HI FRIENDS!!! This is only my second blog but, boy, do I have lots to tell. The Lord has been working like crazy in my life since I was accepted to do The World Race. He has been putting great mentors in my life to help prepare me for this amazing next chapter of my life and I am oh so thankful. I have also completed my support letter (YAY!) and I AM NOW OFFICIALLY STARTING TO SUPPORT RAISE!!! So many of you have already expressed an interest in financially supporting me, and I am so pumped! NOW is your time to donate (:
I will admit that fundraising is not my favorite. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE LOVE LOVE telling people about what I am going to do, because I am so excited and want to share what God is doing….. but I am not a fan of asking for financial support. That being said, I have been learning how Biblical and important fundraising is, especially within the church, and that makes me more excited to do it. God has already been putting people in my life to share with that I never would have thought and I am so thankful!
I hope that you would prayerfully consider financially supporting me! At the bottom of this post is my official support letter and I hope you will read that and see my heart behind what I am doing (: If you want me to send you a personal letter, I would absolutely love to! Just comment, send me a text, call (608) 556-1649 or send me an email, [email protected]. I would love to chat more and/or meet up with you if you have more questions or just want to know more! Also, if you have any friends that you think would be interested in supporting me, please feel free to share my blog with them! I always need more support (:
I am so so excited for this next chapter in my life and seeing all the Lord has in store for me, but I need YOUR help to get there. Prayer support for me, my team and everyone we will meet is the most important, but financial support is also important and plays a crucial role in getting me to this next chapter in my life!
I really hope that after reading this you will click the “Support me” button on the top right of my blog page and financially support me with a monthly gift or a one time gift of $100, $500, $1,000 or more! I firmly believe that the Lord calls some people to go and others to support those who are called to go. Thank you so much for your consideration and taking time to prayerfully consider supporting me (:
Until next time….
Expecting great things in God,
Bri Stump (:
Here is a copy of my support letter!!!
Dear Friends,
I hope all is going well with you. For me, I am starting my last semester of high school!!! It is crazy how time flies. Most seniors this time of year have decided on a college and are starting to pick dorms, find their roommates and plan graduation parties. However, I am not most seniors. Instead of attending college next year, I am choosing to take a gap year. I am graduating high school this June and, instead of attending college in the fall, I will be leaving for… Guatemala, Lesotho and Cambodia. Whoa, wait… Let me back up a bit! During my gap year, I will be participating in The World Race (no, not the Amazing Race from TV, haha). The World Race is a 9 month missions trip around the world through the organization Adventures in Missions. From August 2016 through April 2017 my team will be traveling to Guatemala, Lesotho (the country landlocked by South Africa), and Cambodia, where we will spend 3 months in each country. In each country, my team and I will serve in partnership with churches and ministries in local communities to preach the Gospel, plant churches, work in orphanages, minister to women and children trapped in prostitution as a result of human trafficking, and bring the restorative hope of God’s love to many people, tribes and nations.
Why would I chose to take a gap year and participate in The World Race? Well, let me try to explain. Until my senior year of high school, I was just a typical American teenager. I hung out with friends, attended school, had a job, and lived my life for me. Then God captured my heart the winter of my junior year of high school. He called me to Tanzania last summer with Cru (Thank you again for all the prayer and financial support!). In Tanzania, my heart was broken for the world, for children in poverty, for students, for African tribes and so much more. I had the best and worst 3 weeks of my life. When I got back, I was not a typical American teenager anymore. I had witnessed extreme poverty. I had experienced a Massai African tribe who had not even heard of America yet worships the same God that I do. I met children who had nothing but the joy of the Lord. I was going into my senior year of high school a completely different person than who I was before. I started to plan my next steps after high school. My mind knew college was the best and most practical choice, but my heart yearned for more. God had already captured my heart in Tanzania and had started me on my missions journey. I told myself I would apply for The World Race simply as a backup plan if I didn’t get into the college I wanted, but I knew I was kidding myself. My heart was already across the world in countries I have never been to and with people I have never met. During this waiting time, I attended a spiritual retreat with my church and there God hit me in the face with the answer I knew in my heart. “Go.” So here I am embarking on this next journey in my life. I am following Jesus around the world and I could not be more excited!
I need your help! I am looking for spiritual and financial partners to help me spread the love of Christ all around the world. I would appreciate your prayers that God will be able to speak through my team and me and greatly change many lives (including mine). As you can imagine, a trip like this requires financial support from a number of people. In total, I need to raise $13,805 by the time that I leave in August. This includes all of my plane tickets, food and cost of living for 9 months. I do have some deadlines that I have to meet. By April 29, 2016, I need to have $5,000. By July 8, 2016, I need to have $10,000. By September 30, 2016, I need to have $13,000 and finally, by November 30, 2016, I need to be fully funded. I don’t need to be fully funded before I leave in August, but it would be ideal. If you would like to support me financially, that would be greatly appreciated. No gift is too small. You can donate right on my blog (bristump.theworldrace.org). There is a big bar at the top of the page with a button that says “Support me.” You can also send me a check. Make the check out to Adventures in Missions and make sure to put my name, Bri Stump, in the memo. While money is important, it comes in a distant second to my need for your prayer support.
Please follow me!!! An awesome part about supporting me is that you can go on this journey with me! You can see what your prayers and financial support are doing! As part of The World Race, each racer, like me, is required to have a blog and post often. I want to keep you up to date with my adventures and all the amazing things that God is doing! So, here are some ways to follow me and follow this experience!
Blog: bristump.theworldrace.org
Instagram: bri_stump
Facebook: Bri Stump
Email: [email protected]
Adventures In Missions is a tax-exempt organization under IRS code 501(c)(3) and is a member of the ECFA. (Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability). Due to IRS and ECFA regulations governing the administration of tax deductible donations given in support of a particular trip/program, support contributions given on behalf of an individual will be used to offset the costs of the trip/program you are involved in. All contributions are non-refundable regardless of the participant’s success in completing the program.
Expecting Great Things in God,
Bri Stump
