#supportraising

I’m still not entirely sure how I ended up here.

I spent the last six years with my head down, arms pumping, heart racing, headed toward a finish line comprising two college degrees (B.S. in Strategic Communication: Social Media Management and an MBA, if you’re curious) and some small level of personal satisfaction. In the midst of papers, group projects, and the occasional unadvisable (but nevertheless highly enjoyable) cup of coffee (which I should *never* be allowed to drink – long story), I must have stepped through a portal that jettisoned me into an entirely new world.

Think Columbus’s America, NASA’s moon voyage, McDonald’s introduction of McCafé…

In May, as I wrapped up my Master of Business Administration degree at Liberty University, I prepared to step into what I offhandedly termed “the real world” – a full-time job, bills, the works – but mostly just no more 15-page papers on a weekly basis.

Keep it simple, I reasoned. Head out on your own, but not too far from home; get a job in advertising and work it like a pro until you’re ready to kick start your own business and work from home. It was a nice little plan: very clean, neat, and only slightly unconventional.

Based on ensuing events, however, I can safely assume God was not incredibly impressed with my sophisticated 3-5 year post-grad school plan. I imagine He lovingly smirked right before hitting a giant red celestial button labeled “Engage Hyperdrive.”

I was getting ready to meet the real world, that was certain – but it wasn’t the world I had imagined.

A caveat to my life’s unsuspected redirection: I didn’t have glamorous plans – a dream job, a dream company, a ring on my finger, a destination city, or plane tickets to travel the world. I had dreams, yes, and a clear (albeit tentative) direction for my next steps, but it’s worth noting that, sometimes, God doesn’t have to upend our carefully-laid plans to call us outside of our comfort zone. Sometimes, His invasion of our uncertainty with a certain calling can be the most uncertain thing we’ve ever experienced. Here’s to the divinely-induced chaos that brings our lives into glorious order.

In the moment, the actual process of “engaging hyperdrive” felt like a lifetime of prayers and anxiety and gathering counsel. However, in retrospect, I’m pretty sure I blinked and everything changed. One blink, and I was flying out to Michigan to interview with a women’s outreach I had followed since I was 13. Another blink, and I had a ministry position and had raised 20% of my support funds.

Blink again, and I’ll probably be making snow angels in the aftermath of the latest lake-effect winter blizzard. (And let’s be clear: snow is one of least favorite weather phenomenon, second only to tornadoes - for obvious reasons.)

The end result of God’s invasion of my expectations is exciting, however. I’ll serve as an Audience Engagement Specialist with Revive Our Hearts, a women’s outreach with a vision for seeing women thrive in Christ through Bible-centered programming, events, and resources. A social media geek with an addiction to people and long conversations (that’s the ‘E’ in my ENFJ personality), I’ll harness digital platforms and ministry initiatives to connect with supporters and listeners in new, engaging ways.

Additionally, because the ministry is funded almost entirely by outside support, I’ve been raising support for a portion of my salary since August. Having never raised support before, I have had to learn and grow and change in ways that I didn’t anticipate - and might not have willingly signed up for.

And, yet, here I sit with nearly 3 months of support raising under my belt, feeling like a pro while also not being completely sure I know what I’m doing just yet. My coworkers who have been at this for 30 years assure me that’s very normal - even for my incredibly advanced stage in the process.

(I’m joking. Of course.)

Joking aside: I never would have dreamed up this ministry and position and season of my life. But God did. I don’t know *quite* how I ended up here, or where I’ll go next. But God does. He is the Sovereign of the unanticipated, as He often reminds me through the passage I’ve designated for this new season (and perhaps the rest of my life):

Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Glory to Him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! Amen.

-Ephesians 3:20-21

When God begins to accomplish the “infinitely more” referenced in the passage above, the interim can be chaotic and crazy, and you usually don’t get a detailed road map predicting the end of the journey.

However, regardless of the means by which He sees fit to accomplish His purposes in our lives, the end results will be exceedingly, infinitely, gloriously more than our minds could dare to dream.

Stay tuned - you better believe there's a LOT more to come. ;)

Support raising is (for me) one of the hardest things to do.  It requires humbly asking those I know and those I don't know to come along side me and be a financial partner, so that I can go, live, and serve in another country - for me this country is Thailand with Partners Relief & Development, and serving the people of Myanmar - those who are living in Thailand as well as those living in Myanmar.  

At my age, and with my educational background, many people wonder why i don't just go and get a “real” job, or at least one that pays.  For one - for me this is a “real” job - it is serving real people with real needs.  At the beginning of my job search many “paying” jobs wanted experience, which i didn't have, but as I looked into volunteer positions and found Partners, I was drawn.  Drawn to an organization that loves people out of the love that God has for us.  Loves people unconditionally, and wants to empower people to better their lives.  An organization that looks for sustainable ways to empower communites.  Through my year of volunteering with them in 2016 I was drawn even further to the people that we are coming alongside and serving with.  Not only hearing and reading stories, but meeting nationals who love their land and people who just need resources in order to be a part of the change they feel is needed.  People like those in our Community Support Networks in Kachin state who take up their own time and resources to help others like them who are living in IDP camps and struggling.  People like our national staff who are so passionate about education, health care, and bringing God’s love to people through words and deeds.  I have been so encouraged by these individuals.  This concept of being “drawn” isn't just a feeling for me, its a calling, one that is from God.  God is calling me to go to Thailand and serve with these people and with this organization, and I am humbly answering this call.  I’m not a doctor, or a preacher - I’m not even a good public speaker!  But God has called me to use the administrative skills He has given and my love for people and Him to go and serve on staff at Partners.  

