Start a Church Sharing Program

Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. 1 Tim 6:18

The idea for Sharing Church was actually born out of the church. In fact, one of our goals as a company is to build software that enable churches and Christians to connect and ultimately to better reflect the love of Christ.

As a church we have numerous examples from scripture that direct us to be generous and to share what we have. After all, we are merely stewards of what He gives us. Unfortunately, there are many reasons why we as Christians do not do a great job “sharing well with others”. We can’t address all of them with a fancy website, but we do hope we are able to help you knock down a few.

Let’s talk about what it takes to get a Church Sharing Program off the ground

The first step in starting a Church Sharing Program though is simply deciding to do it. Depending on your church, this may require approval from the Pastor or Elders. It’s usually not a hard principle to sell, since it has it’s roots in biblical principles. Be sure to review our “Why Share” as a reference and send us an email if you have any questions that we can help with.

It may be that you already have agreement that a Church Sharing Program would be great, you just don’t know how best to manage it. After all, once you get beyond a few people, it become difficult to keep track of a list, or remember what everyone has that they are willing to share. You could take the approach of including “needs” in a church bulletin or on a list somewhere, but even will only work to a point.

That is where SharingChurch meets a real need in the church. By creating a sharing group you get a platform that allows your members to search for things they need, as well as make their things available for others to borrow. The system is flexible, allowing items, services and places to be added. Items can be loaned out (borrowed) or given away and large items can require a deposit. As a church, you can make your group private, requiring new members to be approved by an administrator that you choose. Your members can also list their skills, making it easy for you to match people with needs and ministries. The feature list is long, and growing quickly, so the best way to find out how Borrow Nation might benefit your congregation might to contact us and let us talk through your unique circumstances. It would be our pleasure to help you build a sharing program that is both successful and sustainable.

Which brings us to the final key point in starting a successful church sharing program. Just like any ministry that is important to you, a sharing program needs a little care and feeding to keep it moving. Making an internet tool available to your congregation won’t change culture, and your church culture is what drives success. Are the people in your church willing to reach out and ask when they have a need, even for something as simple as a ladder? How much money does a church family waste renting and buying things that they will use once or twice, when there are a dozen other people in the church who already have one? To make your program successful, you’ve got to encourage your people to ask, and to offer. Share with them the model given to us by the disciples who: