Delay Predicted for Economic Impact on Churches Based on past recessions, church members will keep giving to their congregations, at least for now, said Sylvia Ronsvalle of Empty Tomb Inc. Decreasing giving is not the first thing church people do in tough economic times, she says. In an extended downturn, congregations might begin to see a retraction in church-member giving the second year, she predicts. Research shows church giving as a percentage of income was higher during the early years of the Great Depression (3.5%) than at any point since. Data from the last 6 recessions show reduced giving in 3 and increased giving in 3, but only in 1970 did it go down in the first year. Traditionally, people view the church second only to family in terms of accountability. General giving outside the church is spottier, although people tend to give to an immediate need. Google Call to Action Gets Huge Response A call by Google Inc. for beneficial, world-changing ideas generated more than 150,000 online submissions. Funding of $10 million will be divided among up to five winning ideas in May 2009. "We're thrilled by the large array of enthusiastic responses," said Bethany Poole, a product marketing manager at Google. "We're also very impressed by the variety and ingenuity of the submissions across all categories, ranging from health to energy, education and the environment." Google launched the ambitious project to help celebrate its 10th anniversary. In announcing Project 10^100 (pronounced "10 to the 100th"), the Internet giant said it hoped to solicit and bankroll fresh ideas it believes will have broad and beneficial effects on people's lives. The project's web site suggested that successful ideas address such critical issues as providing food and shelter, building communities, improving health, granting more access to education, sustaining the global ecosystem and promoting clean energy. Resources for Women Who Lead Are you ready for some leadership inspiration aimed at you as a woman leader? Would you like to learn from other women leaders who do what you do? Check out Women Who Lead for the latest in leadership books written by women, blogs, interviews and much more.