Are We Fundraising or Faith-Raising?

The task of a fundraiser is to connect the donor with the mission of the organization. The fundraiser knows the more I’m connected, through annual giving and volunteering, the better chance of a larger major gift down the road. And, if I’ve given annually for several years, even small amounts, there is a chance of a bequest to the organization – if I’m asked.

All this is true for the church as well. Fundraising principles and techniques work wherever they are implemented. However, if all the church does is fund-raise, it misses the essence of the “ask.” If fundraising is the task, the church will raise money for the budget, just like any other not-for-profit. That is wonderful if that’s all we are called to be, just another not-for-profit. Now, don’t get me wrong, fundraising is a noble profession. Raising money to find a cure of a disease, provide a scholarship, feed the poor, care for the sick, impacts both the giver and the recipient of the gift. But in the church we are called to be faith-raisers as well as fundraisers.

Within the church, the Body of Christ, we faith-raisers need to connect the disciple to Jesus through his or her wallet. If we are not asking, “How does your gift bring you closer to Jesus?,” we have not only missed the point, we have done spiritual harm. By not connecting the faith & money dots, we allow the people in the pews to go on thinking that their money is all theirs, and that they obtained their wealth all by themselves. We allow the idol of money to have power over their lives, where the drive to gather more stuff, even to the point of being in debt, places them in bondage.

What makes the church different from every other not-for profit isn’t a “what,” but a Who: Jesus. There are approximately 1.3 million not-for-profits in the United States. When we fail to make the faith-money connection, we reduce the church to being just one of many not-for-profit organizations making the case for support. The case we are making is for a transformed life in Christ.