Blog / Fear and Perspective

Face the fact. You have an enemy who does not want you to get to—or stay at—full support. If he can’t destroy and devour you, at least he can beat you into submission through inserting tapes into the back of your mind, causing you to believe all kinds of lies about God, yourself, and others. If you’re truly going to free yourself from this mental prison, you’ll need to understand—and lock in—this combination of five keys to “crack the code”: 1. Everyone has strong opinions about support raising Your father, sister, spouse, uncle, pastor, best friend, worst friend, employer, work-out […]

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Over the years, I’ve heard these three mantras about fundraising. They sound logical, but faulty thinking lies below the surface. 1. “We’re comfortable at 80% aren’t we honey?” This statement is always made by husbands—never by wives! I met a missionary recently who said, “We simply minister to people and they eventually start giving. We don’t ask.” I replied, “So it is working well.” “Yes it is, God is taking care of us,” he said proudly. “You must be up to budget then.” “No, we are at 80%,” he said. I looked at him for a few seconds. His eyes […]

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Lately, I’m hearing comments like these from mission staff of several organizations: “Fundraising appointments make me feel uncomfortable—especially phoning.” “If only I didn’t have to raise so much money…I didn’t sign up for this!” “I minister 60 hours per week and now the pressure of fundraising on top of it—can’t be done!” “Why can’t I be centrally funded from our main office? Then I could focus on the ministry.” So I decided to ponder the issue of fundraising pressure over lunch at a fine McDonalds restaurant. I sat in a corner booth with my “healthy fish sandwich special” and asked […]

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In the winter of 1864, Lt. George E. Dixon was only 24 years old when he convinced Confederate General Pierre Beauregard to let him try one more time to use the newly-designed Hunley submarine to try to take out one of the huge Union warships camped out in the Charleston Harbor that was choking off much of the South’s essential  supplies. Tragically, there had been two previous failed launches where both crews of eight drowned while testing out the tiny iron sub. Even though the General was very skeptical about survival (much less success), he gave in to the persistent […]

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Straight from the annals of Diary of a Wimpy Support Raiser come these pitiful excuses: “Shadrach, the reason I am not able to raise a lot of support—but you are—is because… “You are gifted to do so” “You have an outgoing personality” “You have a lot of wealthy friends” “You have a ‘cutting edge’ ministry position” Bull hockey! Thanks for allowing me a moment of crudeness as I debunk those four mythical statements. For the record: 1. There is no spiritual gift of fundraising. Please get that out of your mind. It is a decision of the will. 2. Actually, […]

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1. I prayed too lightly WHY oh why do I not pray more?! When I pray…I see God work. When I don’t pray…it seems like His blessings dry up. So, why do I not pray more? I guess I am just a fool. To think I can plan my work and work my plan without bathing “the before, during, and after” in prayer is the height of arrogance and pride and shows precisely where my security is—in myself, instead of God.  If I choose to sacrifice time in the prayer closet because I am supposedly too busy, I am literally […]

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As a high school quarterback, I led the whole city of Dallas in two impressive stats: number of interceptions and number of times sacked! I was mainly to blame for our bust of a season because I would get so nervous, and my hands would shake so badly, that I developed a ritual of fumbling the first snap of every game! So terrified of messing up, I would literally sweat through my bed sheets the night before each game! The strange thing was after I got pummeled on that opening play, the game day jitters were behind me—and I was […]

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Definition of a myth: a widely held but mistaken belief 1. It takes everyone 12-24+ months—On one side of the road stand the naïve who unrealistically proclaim they can “knock out” their support in four weeks or less. There’s a much larger crowd, though, stuck in the other ditch, pessimistically “digging in for the long haul,” and predicting it will be a protracted and difficult journey. These folks heeded the horror stories of others who spent 2-3 years raising support. Don’t let those tapes play in your mind. Instead, trust God, work smarter and harder, and set a new “norm” […]

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Fears. We’ve all got ‘em. Some of us are willing to admit it; some of us aren’t. Author Larry Crabb in When Fear Seems Overwhelming writes that most of us live our lives based upon our fears. We move toward those things that are safe and comfortable and run from and avoid those things that are scary and intimidating. I don’t read his stuff though; it’s mainly for men in denial and that, of course, doesn’t apply to me! As believers, we have an enemy who uses fear to discourage and even destroy us if possible. The question isn’t IF […]

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One of my responsibilities is to help oversee the Perspectives on the World Christian Movement Study Program. This 15 week class in 210+ locations around the U.S. (plus 27 countries!) helps lay people, students, and yes, even Christian workers understand God’s heart for the nations and their most strategic role in completing the Great Commission. Over the years as I’ve interacted with a number of our 80,000 alumni, I’ve heard them say, “Perspectives ruined my life!” Normally, I would grieve and console them, but they offered their statement with a smile on their face and joy in their heart! When […]

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