Raising funds for your salary is often a necessity in ministry work. However, we must not forget that support raising, although necessary, is as much a spiritual work as serving at your church, praying fervently, or reading your Bible. These all take a little bit of discipline and a lot of the Holy Spirit. Each of these gives us the greatest joy when done with the right heart, but can quickly spiral into legalism and shame if we are not careful.
Everyone has a place and role in the Great Commission. God wants to use you for beautiful things! Here are some things you can do right now to start reaching the nations whoever you are, wherever you are.
What works against you in grasping Christ's love for you? When I think about this question, my answers create a long list, sadly. My sin, fear of rejection, not being good enough, not being faithful enough, being a burden, seeing and experiencing broken relationships, feelings of shame.
During my time with Cafe 1040 in Europe, our group navigated the city through a "buddy system," ensuring no one ventured out alone. When a teammate sought a companion for a rendezvous with a girl she had met at a local Korean Festival, I volunteered without hesitation, completely unaware of what God would do from this encounter.
Raising support to sustain a life of missions can be overwhelming. It can be a major obstacle that keeps people from ever obeying God's call on their life. We know God controls every resource in the world, but do we truly believe He can provide in this way for our life? We've put together a series of support raising stories from people in different stages and viewpoints of life as a way to remind you that God is at work and He loves to show off in this way.
“If I'm being honest, deciding to go on this trip was a big risk for me. By nature, I tend to be a pretty fearful person, especially when it comes to big decisions. However, thankfully, when we ask God for his strength, He doesn’t leave us where we are. Because of Him, peace overcomes fear, every time.”
In the book “The Forgotten God” by Francis Chan, he poses the question, “If you could choose between Jesus beside you and the Holy Spirit within you, which would you choose?”
If you would say Jesus beside you, Francis would say that you probably do not truly understand the power of the Holy Spirit.* Don’t beat yourself up though; the original disciples of Jesus did not understand either.
Q: How/When did you know that God was calling you to missions?
A: I heard the gospel at a young age, but it wasn’t until junior year in high school where the Lord gripped me and I started walking in relationship with the Lord. Shortly after that I felt a strong pull/calling on missions. I started to look at what missions is according to the Bible. What does it look like to do work overseas? Cafe 1040 seemed like a clear next step.
Q: How did you find out about Cafe 1040's program?
A: I looked at several organizations that have 3-month programs. My missions pastor helped me find Cafe 1040.
Urbana is a five-day conference with 16,000 others who are showing up to be transformed, encouraged, challenged, and sent.
Dedicated to calling whole-life, whole-world disciples, Urbana is an eye-opening global missions conference, a sacred space for college and graduate students, faculty, and church leaders to hear God’s call.
The last book of the Bible, Revelation, reads like the script of a weird science fiction movie. It’s the final showdown between good and evil, full of unusual imagery and seemingly cryptic messages. Even the author’s story sounds like the beginning of a Hollywood blockbuster. John was an outcast and part of a rag tag group of troublemakers called the apostles. He even wrote a book about his time as an apostle, which he creatively titled “John.” He fought for his cause his entire life, only to end up exiled on the island of Patmos, where he had a strange vision and encounter with the Lord.
We have been going through a study called "Experiencing God" that has been teaching me what it looks like abide and seek intimacy with Him instead of only focusing on knowing His will for my life. It has also taught me that He is already at work - we have to believe that since the task is so overwhelming and we cannot fulfill it on our own. This study has been very convicting since most of the time I want to jump ahead to the conclusion instead of letting Him lead me in His timing!
Raising support to sustain a life of missions can be overwhelming. It can be a major obstacle that keeps people from ever obeying God's call on their life. We know God controls every resource in the world, but do we truly believe He can provide in this way for our life? We've put together a series of support raising stories from people in different stages and viewpoints of life as a way to remind you that God is at work and He loves to show off in this way.
