Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as head above all… For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you.
1 Chronicles 29:11,14b
Christians are called to give financially, because generous giving is in the nature of God, and we are trying to be more like Him! Everything we have is a gift from Him, so our tithes and offerings are an acknowledgement of that truth, by giving a portion back to Him – “of your own have we given you.”
We believe that Scripture gives us the principle of the tithe (10% of gross income) as a baseline standard for Christian giving. We believe Jesus when He says, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35), because God only ever commands that which will bless us. So Christians are free in Christ to give to what extent blesses them, but there is a standard of faithfulness to this principle that God gives, and we trust that in this command He is desiring to bless us. We are saved by grace, through faith, and our giving is never a measure of our salvation, but it is quite frequently a measure of our hearts. Our giving shows the sincerity of our love (2 Cor 8:7-8), and it is meant to be an act of worship, a sign of our whole lives and all of our assets belonging to God. So however you choose to give, and however much, may the focus be less on dollars and more on the glory of God, for the building up of His Kingdom. Your financial giving makes the work of St. Andrew’s possible, and the church is committed to responsible and godly stewardship of every dollar, as well as transparency to our donors.
Pledging
Each year, in our fall stewardship campaign, we ask all our members to make a pledge of their financial giving for the coming year. This is the single biggest way you can help our Finance Committee and Vestry to plan a responsible budget.
Ways to Give
Cash or Check
Each Sunday, we do pass around an offering plate, in which you can place your tithes and offerings by cash or check. Checks should be made payable to St. Andrew’s Anglican Church. Checks may also be mailed to the church at 115 Paddock Dr., Versailles, KY 40383.
Online Giving
You can give online here using a credit or debit card or by ACH. ACH (Automated Clearing House) transactions draw directly from your account, much like a check, and generally impose lower fees on the church than credit or debit card transactions do.
Automated Bill Pay
Most banks provide “Bill Pay” services (usually for free) that you can utilize to have an automated check sent to the church at whatever frequency and amount you set. Speak with your bank about how to set that up.
Donor Advised Funds
Donations of stocks/securities or other appreciated assets directly to charitable organizations can have tax advantages, as the donor may receive a tax deduction for the full value of the assets while avoiding associated capital gains taxes. (Note that St. Andrew’s does not provide tax advice. Please speak with your own personal tax professional.) Although St. Andrew’s can receive stocks or other assets directly, it is much easier for the church (and for you, too) to instead go through a Donor Advised Fund (DAF). The donation first goes to the DAF, which is itself a charitable organization. The DAF handles all the more complicated paperwork and accounting (e.g., determining the fair market value of the assets). Then the donor “advises” the DAF to pass the funds along as a grant to the desired charity like St. Andrew’s.
Naturally, DAFs have both pros and cons, and there are many from which to choose. Please speak to your own financial advisor or tax professional to determine what might be best for you.
Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs)
There may be tax advantages to making a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) from your Individual Retirement Account (IRA) directly to St. Andrew’s. Again, please speak with your own financial advisor or tax professional.
Legacy Giving
Consider St. Andrew’s in your legacy, and contributing to the work of the church in your will.