Christian Faith In Action - Lutheran Foundation of St. Louis

Funding Goal

To positively impact the lives of hurting people by supporting the volunteer capacity and programs of Christian congregations and agencies.

Overview

As God sent Jesus into the world (John 1:14), He now sends His people out to love, serve, and engage (John 20:21). Our faith is meant to create movement in our lives - movement that draws us deeper into Christ and propels us out into the lives of hurting people in our communities. Christian faith is meant to be lived out; it is an active faith.

This activity is lived out both corporately, as the Church, and as individuals. Each of us is endowed with gifts to be used to honor and glorify our risen Lord. As Christians, we are called into servanthood to be the hands and feet of Christ. Serving offers an exciting opportunity for ministry as we discover and carry out our unique gifts, thereby building up the Body of Christ. When we selflessly reach out to serve others, we are living as Christ called us to live. Our faith-filled acts of service are living expressions of Christ’s love for and in us. The wonderful news is that God continually equips us to serve.

Churches and Christian organizations are perfect conduits to support individuals as they apply their gifts in service to other members and/or the community. These acts of ministry can range from serving as a Sunday school teacher, to assisting with the church or organization’s food pantry or after-school program, to volunteering at a local school.

Lutheran Foundation has a rich history of encouraging and supporting Christians in carrying out these acts of servanthood. We have done this in a variety of ways, including supporting initiatives that build the capacity of volunteer-driven programs and services, and funding volunteer recruitment campaigns, both in congregations and Christian organizations.

Outcomes

Outcomes describe, in broad terms, the measurable change within each Funding Focus Area that Lutheran Foundation would like to see in the lives of those served by grantees. Outcomes allow the Foundation to aggregate indicators across multiple grantees to determine our community impact.

Christian congregations and organizations seeking funding from the Foundation must demonstrate how their project will address one or more of the following outcomes:

OUTCOME #1

Congregations and Christian organizations have in place quality volunteer management systems.

OUTCOME #2

Congregations and Christian organizations intentionally connect volunteer service with Biblical teaching.

OUTCOME #3

Congregations and Christian organizations are better able to meet their mission through the involvement of volunteers.

We look to support Christian Faith in Action in two ways:

Provide grant support for new and expanded quality volunteer equipping and management efforts in churches and faith-based organizations.
Strengthen the ability of congregations and faith-based organizations to effectively equip, manage, and utilize volunteers.

Interested applicants must be Christian congregations and organizations recognized by and in good standing with the Internal Revenue Service as a 501(c)(3) organization.

Applicants must be located in the geographic area supported by Lutheran Foundation, which includes the following counties in the St. Louis metropolitan area:

Missouri counties: Franklin, Jefferson, Lincoln, St. Charles, St. Louis City, St. Louis County, and Warren
Illinois counties of Clinton, Jersey, Madison, Monroe, and St. Clair

Regular Grant Funding Organizations are typically funded by annual grants. Grants may be renewed for a second year with a 20-25% decrease; however, grantees must apply each year.

Multi-Year Funding Multi-year grants are available but are less typical and most commonly awarded to churches and ministries that have had a long-term relationship with Lutheran Foundation and a history of high performance. Funding for the same program is usually limited to a total of two years.

Funding Beyond Volunteer Capacity Building Grants As the Foundation develops a relationship with a grantee through volunteer equipping and management related funding, the Foundation may decide to invite a grantee to apply for general program funding. The Foundation will be looking for programs and ministries that leverage Christian volunteers to a significant degree and reflect principles of healthy community engagement. Important: to be considered by the Foundation for ongoing program funding, churches or organizations must first establish a relationship through funding for volunteer equipping and management efforts.

*NOTE: Lutheran Foundation is highly relational and seeks to develop relationships with our grantees to build mutual understanding and partnership. Organizations that anticipate applying for funding are highly encouraged to request a consultation with Foundation staff.

Lutheran Foundation will consider expenses related to implementing a new quality volunteer management program or improving an existing volunteer management program. While the Foundation will consider requests to fund a Volunteer Coordinator position, the Foundation is more interested in funding new rather than existing positions.

Specific examples (not an exhaustive list):

Databases
Background checks
Handbooks
Training
Recognition

Lutheran Foundation is interested in seeing our grantees’ efforts thrive. Thus, in addition to providing funding, the Foundation partners with Send Me St. Louis to offer capacity building support to area congregations and faith-based organizations through trainings and one-on-one consultation to:

Equip congregations and faith-based organizations with tools and knowledge;
Inspire congregations and faith-based organizations with faith tools, resources, and stories; and
Help congregations and faith-based organizations participate in meaningful acts of service.

Click here to learn more about Send Me St. Louis and how your congregation/organization can access these valuable services.