A Fundraiser's Dream - "Self-actualized Giving"

In the progression of becoming generous, givers go through phases of maturity. We start by giving because of obligation or even guilt. We progress through imitation and following others until the giver reaches the point where they give cheerfully without any concern for what others do. At this point the giver just does what they do out of the sheer joy of honoring the Lord and blessing His people. It's not quite with reckless abandon, but almost.

Yesterday, a donor and friend shared a story where she was blessed and thrilled by giving something precious away to a young person who she knows well would love to have this special gift.

The details are not important, but the steps in the thoughts and emotions are:

1. She has her passions - seeing young people enjoy photography especially for building the kingdom
2. She has provisions - a really good camera and and a heart for sharing.
3. She has a purpose - to see the next generation fulfill their goals for sharing the gospel in many media.

My friend has grown beyond the point of wanting to keep stuff or money for herself. She sees a need, prays and asks the Lord how she should respond, and then joyfully responds. She doesn't care what anyone else is doing or whether the need is large or small. She obeys the command to give out of her thankfulness for what Christ has given her.

As I heard her story, I was inclined to describe the needs of our school and parley that generosity into something good for me, but that would be manipulative. Instead, we celebrated God's goodness to us all and ended there.

Recognizing and celebrating the Lord's blessings is part of the work of the fundraiser.

If we are faithful in the small things...

The Donor's Bill of Rights - Part 2

Why is it that donors to Christian charities, such as schools and other ministries, have missed the opportunity to be blessed as they give to the gospel work of their choice?

This observation comes from seeing so many Christian schools and other gospel-based works employ a secular methodology. Here is what I mean.

Take the typical appeal letter that arrives in our mailbox on any given day. It has, in general, several standard components.

1. A greeting
2. The great work
3. The needs of the great work
4. Your opportunity to fund our needs

That is fine as far as it goes, but is "there's nothing really wrong with that" the standard?

This begs the question, "If the Lord has principles by which gospel ministry is done, then does He care about the way resources are raised?"

I believe the answer is a resounding "yes" and I am concerned that donors do not experience ministry when they give. Not only do the scriptures provide much guidance for the accumulation and use of money, they also teach how our hearts should be oriented as we give. If we give "God's way" then we should expect to be blessed in the process. It's a kind of growing in grace if you will.

What kind of ministry should a donor experience? Is that too much to ask of a school or crisis pregnancy center?

But, if the fundraising methods "work", then do we really care whether they are secular or not? A ministry can raise great sums with a secular appeal with a little Bible sprinkled in to sanctify or bless it. But, God will not be mocked. If a ministry pays lip service to God's provisions, why should he throw open the gates of heaven and bless it?

As a donor I want to see my local or national ministries flourish especially in times of economic stress. When they do I can see the Lord defying conventional wisdom and demonstrating that He is, in fact, the owner of everything.

Here is the continuation of last week's list:

Donor Right #6: Make the connection to the Gospel a regular part of our dialogue; let me know you are more than Christian in name only.

Donor Right #7: Show me good stewardship of how you spend money; get an annual audit or accreditation from ECFA. Also, let me know how you are leveraging your gifts to help other works that are similar to yours.

Donor Right #8: Remind me that accumulation is fleeting (and dangerous); I need to remember that I cannot take it with me

Donor Right #9: Get to know me personally; help me connect my own passions and provisions with Kingdom purposes.

Donor right #10: Show me the eternal consequences of this work; even more than the direct relief it provides.

If donors demanded more of ministries then maybe that would drive the ministries to seek the scriptures to learn how they should go about raising resources.

Then, and only then, should they expect to experience God's favor in His pouring out more from the heavenly treasure stores He controls.

If you believe this way of thinking is helpful please contact me and we can discuss where to go from here.

Saving Your Way to Prosperity

I know a company that was very good at centralizing common functions (accounting, personnel, etc.) between business units so that it could wring out redundancies; a practice also known as gaining synergies. This practice works for a period of time as the head counts and the corresponding costs are reduced. After awhile, the business must grow on its own merits to stay competitive.

