Innovative Missions Need Innovative Funding

Blogs

Jan 24

Significant gifts and global missions were meant for each other. By significant gifts, I don’t mean a specific dollar value. Instead, think of a significant gift as one that is significantly above your normal annual giving.

Monthly givers are the core supporters for many international workers (IWs). They are faithful supporters through their prayers and finances. They are central to fulfilling the Great Commission. Yet, we are missing out on potentially significant gifts because many donors aren’t connecting missions funding to the true motivations that lead to significant gifts. Dr. Russell James’s research on philanthropy indicates significant gifts are more likely when the donor connects the gift to identity, calling, immortality, and heroism. Missions provides what donors seek:

Identity – I am part of God's plan for reaching the world.
Calling – I feel connected with a particular field or ministry model.
Immortality – I give so souls will be saved for eternity.
Heroism – I am one of the heroes in the story.

Missions connects with the deepest desires of donors. The potential is there. What holds us back may be a weak view of the role of the giver. People see the IW as a called hero but often don’t offer the same descriptor to the giver. Jesus is the ultimate hero, but the Bible is full of people moved by faith to do great things. Some go and some send—but all are called. Everyone can play an important role, through praying, giving, going, or sending—as long as Christ gets the glory. (Philippians 4:13-20)

Recognizing the donor and acknowledging the call God put on their life creates an opportunity to connect their calling with the calling on the IW. A couple called to use their business experience to create opportunities to share the gospel may be a great match for a South Asian emigrant called to create opportunities for people in her home country. The IW needs the donor to fund and fulfill their calling. The donor needs the IW to bring to fruition what God has placed on their heart. Seeing the donor as more than just a funding source may unleash a sharper and better-funded vision.

Significant gifts should be structured to match the investment term of the missionary or the denomination. No wise person takes out a one-month loan to finance a home purchase. Missions giving tends to look for enduring commitments over the term of service, which is a great rationale for monthly gifts. When someone wants to give appreciated stock to fund an international worker, it creates a surge of cash in one year that must be replicated in the following years. One solution would be to give the gift to a donor-advised fund (preferably ours 😊) and distribute the funds annually. If for some reason the IW steps away from the field, the donation can be reallocated to someone else.

New mission fields could be funded similarly. If the minimum time commitment to a new field is fifteen years, significant gifts could be dedicated to that field, invested in an accelerated endowment structure, and distributed over the fifteen years. Again, the funding structure matches the strategy.

What are the results of this innovation? Three great things: More money is made available to advance the Kingdom, Christ’s Church becomes more interconnected, and the giver experiences the joy and life God desires for them. (1 Tim 6:17-18) That’s hard to beat.