This is why I am support raising, and why I am asking you to consider being a financial partner.  In order to go back, I need to have 80% of my monthly support pledged.  That means I need promises from many of you to give an amount each month.  Whatever amount God may lay on your heart - $25, $50, $100, or maybe more if God has substantially blessed you.  Thats just 50 people who are willing to parter with $50 a month.  You may not be able to go physically, but you can still play a part through financial partnership.  Can you pray about this?  Will you partner with me so that I can go?  

Please contact me if you would like to partner with me in serving the people of Myanmar.  Feel free to contact me with any questions you may have, and if you would like we could even set up a Skype conversation with you and/or your small groups or church.  

I think most of us would agree that trusting God often involves taking steps of faith in areas where we feel uncomfortable. It’s just too easy to hunker down in places where we feel adequate and shy away from those things that may expose our weaknesses. But as we are on our way to the mission field, we are faced with what may be our toughest challenge yet - asking people for money. It’s what Christians call “raising support” and it’s not easy, even for someone who raises funds for a local non-profit for a living. I’m raising those funds “for the kids,” not for myself...

Of course Jordan and I wholeheartedly believe we should invest in helping the gospel go to all nations. We have supported a number of missionaries and initiatives over the years that have done just that. But now we have to invite others to consider whether the Lord is calling them to invest in US. It feels like a whole different ballgame.

And stepping into this new role has really made us think, and pray, and ponder over these past six months. Here are some of our thoughts on this whole idea of “support raising.”

1. Talking about money quickly exposes who (or what) we actually worship.

Money almost always seems to be an awkward conversation topic because money, in a mysterious way, often represents our life. As I mentioned in my last blog post, Jesus lived a simple life marked by generosity and underconsumption. He tells us that life involves much more than our possessions (Matthew 6:25), but his words challenge a powerful and invisible assumption: that our money, our wealth, gives us our meaning, our life. 

Money makes better promises than almost anything else. It represents safety, security, pleasure, and self-worth - all things our culture places a very high value on. The more money we accumulate, the more blurry the line gets between our life and our wealth. We start living for money, instead of using money to live. Our hearts are so prone to idolatry that wealth quickly makes us slaves without letting us know. If God took a spiritual X-ray of our hearts as modern Americans, I think we would all see more dysfunction than we would like to admit.

That’s one reason asking for money can be awkward. We have to confront our own messed-up hearts. Have we been as generous as we are asking others to be? Are we anxious about this process because we are trusting money to make our ministry go forward? At the same time, we cannot be tempted to say, “Give because it’s easy” or “Give only if you have extra you don’t need” or to guilt people into giving. That would be asking for counterfeit generosity, generosity so small and light it does not demand us asking who (or what) we worship. 

When our worship is directed at the Giver of all Life, it changes the way we look at money, changes the way we look at asking others for money. After all, money is just our servant, not our master.

2. Grace changes everything.

At its core, grace is giving what others don’t deserve. When grace changes our hearts, our love deepens to something stronger than emotions or friendship. True love stands on the bedrock of grace: we want to love others by being willing to give what will bless them. This is why the lack of a generous heart reveals a poverty of grace. In 2 Corinthians 9 Paul rebukes the wealthy Corinthians for not giving more. He casually reminds them of the need (verses 1-4). But then he speaks to their hearts: “For your generosity to them and to all believers will prove that you are obedient to the Good News of Christ” (verse 13). A lack of generosity proves we are obedient to the “bad news” of trusting our money. We let it call the shots in our lives. But generosity announces we are obeying good news: news of grace that God is working in us. 

3. Asking people to partner with us is actually giving them the opportunity to invest in something eternal.

How many of the things we invest our money in are eternal? Really. Think about that. We invest our money in our houses, our cars, our temporal needs (food, clothing, hygiene), our pleasures (going out to eat, movies, concerts, vacations). But imagine investing in something that would not pass away, or die with you. Imagine if you found a field where whatever was planted in it would grow to last forever. And what if you had friends who had barns full of seeds, much of which was sitting on the shelves or going into soil that produced plants that only lasted for a few weeks? It would be a no-brainer. You would ask your friends for the seeds. Not because you are needy, but because you had discovered such amazing soil and you cared about your friends. Africa is full of rich soil where gospel seeds will grow forever. It’s a privilege to be able to plant in this soil. And it’s a privilege to challenge others to give their seeds to plant in this soil.

4. God provides through people.

The idea of thanking people for the donations is crazy. So many donors. So many prayers. So many things to be expressed in gratitude. And most of all, so much to be appreciative of when you realize this is not just for you, but for the Lord and the entire team. I really cannot thank those who are supportive of my decision to go on this mission trip.

I am excited, yet afraid. I am overjoyed, yet sad when I think of all the people I am 'leaving' to go on this trip. I am beginning to feel a little of everything as I continue to hear the bickering of my mother giving me advice as I venture to something unknown.

lots of encouraging words

having a community that loves me

having a community that tells me of the ways I love them

instilling wisdom from the Lord for both sides of the calls

grace in these troubling times of my life

being thankful to the Father that is beside me

passion for what it is I am doing- the Savior's love is amazing

willingness, despite the fear, to call people I am hesitant in contacting

the beauty of His testimony in our works is awesome and beyond comprehension

reminders of just how broken we are

redemption and His plan to continue to use us despite our flaws