Christian schools and other ministries have leaders who have business backgrounds and, when the financial times get difficult, tend to move quickly to the "slash expenses" mode to balance the budget.

Cutting expenses is easier and faster than raising funds or improving the "product". However, when we reduce expenses we are also eliminating some of the program or capabilities that caused people to come to the school in the first place. After all, we didn't intentionally hire non-productive overhead just so that it could be eliminated when the economic times get tough.

Here are a few questions that you might ask as you consider plans to "hunker down" or "circle the wagons" to achieve financial viability:

1. Is this a short-term or a long-term reduction? Do you plan to add this program or function back in the near future? Could it cost more to add later?
2. Is the current situation a statistical aberration? Or, is this a trend that you do not know how to correct?
3. How aware are the stakeholders? Have they been brought to the table to brainstorm ideas other than straight cost reduction?
4. Have you discussed this with other schools who seem to be strong and flourishing? Would you be willing to ask them for advice or counsel or prayer or help? Could you even partner with another school to combine a program, such as athletics, rather than eliminate it all together?
5. What if there is another school that needs something that you have? Would you be willing to help them?

Admittedly, these financial situations often seem to come up rather quickly. There may not be enough time to look at the more creative and complex ideas.

But, for the long-term good of the school (including morale), please look at solutions that do not cut out muscle from the school.

We can't save our way to prosperity every year.

Matthew 6:26 "Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?"

The Donor's Bill of Rights - Part 1

Why is it that donors to Christian charities, such as schools and other ministries, have missed the opportunity to be blessed as they give to the gospel work of their choice?

This observation comes from seeing so many Christian schools and other gospel-based works employ a secular methodology. Here is what I mean.

Take the typical appeal letter that arrives in our mailbox on any given day. It has, in general, several standard components.

1. A greeting
2. The great work
3. The needs of the great work
4. Your opportunity to fund our needs

That is fine as far as it goes, but is "there's nothing really wrong with that" the standard?

This begs the question, "If the Lord has principles by which gospel ministry is done, then does He care about the way resources are raised?"

I believe the answer is a resounding "yes" and I am concerned that donors do not experience ministry when they give. Not only do the scriptures provide much guidance for the accumulation and use of money, they also teach how our hearts should be oriented as we give. If we give "God's way" then we should expect to be blessed in the process. It's a kind of growing in grace if you will.

What kind of ministry should a donor experience? Is that too much to ask of a school or crisis pregnancy center?

But, if the fundraising methods "work", then do we really care whether they are secular or not? A ministry can raise great sums with a secular appeal with a little Bible sprinkled in to sanctify or bless it. But, God will not be mocked. If a ministry pays lip service to God's provisions, why should he throw open the gates of heaven and bless it?

As a donor I want to see my local or national ministries flourish especially in times of economic stress. When they do I can see the Lord defying conventional wisdom and demonstrating that He is, in fact, the owner of everything.

Therefore, I propose the following Donor's "Bill of Rights"

Donor right #1: Communicate to me that your work does not exist (or continue) because of my gifts alone - it is God's pleasure that we exist and serve.

Donor Right #2: Help me see that my giving is a reflection of my relationship with the Lord; it is not a function of my wealth or lack of it.

Donor Right #3: A Christian ministry wants me to be engaged more than just financially; I have time and talent as well - show me how these can be used.

Donor Right #4: Show me the joy and blessing of generosity; not just the ego gratification of a naming opportunity

Donor Right #5: Do not make me feel responsible for fiscal mismanagement; desperate appeals may get a small donation, but I will not pour money into a lost cause.

This is the first half of the list. The next set will come out soon.

If you connect with these ideas and you think it would be helpful to explore them more, please see Advance Christian Schools or contact me directly.

Easy Fundraising with Discount Cards

"We just need something that raises a lot of money without having to take possession of boxes of candy or wrapping paper!" is the exclaim of many school administrators. "Something that people don't hate to see coming; maybe it could even be something they like!" continues the conversation.

Enter: the discount, or "value" card. Basically, the card issuer has negotiated discounts at retailers. By using the card, the consumers can save many times the amount they paid for the card, typically $20 to $40 each for the annual fee.

