Fundraisers

[our3blessings]

What are your opinions on churches doing fundraisers? What about a group that the church pays a charter for such as MOPS (mothers of preschoolers)? I've heard some people lately that believe that it is totally wrong to do so because of the verse that says we are to give cheerfully. I don't know what that has to do with it at all though. Who says that I'm not giving cheerfully if I buy something from a frundraiser? Can you all just give me your opinions, please. I'm confused here. (nothin new lately) :wac:

[darkest_red]

I dont see that there's anything wrong with it.

Fundraisers are usually fun events...and no one puts a gun to your head and says 'give or else'. You still choose to give and the liklihood is, if you werent going to give cheerfully, you wouldn't bother.

[irishcowboy]

some will call having fund raisers as turning the church into a market place....

others do not see it as being wrong....

now.....

if the people would support the church, as they support their other habits, then the church would not have a need to have other funds coming in other then the normal support.....

does any one know how much money it actually takes to support just one missionary for one year in India?

ok, now you add the persons family to that amount, and then you start seeing the amount increase..... then you add the materials and medicines that may be needed to minister to those that the missionaries are ministering to, and maybe even some transportation ( from walking several hours to the next village, to taking a donkey, or a boat or a plane several hours or even a bicycle )

the amount that it takes to support just one single missionary TEAM ( missionary, missionaries family, medical team, other workers, ) then the amount climbs even more.....

people often complain that the church is wanting way too much money.....

if a person has such a hard heart, then i would say to them DONT GIVE, your money is not needed...... for if it is done in bitterness, anger, out of obligation only, then I do not believe that God would want it......

Able, he gave of his first....... Cain held back, gave out of obligation.... who was blessed?????

I do not believe that every one is called into the full time active ministry of a pastorship or missionary or evangelist.... some of us have to stay back and support them, to care for the widows and children..... and send support to those that are in the full time active ministries...

am i in a full time ministry???? yes..... 24 / 7 ..... mine is plumbing, today I was in 4 different houses ministering to the families...... sharing Jesus with them.... taking care of things for them...... am I a pastor? no.... nothing like that... no papers...

if everyone would give 10% then the churches may not have a need for fundraisers..... we give the government 25% + or - ........ wow,

I love to give.. I know God will take care of me if I budget this resource..... if I am a good steward, God will care for me...

mike

[ted]

In our church, we trust in the Lord to guide our members to provide the funding through tithes, offerings and special gifts.

We don't do fundraisers.

Works out pretty well.

He makes sure our needs are taken care of.

t.

[Kabowd]

What are your opinions on churches doing fundraisers? What about a group that the church pays a charter for such as MOPS (mothers of preschoolers)? I've heard some people lately that believe that it is totally wrong to do so because of the verse that says we are to give cheerfully. I don't know what that has to do with it at all though. Who says that I'm not giving cheerfully if I buy something from a frundraiser? Can you all just give me your opinions, please. I'm confused here. (nothin new lately) :wac:

If you're speaking of soliciting "secular" money (i.e. those outside the church itself) with things like car washes, bake sales, etc....I don't like the idea. I think that if there is any type of "fund raising" it should be kept within the Body (and even then it should rarely be necessary). Why? Well, a few reasons:

1. In the OT, all of the tribes were commanded by God to support the tribe of priests. The Levites had no other source of income (at least I think this is what I was taught). They were totally reliant on the other tribes to give financially to provide for them. It was the responsibility of those who were being ministered to, to support those in ministry.

2. Tithes and Offerings (an offering is something above and beyond a tithe) are acts of obedience. I believe that if ppl are obedient in giving, God will move to bless the obedience by providing what is needed.

3. Everything is about relationship. Everything we do should be to promote relationship with Christ and eachother. By soliciting money from random ppl, it removes the element of relationship. It focuses on the need rather than the person.

4. I believe it communicates a message of "I don't care if I know you or not, I just need your cash"

In my opinion, we are here to be a blessing..not seek blessing from others. I think that when the church is interacting with the secular public it should be to bless them, not ask for blessing. If the church is going to do a car wash (for instance) within the community, I think it should be to bless them ... not to get something from them.

