Raising Money

I don’t know about you, but I get uncomfortable when people talk about raising money for ministry.  It raises my heart rate.  It rubs me the wrong way.

Maybe it’s because those words—“raising money”—get it all wrong.  When the focus is on the bottom line—getting cash—we miss a host of opportunities.  We miss the opportunity to cultivate a relationship with donors that honors their humanity as much as their gift.  We miss the opportunity to connect kids who are served with the generosity and sometimes sacrificial offering represented by those gifts.  And we miss the opportunity to deepen our faith by trusting God and others to be in the process.

I appreciate the way Larry Acosta shares about fund development relationships in this workshop we’re sharing in this month’s E-Journal.  It’s an hour and a half of listening, but it will be time well spent if any part of your job is related to giving, asking for, or receiving money for ministry.

And I’m curious to know: What words and images help you get beyond the stigma of “raising money” in ways that make you and others feel more connected?

©2010 Fuller Youth Institute