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A number of years ago, someone put a copy of Henri Nouwen’s booklet “A Spirituality of Fundraising” in my hands. Near the beginning of the piece, Nouwen says, “From the perspective of the gospel, fund-raising is not a response to a crisis. Fund-raising is, first and foremost, a form of ministry.” At the time, I had found myself in a fundraising role for Wycliffe Bible Translators USA, an organization dedicated to helping people from every language understand the Bible and be transformed. This was in addition to my own personal partnership development. Maybe you can relate? I was being asked […]

I am not so dissimilar to other fundraising professionals of my baby boomer generation. Most of us fell into our fundraising positions because we had a huge heart for our organization’s mission, a deep call to serve God, and frankly, we did not have the heart to say no. When I look back at my progressive fundraising and marketing career, I can honestly say I would have been ahead of the game if I had known several fundamental realities before jumping in. I wish I knew . . . 1.     A biblical mandate exists for fundraising activities.  “Command […]