If there is a need, God desires to meet it. More often than not, He will do so through those who have the Holy Spirit because they are listening for His voice and desiring to obey. Certainly He can do it any way He chooses, I just tend to think God's heart is towards relationship not just meeting a need. I think that if God has called the church (or youth group, etc.) to do some type of ministry, then the church body should give financially (and sacrificially) to support it. Don't ask unbelievers to finance what God has called you to do. You make the sacrifice and watch God provide.

Just my thoughts in the issue.

[ted]

Amen, Tess.

Good job!

t.

[our3blessings]

Okay, my thoughts are totally divided on this. I understand about the church not needing to do fundraisers if everyone is giving the way they should. And that works well for our church. I think it would be great though, if the teens were allowed to do car washes to be able to do some of the more expensive trips that they take though, so that they can learn how to manage money etc. I don't think we should let them grow up to be completely dependent on others for giving them what they want all the time, ya know?

Also, about the independent group that the church put money out to charter. Our MOPS group has asked repeatedly for donations and volunteers to help in childcare, but few have volunteered and none have made monetary donations. We did hold a bake sale to help cover the start-up costs for our group. There were a handful of people who got their feathers ruffled over this. I personally don't think that they really understand what MOPS is all about. Here is the insert we put in the bullitin this last week to help explain a little better. I hope it helps to smooth things over a little with the members of the congregation who are having a difficult time with it.

What is MOPS?

You've been hearing a lot about MOPS lately. Some may still be asking, "What exactly is MOPS?" With this insert, I hope to answer some quesitons.

MOPS is a sererate, non-profit organization that the church is sponsoring. MOPS (or Mothers of Preschoolers) is an international, Christian, non-profit organization whose headquarters are in Denver, Co. MOPS International is a recognized and respected international organization that provides access to resources, experience, and training focused specifically on identifying the needs of and ministering to mothers of preschoolers.

MOPS International requires every MOPS group to purchase a charter in order to operate. This is usually done by a church who agrees to sponsor that particular MOPS group. The sponsoring organization, or church, then agrees to renew the charter every year that that MOPS group is in existence. You can think of it as if we were sponsoring a Boy Scout Troop who was then holding their meetings in the building. The only way in which this is a "ministry" for us is that the group does meet at the building so it is something that you can be involved in; whether it be participating as a mom, being one of our child-care workers, or praying that we can meet the needs of moms in our community.

The eldership did choose to give us a small amount of money with which to open a bank account. Otherwise, our MOPS group is self sufficient. Each participating mom pays dues to attend the meetings. These dues are to help us pay for child care, craft supplies, and general maintenance of the group. Before we had any moms signed up we were needing to make many purchases just to get ready. Some of these purchases included tablecloths, table centerpieces, gift bags for each mom, welcome folders full of information sheets for each mom, file box, storage tubs to store toys, name tags (two per shild and one for each mom), curriculum idea books for the Moppets (child-care) program, craft cupplies, refreshments, paper, pens, snacks for the children, etc. This was the reason for asking for donations. A detailed financial report is available upon request.

I sincerely apologize if anything about MOPS has been confusing to this point and hope that some of your questions have been answered. If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to ask the MOPS Coordinator or the eldership.

Thank you.

[Kabowd]

I think it would be great though, if the teens were allowed to do car washes to be able to do some of the more expensive trips that they take though, so that they can learn how to manage money etc. I don't think we should let them grow up to be completely dependent on others for giving them what they want all the time, ya know?

I don't have a problem with students having to earn money for a "fun" trip. However, I still don't see why it's necessary for the church to organize this...or why they must solicit funds from "secular" sources. I have to earn money for things I want to buy. But I don't go around asking ppl I don't know for money. If they wanted to do something for a trip, have them do a parent's night out at the church and offer childcare. This way, the people of the church are the ones giving to the cause and the students are still earning it. Or they could just as easily babysit out of their own homes, mow lawns, etc...to earn money for themselves. I agree, it shouldn't just be handed to them. BUT I STILL DISAGREE WITH FUNDRAISING FOR MINISTRIES THOUGH. If the church agrees to do a mission, then they should give sacrificially to support it. Period.

