause: To better the South Florida region and spread the name of Jesus. Even NCF’s South Florida office staff have joined in giving.

Together

From the Pacific Northwest, to the urban Midwest, to Central and South Florida, these groups have come together through NCF and worked together, inspiring others to join in their generosity.

A giving community really can rally around any good cause. Usually, they can do more than an isolated, individual giver can do alone, and the common purpose and camaraderie that develops among them can inspire others who see their good work and lead them to desire to join them.

When the generous and willing stand together with their lamps and say, “Let’s pool our resources, share our influence, and develop a strategy to obtain a better community,” God is glorified.

Consider starting a giving group in your community. Or, if you want to work together with others to strategize to support a cause (like they did in Orlando), learn more about NCF’s Impact Alliances here. Image used with permission