Why people give

Why people give

When people ask me for advice about raising support, I ask them to consider why people give. In my experience, there are four reasons why people give: 1. Because they have a relationship with you 2. Because they believe in the vision 3. Because you have a clear...
Advice for missionary letters

Advice for missionary letters

Here is my unsolicited advice to those of you who raise support about keeping in touch with the people who are investing in your minisistry. 1. Be regular and consistent. Contact once a month is the absolute minimum. If I haven’t heard from missionaries I am...
Fire and mission

Fire and mission

Take some time this Friday morning to meditate on this insight from German theologian Emil Brunner: “The Church exists by mission as fire exists by burning.”
Bridging to discipleship

Bridging to discipleship

As ministry leaders, we’re all aware of the importance of disciplemaking. We engage culture, and as people come to Christ we get them connected into faith communities. But as I coach a lot of ministry leaders who are seeking to be incarnational and missional, one of...
Creation care study materials

Creation care study materials

This blog entry is from The Eden Projects.  I highly recommend their group study materials on creation care, as well as their ministry around the world. There are lots of resources to teach Christians how to be good stewards of finances or possessions.  But Scripture...
Unreached people groups: a ministry to the deaf

Unreached people groups: a ministry to the deaf

One of the people I met in Honduras was an American woman who moved there to start Signs of Love, a deaf ministry. Here in developed countries like the USA, families with a deaf child have a lot of resources to help them teach their children language while they’re...