I'm not sure if I'm understanding the MOPS thing entirely...but...if the church committed to taking on this ministry and supporting it, then they should step up and do so. That would be like telling missionaries we would support them, and them making them do fundraisers to survive. If the church isn't going to go the distance with the ministry, they shouldn't agree to in the first place. Sorry if I'm misunderstanding your situation.

[our3blessings]

I think it would be great though, if the teens were allowed to do car washes to be able to do some of the more expensive trips that they take though, so that they can learn how to manage money etc. I don't think we should let them grow up to be completely dependent on others for giving them what they want all the time, ya know?

I don't have a problem with students having to earn money for a "fun" trip. However, I still don't see why it's necessary for the church to organize this...or why they must solicit funds from "secular" sources. I have to earn money for things I want to buy. But I don't go around asking ppl I don't know for money. If they wanted to do something for a trip, have them do a parent's night out at the church and offer childcare. This way, the people of the church are the ones giving to the cause and the students are still earning it. Or they could just as easily babysit out of their own homes, mow lawns, etc...to earn money for themselves. I agree, it shouldn't just be handed to them. BUT I STILL DISAGREE WITH FUNDRAISING FOR MINISTRIES THOUGH. If the church agrees to do a mission, then they should give sacrificially to support it. Period.

I'm not sure if I'm understanding the MOPS thing entirely...but...if the church committed to taking on this ministry and supporting it, then they should step up and do so. That would be like telling missionaries we would support them, and them making them do fundraisers to survive. If the church isn't going to go the distance with the ministry, they shouldn't agree to in the first place. Sorry if I'm misunderstanding your situation.

I see what you are saying about supporting a ministry. I guess I just don't quite agree with the teen situation though. I figure it to be providing a service for the community to do car washes etc. by handing out tracks or something to promote Jesus and spread the Word. Kwim? That's okay, I still think you are awesome, Tess. You give great advice and are kind in doing so! :il:

Okay, think of MOPS as similar to a boyscout troop. Would it be okay for the church to ask them not to sell popcorn and such? Probably not. Because that is part of how they earn their own money to do things. Kind of like MOPS in that respect. We can't expect the church to hand over money for women of the community to do crafts, eat brunch during the meetings etc. This is more of an outreach type of ministry if anything. We accept all mother's of preschoolers in this group and minister to them on a small scale. We have speakers once a month with discussion group following. It is Christian based, but not necessarily a preaching session, Bible study, or doctrinal discussion. We just provide resources for the women. Does that make more sense? I don't know how else to explain it. Sorry. lol

[AnotherTraveler]

In my opinion, we are here to be a blessing..not seek blessing from others. I think that when the church is interacting with the secular public it should be to bless them, not ask for blessing. If the church is going to do a car wash (for instance) within the community, I think it should be to bless them ... not to get something from them.

As a missionary fundraiser, former pastor, and traveling minister, I can tell you that I like your opinion, but the reality on the ground is different than this wonderful ideal.

Many ministers could tell you of traveling 200 miles to minister to a full church and not getting enough gas money to travel back home. The percentage of giving that most churches actually receive is around 3% of the total income that the congregation earns, there are far too many believers who's faith does not reach to their bank account.

I posted on this board the great immediate need of the baby orphanage in Jamaica (the roof was torn off, the building nearly destroyed in Hurricane Ivan) and there are thousands of members here, do you know how many replied with a prayer of encouragement, a request for further information, or even a "who cares?" Take a look. This was posted September 19th.

http://www.worthyboards.com/forums/index.p...=0entry238190

None, not one reply, no response at all, do you understand what I am saying?

Please understand that I have spoken with Christians that have pledged thousands of dollars but never gave a dime, and you had better be pretty solid in your walk with the Lord to keep from being really troubled by this on a day to day basis.

I want you to understand that I could walk into a bar and speak to the drunks there and get a warmer response and a better result (I don't do this) than from most Christians, why?

Most Christians have a real willingness to downplay the needs of the needy, so that they can justify all three TVs, both cars, the new sprinkler system, the new carpet, and on and on it goes.