Which statement reflects your feelings when it comes to raising financial support to attend NYC ’07?

1. “I’m asking for money.”

OR

2. “I’m telling people what God is doing (or what He wants to do) and I’m giving them a chance to be part of it.”

If you sense God is sending you to NYC ’07 to open your life to Him, to be challenged to change the world and grow deeper in your faith and journey with Him, then we encourage you to invite others to help you attend NYC ’07.

It’s not unlike the Apostle Paul who wrote, "When I go to Spain . . . I hope to . . . to have you assist me on my journey there." Romans 15:24

How do you find the financial aid you need to attend this once-in-a-lifetime event?

How do you get people to consider making donations?

Here's a funding strategy outline:

1. Let your daily prayer times be permeated with the sense that you are looking primarily to the Lord to provide your finances.

2. Make a list of individuals and churches with whom you can share your vision and call. Ideas for contacts:

o The church where you attend

o People at your work place (current and summer)

o Acquaintances outside your normal church circles (neighbors, for instance)

o Friends involved in other Christian groups and ministries

o Friends and contacts of your parents

o Relatives

o Christian parents of your friends

o Your close friends

o Your NMI President (Nazarene Missions International)

o Your NYI President (Nazarene Youth International)

3. Prioritize your list into your "Top 10," Second 10, Third 10 and so on.
Those "Top 10" donors will probably provide two-thirds of your financial support.

4. Prayerfully individualize your fund-raising appeals.

1. Ask appropriately.

2. Don't be afraid to ask for large gifts of money.

3. Decide the best way to contact each person on your top 10 list and what gift range you would like to ask them to consider giving.

Possible ways to contact are:

o Face-to-face funding presentations telling them about NYC ’07 and how it can impact your life for years to come.

o Phone call followed with an information letter and response card and envelope

o Fund-raising letter with an information sheet and response card and envelope, followed up by a phone call if they do not get back to you in time

o Church presentation

o Other creative options such as car wash

4. Pray, then contact each person on your "Top 10" list. Set yourself a deadline to get this done

5. Follow up with them as planned

6. Repeat steps 1-5 for your second 10

7. Continue steps 1-6 until you reach 100% of your fund raising goal

Answers to Tough Questions about Raising Support by Jay Gary

Ever feel that raising support is just a "second-class" task? Ever wonder what the Bible has to say about it? Here are some straightforward answers to tough questions from someone who has raised support many times to serve God.

Q: Is raising support biblical? It seems lazy and selfish to ask people for money to support my ministry

A: Raising support is not simply a form of Christian begging. When Jesus entered a new town, he regularly accepted the hospitality of others and instructed his disciples to do the same (Matt. 10:11). Jesus didn't just receive money from people on the "most likely to give" list, either. Luke records that Jesus even accepted monetary gifts from women, a culturally unacceptable practice at the time (Luke 8:3).

It's no surprise that you or anybody else might doubt the biblical basis of raising support; the New Testament records individuals and churches who didn't believe in the idea either. Take the Corinthian church: These Christians felt their missionary should work for a living (1 Cor. 9:3-6). Because of this attitude, Paul never asked them for financial support (vs. 15). Yet the whole chapter defends his right to receive financial assistance from them. Later, Paul scolded them for their immature view toward him and their reluctance to support him when he wrote, "I robbed other churches by receiving support from them so as to serve you" (2 Cor. 11:8).

Throughout Scripture we find God expects His people to support those involved in full-time service. He instituted a tithe as the means to support the Levites (Num. 18:24, Neh. 13:10-12). And throughout the history of Israel, God promised to bless those who invest in this work (Pro. 3:9-10, Mal. 3:10).
Paul said emphatically to the Corinthians, "The Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should receive their living from the gospel" (I Cor. 9:14). And John wrote Gaius saying that it was a good thing to support servants of God because "it was for the sake of the Name that they went out, receiving no help from the pagans" (3 John 5-8).

Q: Isn't it more spiritual to let only God know about my needs, rather than to publicize them to churches and individuals?

A: It may seem more spiritual not to solicit funds and just pray about your needs. But there are other biblical approaches.

New Testament missionaries weren't exclusively "faith" missionaries, who made their needs for support known only to God. Paul's life offers three patterns for raising support:

1. Asking No One But God. At times, Paul made no efforts to raise support. He simply made do with what God provided. Sometimes that was more than sufficient; at times he went hungry. "I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength" (Phil. 4:12-13). Paul never wrote that he prayed for financial support, but we can assume that during these lean times he presented these needs to God.

2. Making Your Needs Known. At other times, especially at turning points in his ministry, Paul explicitly asked other Christians and churches for financial support. "When I go to Spain.. .I hope to have you assist me on my journey" (Rom. 15:24). The original language here confirms that Paul was asking for monetary assistance. Paul also encouraged churches to support other believers financially who once worked directly with him (Rom. 16:1-2).

3. Using Personal Earnings. Paul supported himself and his coworkers by making tents on some occasions. He states in Acts 20:34, "You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions." Seasonal or part-time jobs can appropriately finance ministry.

In summary, the Bible doesn't rigidly prescribe one method of raising support over another. Rather, it gives us freedom to be led by the Holy Spirit according to our situation. I have found that to be obedient to God, I've needed to practice all three methods at some time or another.

Q: I'm willing to do what God wants, but right now I simply don't feel as though I could ever raise support. Can you help?

A: I think a lot of people, including me, find themselves in your shoes. Let's face it, raising support is uncharted ground for most of us. The truth is that at times we will. Jesus spoke from his own experience when he cautioned a young aspiring missionary, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head" (Luke 9:58).

Some people feel that raising support is tantamount to accepting Christian welfare. Yet the Bible strongly states that this is part of God's economy, His way of financing the spread of the gospel. Therefore, raising support isn't "unChristian." Maybe the real problem we face is that raising support feels so "un-American."

As Americans, we are supposed to be "rugged individualists" who refuse handouts and stand on their own two feet. Financial independence is the goal. The real problem with raising support, then, is not that it's at odds with any practice in the Bible. Maybe your problem with raising support (and mine) has more to do with it being counter to the American way of life.

Adapted by permission.