Welcome! We're glad you're here to "check out" our Online Giving Service. Online giving is a safe and convenient way to support the ministries of Living Streams Church. You can make a one-time gift or establish recurring contributions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q  Why give online?

A  Here are three good reasons:

• It's simple and convenient for you. No more remembering to bring your checkbook to church. You can focus on worship, rather than having to write out a check during the service. If you choose to set up a recurring contribution, you set the schedule for funds to come out of your account.
• It's secure. For detailed information on how your information is kept secure, click here.
• It helps Living Streams. Online contributions require less processing from our administrative staff since the information is logged and deposited automatically.

Q  How Do I Give Online?

A  In three easy steps:

• Create a user id and password.
• Provide contact and bank or credit card information.
• Indicate the amount, frequency (one-time or recurring) and designation for your gift.

Q  Is it safe to give online?

A  Yes. In many ways giving online is safer than writing a check because an electronic gift cannot be lost or stolen. The security of the system is continually managed by Fellowship One.

Q  What types of bank accounts can I give from?

A  You can give online from your checking account, MasterCard, Visa or Discover.

Q  Can I use a debit card?

A  You can use a debit check card from Visa or MasterCard, but true debit cards are not accepted through the Fellowship One system, due to the sensitivity of securely requesting a Personal Identification Number (PIN). ACH bank drafts can be used instead for true debits.

Q  Are there fees involved with giving online?

A  Not to you. You will not pay any fees with an online gift.

Q  Can I make a one-time contribution.

A  Yes. The system allows you the option of making either a one-time contribution or setting up a recurring contribution. For a one-time contribution, you can designate that the contribution should be made immediately or, for both one-time and recurring contributions, you can schedule the contributions to come out of your bank account on the date(s) specified by you.

Q  If I want to set up a recurring gift, what are my options for frequency of my gift?

A  For recurring gifts, you have the option of giving weekly, twice a month, every two weeks or once a month.

Q  Can I change my personal information or the amount or frequency of my gift once I have set it up?

A  Yes. You can change or cancel your contribution at any time before the date of your next contribution. Simply log in to the system using your user name and password and make the necessary changes in the system.

Q  Can I review my donation history online?

A  Yes. The site will allow you to view the complete history of your contributions, given either online or otherwise. Once you've created an account, you will be able to contribute immediately. However, for security purposes, before you can see any past contributions, we must manually connect your online account with your previous information. This is a one-time process when you initially create your account. After that, you can view your history at any time. For more information, see our security policy.

Q  Will I still receive a contribution statement from the church?

A  Yes. The church will continue to send year-end contribution statements to your address on file for tax purposes.

Q  When will contributions be taken from my account?

A  Contributions will be taken from your specified account within 48 business hours of the date you requested. This time frame allows time for the contribution to process through your bank and the church's bank. If the date of your contribution falls on a weekend or a holiday, the transaction will be initiated on the next banking day.

Q  Can I designate my gift to a particular cause?

A  Yes. You can designate your gift to go toward tithes and offerings, The Wave, or missions.

Q  How will I know that I set up my gift correctly?

A  Immediately after submitting your contribution, you will receive an e-mail verifying your contribution.

Q  Does it matter which Internet browser I use?

A  No. Any browser will work.

Q  I have additional questions about online giving. Who can I talk to?

A  For any questions, concerns or comments about the online giving system, please contact us at finances@livingstreams.org

Security

At Living Streams, 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.

Data Security. 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."

Access to Your Account Information. 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 manually 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. Since this is a manual process, we will perform these steps approximately once a week, but if you would like to speed up this process, you can send an email to finances@livingstreams.org.

Login ID and Password. When you create your account, you will determine your own login id and password. If you forget your login id or password, you can have the system email it to you by entering the email address that you used when you created your account. If you need help or cannot remember the email address you used, you can contact us at finances@livingstreams.org. 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. Living Streams will never call you to ask for your login information.

Our Policies

Your information is held securely by the Fellowship One system. This information will remain private and will never be given away to third parties, other than to process your scheduled contributions.

You can schedule new contributions at any time and can modify or cancel those contributions at any time prior to the date they are scheduled. Once the contribution has been processed, however, it cannot be cancelled. If you have any problems or questions related to this, please contact us at finances@livingstreams.org