Fundraising … For WHO?

There was an article in Time Magazine recently about fundraising. As a church planter, I have spent lots of time and energy fundraising. And most church planters feel bad for themselves – in most jobs you are given a salary, not asked to raise your own, and in most jobs you’re given a budget, not asked to raise your own.

So was the article about church planters? No, it was about Olympic athletes. That’s right, many U.S. Olympic athletes have to raise the money to support their sport. Runners, kayakers, pole vaulters. And, as you might expect – synchronized swimmers. Swimmers log hour after hour, not in a pool, but in a bingo hall. They sell bingo cards, which provides over 90% of the club’s $2.4 million dollar budget. They often sell bingo cards till 1 in the morning, then report to the pool for 7 a.m. practice.

So if you’re a church planter or missionary and feel like you’ve got it rough, well, you could be an Olympic athlete. And if the mission of playing in the Olympics and representing your country is worth that effort, well then so is helping people find life and getting to represent Jesus.