The math is straightforward. The issuer, or broker, gets 50% of the sale price and the school gets the other 50%. So, a school of 200 students sells 2,000 (10 each) with a "clear profit" of $20,000 to $40,000. Nice money, right? What could be easier; plus it helps endear the purchasers to the school because we've done them a "service" by helping them save money on things they were going to buy anyway.

Selling discount cards is not wrong or evil per se. It's what it substitutes for that concerns me. When presented with this opportunity last week, I was reminded that this transactional method will divert us from the relational or stewardship approach that marks our school. We would have to set aside biblical discipleship in order to develop a whole new type of relationship.

Some questions to ask when we find ourselves wrestling with our urgent financial needs:

1. Why do we have these needs at all? Is there a more fundamental issue that should be addressed?
2. Are our needs so urgent and desperate that we must grab the next, nearest, easiest technique? Where does this path lead us?
3. How does this transaction develop generous giving?
4. How does this approach reflect Christ to the community?
5. Is this the best we can do to honor the Lord and to build up a community? If not, will the tyranny of the urgent always prevail?
6. How or why do we expect the Lord to bless these plans?

Nothing is free, except the grace we received on the cross. Everything else has a cost. Please evaluate it before you make the next decision.

When "free" is not free

The Christian schooling movement has many challenges. In this blog, I write about how we have hurt ourselves and our cause by not thinking biblically about the work of fundraising. When we adopt secular methods because "they work" we can miss the calling we have to raise up joyful and generous givers. God is not honored when we reduce our work to just getting funds without regard for the messages we send.

At a higher level, there is another recent challenge to the Christian schooling movement, the advent of classical charter schools. These are public schools that take advantage of the somewhat liberal laws for charter schools and they make an end run around Christian by hiring believers as teachers and use the Bible as "great literature".

In Galatians 6:7 Paul reminds us that God will not be mocked -that doing good is defined by pleasing the Spirit. Patch Blakely, Executive Director of the Association of Classical and Christian Schools exposes the flawed thinking of Christians who think you can have it both ways, classical with some Christian. Read his well-written article, It's Not Classical and Christian http://www.accsedu.org/ and about CCE.

Excellent Christian schooling is neither free or easy, nor should it be. If you believe that your school could use a little assistance, please visit http://www.advancechristianschools.com/ and see if mentoring would help you lead your school more effectively.

Major Donor Fundraising

Mark 12:41-44

Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny. Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything--all she had to live on."

When I began in the wonderful world of development, I learned all kinds of new vocabulary:

Donor: a person who gives some money

Major donor: a person who gives lots of money - more than $1,000 per year?

Gift: money now

Planned Gift: money later - generally after the death of the donor

Development: the act of getting the money

Cultivation: the process of relationship building which results in getting money

Many schools and non-profits have a job called Major Donor Development officer. On its face, the position is straightforward: concentrate time and "development" with the larger donors in order to get the best (financial) return for the effort expended.

Then I was reminded of this story of generosity where Jesus described a major donor in a totally different way. The widow's contribution was proportionately huge.

I don't expect the secular world to understand and follow this teaching, but I do expect us Christians to ask ourselves if we are raising funds in the way that gives glory to Jesus and edifies the donor.

As Christian fundraisers, we must look to the scriptures to guide our work. Of course, it is counter-cultural to give attention to the smaller donors. But, that is the message of the cross: God Himself laid down His perfect life for imperfect beings like us.

What does this truth mean to Christian fundraisers? First, we should start by trying to see the donor as the Lord sees the donor. Can we try to fully appreciate the size of the donation in proportion to what the person has? What if these early and small gifts are the fruit of the Holy Spirit working in his heart to get him excited about the joy of giving? What if these small financial gifts are accompanied by large amounts of prayer and "giving" in other (non-cash) ways? Let's think about how the Lord might be using these "small" gifts to accomplish big things for the Kingdom; we may get a blessing ourselves when we are close to this generosity.

Maybe our "major donors" are not our largest ones after all.