Raising Support from Friends and Family

Raising support from family and friends takes wisdom. From these loved ones will come the bulk of your support, so it is crucial it be handled with grace. As with all things, Jesus is our model, and I developed my philosophy and methodology from what I see in scripture. This isn't intended to be a full study of the Bible in this area, I will leave it to you to dig deeper, but here is a snapshot of how I see the Lord interfaced with his friends and family:

As we look at the New Testament during the time of Jesus' earthly ministry, we discover there were levels of relationships. There were 500 followers that were probably very open and loyal to His work. Within that group there were 120 devoted followers, including a handful of women from whom Jesus received a significant portion of his support. Within that group there were 12 disciples that were in constant contact and communication with Jesus. Within that group there were 3 of his friends that were "closer" than the others.

Jesus related differently in terms of time and priority with these groups. As a missionary raising funds from loved ones, we must adopt the same wisdom. We simply will have so much time to devote to our fundraising and relationships, so we will need to prioritize. As you grow and prioritize your list of supporters, remember to qualify not just by money. There will be those who may be in a closer circle who give less than those farther out or down your list, but their HEART is more with you even if they don't or can't give as much. As in another place on this web site, it cannot be overstated - DON'T TREAT EVERYONE THE SAME. Ok, so how to I treat them differently? This list is just an example of how you can tangibly differentiate. You will also want to take into account different personality types. Some people simply need or want more communication than others, but here is an example:

500: Your list of everyone who is interested or signed up for your newsletter, friends of friends, etc.

*Send them your monthly newsletter - directing them to your web tools.

120: Those within your bigger list that you are friends with, and you know they care about you and are praying for you.

*Send them your monthly newsletter - directing them to your web tools.

*Once a quarter drop them a personalized note or greeting card. Click on the "Dear Mom" card below - and I'll even pay for it!

12: These are your most committed people. Ideally this group should be about 30 people. For Jesus this was his disciples, close friends, and women who supported the ministry. If you get one person/family to take one day a month - this level of support is a good base for your missions work. Have this be an initial goal to shoot for.

*Send them your monthly newsletter - directing them to your web tools.

*Once a quarter drop them a personalized note or greeting card. If you are out of the country, Send Out Cards is perfect for this.

*Call them on the phone, or text message them once a quarter.

*Send them a personal email once a month.

*Put them on an exclusive mailing list for your most crucial and private prayer requests. Make them feel very special, because they are!!! (You can see how I have implemented this idea in my ministry here: http://www.johnsonfamilymissions.org/david.htm )

3: Hopefully these are your best friends, even if they are family. These people would die for you and your work. You share the "greater love" with them.

*Send them your monthly newsletter - directing them to your web tools.

*Once a quarter drop them a personalized note or greeting card.

*Call them on the phone once a quarter.

*Send them a personal email once a month.

*Put them on an exclusive mailing list for your most crucial and private prayer requests.

*Call them often.

*Send them thank you gifts, birthday & anniversary cards, etc. Send Out Cards again is amazing tool for this also.

This is just an example. It will vary depending upon your list and the individuals and their personalities, but you get the idea. Anything you can do to create a "community" of support and make these people feel special, the closer ones, all the more, the greater the friendships will develop, and the support in terms of intercession and prayer will follow: "Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."

If you develop these pathways of communication, you will be blessed! A story comes to mind to highlight this. I was called to do a funeral of a business associate. He had been a good man, and I was expecting a "normal" funeral at the funeral home. When I drove up, not just the parking lot was packed, but the streets all around were also. I thought there had been a scheduling problem with 2 funerals overlapping because I was there 30 minutes early. Come to find out - it was all for the funeral for this man. People were packed into the place. Literally there were people standing in the doorways, by the windows outside, etc. I WASN'T READY! I had the opportunity now to preach the gospel in this setting to hundreds of unsaved people. I quickly found a phone and called a few of those in my "inner circle" and simply said, "PRAY!." (That was a few years ago, now I could send a text message to several in far less time.) Without that kind of camaraderie I am sure the Lord wouldn't have been able to do all He did that day. So - know this is not just about money. Raising support from family and friends is the most tangible way we are yoked together to build HIS Kingdom and it can be a blessing for all.

On a practical note, here is a page that you can look at our monthly support raising routine.

Dr. Ken Williams wrote a great article with 50+ ideas on how to communicate with your supporters. Click here