Online Giving
Giving online at Grace Community Church is simple, easy and fast. Simply log into your Grace account, enter how much/how often you want to give, then enter your payment information.
Please Note:
- Using ACH bank transfer (Labeled “Personal Check” on our website) as your donation method costs less for Grace to process, which means more of your money goes to ministry. Credit/debit cards are also accepted.
- Grace does not encourage going into debt when giving.
- Your donation will appear on your annual giving statement. You can also view your giving history anytime by logging into Online Giving. Log-in to Online Giving.
Benefits of Online Giving
Today, people transfer money from their bank accounts to pay bills, insurance premiums, mortgages, fitness memberships and more. Online giving provides the same convenience for those who want to faithfully and consistently make a financial tithe or gift to the church. As we each seek to grow in our generosity, online giving helps enable us to schedule regular giving based on prayerful planning. It also enables us to give when we miss a weekend service due to travel or illness.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How do I set-up my online giving?
One-Time Gift
1. Login to online giving.
2. Click the "Give Now" button in the right-hand column.
3. Under "Give to…" select "Grace Ministry Fund" and then enter the amount you wish to give. If you're giving to the Year Long Internship Program, select that option from the drop-down box and use the next drop-down box to select the intern who told you about the program.
4. Choose either “Personal Check” (which is actually electronic bank account transfer/ACH) or “Credit Card” and enter your information.
5. Click "Continue" to review your gift before submitting.
Scheduled Giving
1. Login to online giving.
2. Click the "Schedule Giving" button in the right-hand column.
3. Under "Give to…" select "Grace Ministry Fund" and then enter the amount you wish to give. If you're planning to give a recurring gift (bi-weekly, monthly, etc.), put the amount you will be giving. On the next page you'll be given the option to choose how often you want to give that amount.
If you're giving to the Year Long Internship Program, select that option from the drop-down box and use the next drop-down box to select the intern who told you about the program.
4. Select how often you want to give to Grace and select the date you'd like your first gift to be processed. If you want your giving to stop at a certain point, click the "Ends" checkbox and select the date you'd like your giving to stop. If you'd like your giving to repeat (until you cancel), do not click the "Ends" checkbox. Click "Continue."
5. Choose either “Personal Check” (which is actually electronic bank account transfer/ACH) or “Credit Card” and enter your information. When complete, click "Continue."
6. Review your giving information. If it is correct, click "Process this schedule."
- Is it secure?
Yes. Grace uses an established third-party vendor as a clearing house to transfer funds to our bank. Information submitted online is protected by physical, electronic, and procedural safeguards in compliance with applicable federal and state regulations, including firewalls and data encryption.
More specific security information:
At Grace, we use an online database called Fellowship One. Their system allows us to provide access to your contribution records and allows you to make donations online. They provide all of the security for the system. This system is used by churches throughout the country and has been fully tested by them.
There are two aspects of security related to the system. First, Fellowship One provides data security using the latest security technology. The following statement is from their security documentation: "[the system] utilizes the most current encryption technology to maintain the security of your data. Every parameter passed in the hyperlinks is fully encrypted. Additionally, the Login module handles passwords using what is known in technical terms as salted hash. In laymen’s terms, this means it would take 50 computers (running constantly) continuously presenting password combinations four years to discover the password."
The second aspect of security relates to account creation. When you first create a new account in the system, you will be able to donate immediately, but you will not have access to any previous contribution information. Before that can happen, we must link your previous information to the account you created.
In order to verify the authenticity of the account request, we will ensure that all of your data matches our current records (e.g., address, phone number, and email address). If there is any question, we will contact you via email before creating the link.
When you create your account, you will use your e-mail address as your user ID. If you need help or cannot remember the email address you used, you can contact Ruth Schwartz. You can also change your password at any time.
Please help us keep your information safe by protecting your login information. Access to sensitive personal and financial information can be gained by letting someone else use your account or by leaving the information for someone else to see. Grace will never call you to ask for your login information.
- Can I stop or change recurring gifts?
Yes. You can stop or change a recurring gift at any time. You can change the frequency, date, dollar amount, payment type, account numbers, etc. Just log in and click on the “Giving Schedules” tab, then click on the name of your schedule. You will have three “edit” links depending on what you want to change, as well as a link to “Pause this schedule” or “Delete this schedule.”
- Can I set up recurring gifts or a single “scheduled” gift on a certain date?
Yes. You can set up a recurring gift with a frequency of weekly, every two weeks, twice per month, or monthly. You can also set up one or multiple single gifts on whatever dates you would like. This is useful if you normally give in person at Grace, but will be out of town on occasion. If you'd like your recurring gift to stop on a certain date, click the "Ends" checkbox and select an end date. If you'd like your recurring gift to continue until you tell it to stop, you do not need to click the "Ends" checkbox.
- Can I give stock or mutual funds?
Absolutely! For stock or mutual fund donations, please contact our broker or his assistants directly - Tony Dutter, Graystone Consulting, (800) 221-2561, . Giving stock or mutual funds that have appreciated in value is wise because it maximizes your giving by reducing the capital gains taxes. Stock gifts will not appear on your Grace contribution statements, but you will receive an acknowledgement letter from Grace shortly after each donation.
- How can I check my giving for the year?
Click the “Log-in to Online Giving” link.
Log in.
Once you log in (or register for a new account), you can see all of your contributions whether given online or otherwise for the current year and prior year. The only gifts not listed are stock and vehicle donations.
There is also a tab to view your scheduled gifts.
- What is the difference between ACH bank transfer (Labeled “Personal Check” on our website), credit card and debit card and what are the fees?
Each type of online giving incurs some kind of fee. These fees will be absorbed by Grace and not your account. ACH bank transfer (Labeled “Personal Check” on our website) transfers funds directly from your bank to Grace’s bank and does not go through a credit agency (e.g. Visa). ACH only costs 50 cents per transaction. Giving via credit and debit cards goes through a credit agency – we accept Visa, MasterCard or Discover - and Grace is charged higher processing fees (1.5% to 3%) effectively reducing the amount of money available for ministry. Depending on the type of card, a $100 donation actually gives $97 to $98.50 to Grace. A $1,000 donation actually gives $970 to $985 to Grace. Since fees for ACH are lower than credit/debit card fees, ACH is the preferred method of giving.
- Can I give to multiple funds such as short-term trips or the Year Long Internship Program?
You can currently give online to support the Year Long Internship Program, click here for more information. Online giving for short-term trips is also available, click here for more information.
Need Help?
If you are having difficulties accomplishing what you want to do in the online giving system, please contact Ruth Schwartz or call 317-580-2720 and describe the issue and we will be happy to assist you.
