What started as a “automatic text fill-in” on my computer, turned into the title of this blog post. It’s funny how those things work out. I was typing in “(Fun)draising” trying to be puny and it changed it to “draining”. Wow, can I get an amen? (And all the missionaries out there are shouting “Amen!”)
So, $16,000. That could be a pretty nice car. It could also be a great chunk of my tuition for my first year of grad school. I could probably buy a gazillion chocolate cookies with that much money. I’m 90% confident on that last one. Opposed to all of those options, I am traveling the world for about a year to tell people about Jesus. The crazy thing is most of it isn’t even my money! Thus – I come to write about fundraising. What a word, am I right?! So many thoughts enter peoples minds when they hear it… “Please don’t ask me for money”… “Dear Lord, make people give me money”… “Worst nightmare”. Here is my thought process over the last two months with it:
“Oh my goodness, that is a lot of money!”… “God’s got this. Puh-lease!”… “What in the world am I gonna do?”… “I’ll never have enough money. I am so incompetent when it comes to this.”… “God? When are you gonna send this money my way?”… “It’s okay. His timing, not mine. I don’t need to have this under control. God has it more than under control.”
So. Now that’s out there, how did my entire mindset go in a circle? Allow me to explain. At first, I was on top of the world. I was so pumped about doing the World Race (heck, I still am!!) and I felt like I could lead thousands to Christ during the next year of my life. Okay, maybe not that crazy but you got it. Then, I started telling people about my World Race opportunity and one thing never failed: they almost always ask how much it’s gonna cost and then say “Wow.” or “How in the world are you gonna do that?” And that’s when the “reality” check happened. That’s a crap ton of money. I am a full-time student right now, volunteering multiple hours a week, working part-time, and keeping up a pretty active social life as my CCU time comes to a close. I had no clue where I was going to find time to come up with an award-winning plan to get all of the money that I need. Constantly, I would feel awesome about fundraising and then absolutely terrible. It was an ugly and messy cycle that needed to end. It was time to trust God.
This past weekend, I was able to attend a portion of the International Conference on Missions in Columbus, Ohio. It was my first time going and I was blown away. There were so many people. All of them were gathered for a simple reason: to know Him and make His name known. How cool is that?! The theme of the event was “Vertical”. Basically, our reality is a vertical one, not a horizontal one. Our reality is with God, just like our problems and requests and everything else. It’s not horizontal – or Godless. That got me thinking… am I treating this fundraising rut as horizontally or vertically? Definitely horizontally. This “reality” check wasn’t a reality check at all. My reality is not horizontal. We very much have a vertical reality.
I got my *vertical* reality check last night. As many of you probably know, I am a part of the prayer team here at CCU. Our mission is basically to help create an atmosphere of prayer among the student body. Every Monday night we come together to talk about how we see God moving in the prayer life of the school, talk about what we can do, and share personal prayer requests. I confided in the team that I was having hard time fundraising all around. I wasn’t in the mindset of trusting God to bring in the funds on His timing or anything. I hadn’t quite made the connection that this “issue” was absolutely beyond me – it’s all God… it’s vertical. After sharing my emotions with the team, one of our members emptied his wallet, gave me the money, and said, “Here, Brittany. This is the best I can do right now.” That, my friends, is God answering my prayers. That money meant so much more to me than just $18 that I didn’t have to fundraise for. It was the mental and emotional stability that I needed. God gave me peace. How cool is that?! I prayed not just for money to come in, but for God to show me that this reality is a vertical one. He did – and I got money for the World Race at the same time!
I challenge my friends that are also fundraising. It kind of sucks sometimes. Money isn’t coming in or no one is buying your Threads of Hope bracelets. But guys, listen. I promise that if God has called you into that mission field, He’s got you. This process is telling me a lesson that I have been learning my whole life – trust God. Rely on Him. Believe me, it goes a super long way. God is so much bigger than $16,000.
Now, I challenge my other friends who aren’t actively fundraising right now. I challenge you all to prayerfully consider supporting those that are answering the Great Commission. Check out Matthew 9:37-38: “Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” Supporting those that are fundraising isn’t just about financial support – though that’s huge (for obvious reasons). But prayer is (also) where it’s at. God hears you every time you call on Him. Don’t think that those words are sent up in vain. We (those fundraising) appreciate it so much!
With all the love in the world,
Brittany
My fundraising stuff:
- feel free to use that snazzy and convenient “Support Me!” tab on the left side of this page. It’s super duper easy and it goes straight into my account, which is awesome.
- I am selling bracelets, lanyards, and keychains through Threads of Hope! Half of the proceeds go to me and the other half goes back to Threads of Hope and the families in the Philippines that work to make them. The bracelets are 1 for $3 or 2 for $5. The keychains and lanyards are $5 each. They make great stocking stuffers!
- I am selling pre-order t-shirts through Fund the Nations. They are pretty awesome! Those are $15 each. Let me know if you want to buy one!
