Generosity touches far more than what we give. It shapes how we understand abundance, justice, money, community, creation, and the life of the church.
We’ve gathered books that can deepen your thinking, challenge assumptions, and spark meaningful conversations about faithful stewardship. Use them for personal reading, staff or board development, small groups, sermon preparation, or congregational study.
recommended reads
For Your Bookshelf
Grace Abounds
In Grace Abounds, Walter Brueggemann explores our human tendency toward a smallness of mind that breeds competition and envy—and God’s invitation to trust in abundance instead. This accessible collection brings together Brueggemann’s writing on scarcity, abundance, God’s provision, and the call to live openhandedly.
Ideas for Use
Brueggemann’s deep engagement with scripture makes this especially adaptable. Use individual sections for personal devotion, build a Bible study or sermon series around its themes, or use the reflection questions for a small-group book study.
Thriving Church
Erin Cash and Kory Wilcoxson tell the stories of Disciples congregations that are thriving—not necessarily because they are large or financially wealthy, but because they embrace their identity faithfully while remaining adaptable and resilient. Their research identifies 10 traits shared by thriving congregations. (Hint: Having a big budget isn’t one of them!)
Ideas for Use
Filled with real stories, practical steps, and thoughtful questions, Thriving Church is an excellent resource for elders, boards, and leadership teams engaged in congregational reflection and assessment. Telling your story is essential to cultivating a culture of generosity—and this book can help you discover the story your congregation has to tell.member to let your readers know why this list item is essential.
The Coming Revolution in Church Economics
Mark DeYmaz and Harry Li argue that the church must rethink how it funds and sustains ministry. Changing demographics, generational attitudes toward giving, economic pressure on households, and stagnant contributions to religious organizations mean tithes and offerings alone may no longer sustain many congregations.
Ideas for Use
Put this book in the hands of your board, finance team, or other congregational leaders to begin strategic conversations about funding mission and ministry for the future. It challenges leaders to develop new mindsets and competencies rather than simply working harder with traditional approaches.
The Unjust Steward
Miguel Escobar grounds questions of wealth and poverty in the teachings of Jesus, drawing on the wisdom of the early church and his own experience. He challenges the church to reconsider how it values people who are poor and to become servants of God rather than stewards of wealth.
Ideas for Use
Looking for a ready-to-use faith formation resource that is culturally relecvant and biblically rooted? Read it for personal theological reflection or use it with a small group. Chapters can be read sequentially or thematically, and each includes discussion questions and a practical next step.
The Anti-Greed Gospel
In The Anti-Greed Gospel, Malcolm Foley examines how the pursuit of money and power—Mammon—has fueled violence and exploitation throughout American history. He connects economic exploitation and racial violence while drawing on history, theology, and scripture to make a case for deep economic solidarity as a gospel practice.
Ideas for Use
This is a substantial work of history, theology, and ethics, so come prepared to dig deeply. But Foley doesn’t simply diagnose the problem. He points toward practical application and faithful action, making this a provocative resource for individual reading or serious group conversation.
Serving Money, Serving God
Sheryl Johnson argues that commitments to justice must shape all of the church’s financial practices—including fundraising, budgeting, property, personnel, investing, and community partnerships. She approaches church economics from an explicitly anti-racist, decolonial, feminist, ecological, and class-critical perspective.
Ideas for Use
If your congregation is committed to anti-racism and ready to examine how that commitment intersects with money, this is a strong choice for a leadership or book study. Case studies and examples from congregations of different sizes make the analysis practical, concrete, and accessible.
Braiding Sweetgrass
Robin Wall Kimmerer weaves Indigenous wisdom, ecological science, and spiritual reflection into a vision of gratitude as the foundation of right relationship—with the earth and with one another. She invites readers to imagine a gift economy in which generosity, reciprocity, and responsibility replace scarcity and extraction.
Ideas for Use
Braiding Sweetgrass offers rich possibilities for expanding conversations about stewardship beyond money. Use selected passages to explore gratitude as the root of generosity, reshape offering invitations around reciprocity rather than guilt, or build a study around care for creation as an expression of faithful stewardship.
Recommend a Book
Looking for a resource on a stewardship challenge, theology of generosity, church finances, fundraising, or another aspect of faithful giving? Let us know what you’re looking for. We may be able to point you toward something useful.
Have a book you think belongs on this shelf? Send us your recommendation. We’re always interested in discovering resources worth sharing with the wider church.