WRITE: Never the Same Missions, Fundraising

WRITE: Never the Same Missions, Fundraising
Tuesday, February 11, 2014 by Marti

Categories: mission trips / missions

“I’d love to go on a mission trip, but it costs so much.”

“How can I ever raise that much money?”

“I hate asking for anything, especially money.”

Does that sound like something you’ve heard, or maybe something you’ve said? If so, stay tuned. This week, I’ll share a few fundraising tips from the 2013 Never the Same Peru missionaries. Thanks to all those who shared their ideas with me!

Before the ideas, a personal note about fundraising: God owns it all. And He’s perfectly capable of moving resources around to meet needs. Believe it or not, a mission trip is not only about you getting to go somewhere and do something. It’s also about the needs of the people you’ll serve. How much does each of them matter? A lot. So if they matter to Him, He is willing and able to provide. And if they matter to you, and if He has called you to go, you should be willing to work as hard as you can to add to your funds.

In our years of fundraising (my family members and I have taken close to 50 short-term mission trips), I’ve noticed that the more we work, the more God surprises us with special gifts. Two years ago, a student told me she sent out letters offering to work for people to help raise money for her trip—not an unusual idea in itself. But because she was willing to work, many people donated money. In fact, her letters alone brought in almost the exact amount of money she needed.

God doesn’t work the same way in every situation, so don’t expect a few letters to bring in all the funds for your trip. Pray about these ideas, and ask God to give you some of your own. Most of all, be willing to do whatever it takes to go—even if that means scrubbing bathrooms, selling something you hold dear (NOTE: auctioning off your little brother is not an option), or asking for help from others who believe in the importance of missions.

Chili Today: Rebekah, 16, held a missions chili lunch at her mother’s workplace, charging $5 a plate. The generous employees tipped well enough that the luncheon raised more than either Rebekah or her mother anticipated!

Not-So-Small Change: Joy, 18, took advantage of a church barbecue to raise money for her trip. She labeled a container “Pocket Change for Peru” and gave people who attended the barbecue the opportunity to share their change or other donations. This simple method brought in more than $300 for her trip.

Wrap It Up: Alicia, 18, used her mad Christmas-wrapping skills to raise money for her mission trip. She offered lots of options such as wrapping the gifts at her home or her clients’, using their paper or her own. Donations for her winter wraps brought in about $250 toward her trip.

I know there are many more fundraising ideas out there—in fact, I collected more stories but am again limited by space (watch for some more fundraising ideas in Thursday’s blog). But what creative ideas do you have (or have you seen) for mission trip fundraising? Share your story in a comment below so others may learn and the kingdom of God may benefit. After all, the more money we raise, the more people can go, and the more people can hear about the One who makes it all worthwhile.

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