Re-thinking the Appeal Letter

1 Th. 5:11

"Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing."

Appeal letters are an important aspect of the school's regular communication. They serve to help the donors understand the condition of the school and to see how they can support the work.

Sometimes the letters are not letters at all, they are appeals within a newsletter or some other publication of the school.

Either way, it is an important communication that merits tremendous thought and prayer ans we conceive them and send them out.

Too many schools send out desperate request for funds, warning readers of the dire results if we don't make a contribution and soon. Indeed, there are times when the urgent appeal is necessary, but these cannot be the regular approach to our partners. It is like the boy who cried "wolf"; we'll be ignored after awhile.

As we write these one-way communications, there are some things we need to keep in mind:

1. We are Christian ministries who depend on prayer and provisions of the Lord for our existence
2. We serve at His pleasure for His purposes; we do not exist for our own good
3. We must talk about the consequences of our work, the Christian worldview and how that manifests itself in the lives of young people who will be used as "change agents" for Christ
4. Donor/friends should be invited in to participate with the school in its Kingdom work and to do so as they respond to God's call on their lives to be good stewards of their blessings
5. We must be transparent in our financial status so that trust can be established. It may mean that we need an eternal validation of financial integrity, like the ECFA mark
6. Lastly, keep in mind that neither the school, not the donor are the center of this communication; it is the Gospel and its transformational work in lives

As we plan and write these communications over the next several months, you may want to have them read by some friends who will give you honest feedback when you ask the question,

"Did this encourage you in you walk the King?"