In the June Equipper we began looking at the theme of stewardship with a focus on generosity. We now continue that theme, focused on fundraising. The five articles in this issue are linked below. Enjoy! -Ted Johnston, Equipper editor.
From Greg: Our calling to be fundraisers
Greg Williams shares from his personal experience important insights about our calling to raise funds in support of our churches and ministries.
[caption id="attachment_1246" align="aligncenter" width="321"] Wikimedia Commons[/caption]
Lessons learned from fundraising
Sam Butler shares what he and his church learned in raising funds for a ministry by which they reach out to the community with God's love.
Fundraising through networking
Tim Sitterley... Read the article
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by Susi Albrecht and Nancy Akers
[caption id="attachment_340" align="alignright" width="221"] Teach children how they should live, and they will remember it all their lives. (Proverbs 22:6)[/caption]
Summertime is here, and children are happy! Carefree days without homework and rigid schedules, staying up late, family vacations and summer camps ... what’s not to love! As children and their families enjoy their summer break, children’s church leaders and volunteers face unique challenges. Attendance tends to fluctuate, making planning challenging. Volunteers are on vacation. Some children’s church teachers take a well-deserved break. On the other hand, many children’s ministry leaders are busier than ever, conducting VBS and... Read the article
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Here is a sermon from Equipper editor and Regional Pastor Ted Johnston. It's based on the second chapter of Haggai.
[caption id="attachment_998" align="alignright" width="150"] Ted and Donna Johnston[/caption]
God has led GCI on a remarkable journey: from legalism to grace; heresy to orthodoxy; self-sufficiency to radical dependency. With this came a renewed sense of purpose—a growing understanding of our divine mission: "Go" says Jesus, and "make disciples." And so we got going.
But when we think of mission within our denomination with its very small churches, it’s easy to get discouraged, even overwhelmed: competing needs, things to do, pressures, demands, expectations and tasks pushing from all sides, assaulting our... Read the article
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by Pastor Tim Sitterley
[caption id="attachment_1222" align="alignright" width="150"] Linda and Tim Sitterley[/caption]
You've probably had occasions when you answered a knock on your front door to find standing there a couple of well-dressed people holding religious literature in their hands. Through experiences like those you've probably learned that cold-call evangelism doesn’t work too well. Perhaps you've had similar bad experiences with cold-call fundraisers. But don't "throw the baby out with the bathwater"---there are biblically sound, effective ways to raise funds to support your church or ministry. Let me share what I have learned about a key aspect of fundraising: networking.
Over the years I’ve had several business... Read the article
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by Pastor Sam Butler
[caption id="attachment_39" align="alignright" width="150"] Sam and Denise Butler[/caption]
Fundraising---it was the last thing I wanted to do! Asking people for money was, for me, like pulling teeth---painful and unpleasant.
That was how I felt until 12 years ago when the congregation I pastored in Michigan started a food pantry. We moved our meeting location with the intent of engaging a particular community. About six months after the move, we started the pantry in partnership with a large food bank in the area. They provided perishable items, and once a month we provided non-perishable personal care items.
We started slowly, serving only 25 families. We wanted to be able to
sustain what we had... Read the article
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Dear pastors and ministry leaders:
[caption id="attachment_21" align="alignright" width="150"] Greg and Susan Williams[/caption]
I have significant experience as a church pastor and the director of a non-profit ministry. In those roles, I've talked with many people about money and I've raised a lot of funds. Yet, perhaps like you, I've not thought of myself as a fundraiser.
As a principal leader in your church or ministry, you know your organization well, and that knowledge positions you to be a chief spokesperson in raising funds to help supply the financial needs of your organization. The goal of most of the articles in this issue of Equipper is to acquaint you with fundraising and to offer tips and tools to assist your... Read the article
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