Author: C. Anderson

What Not to Do at Christmas

What Not to Do at Christmas

“Christmas in America is so strange!” I could hear the reverse culture shock in his voice. He hadn’t celebrated this major holiday in his home country in fifteen years. The materialism of an American Christmas distressed him. Later, a friend from Africa said, “I don’t 

Angelic Visitation and the Favor of God

Angelic Visitation and the Favor of God

Have you ever seen an angel? We don’t talk about these things in the church very often. I wonder why? Looking through the gospels and Acts, angelic activity and interaction seemed part of Jesus’ and the disciple’s experience. In the book of Revelation, there is 

8 Important Do’s and Don’ts in Fundraising

8 Important Do’s and Don’ts in Fundraising

We’ve tried but no one responds,” they said to me. I saw his sad face and heard the disappointment in his voice. My heart went out to him. His ministry was important. It was worth investing in. Unfortunately, there were several key things necessary in fundraising that he had failed to do. He was also making some classic mistakes.
Like everything in life, we want missions fundraising to be easier. In some ways, it used to be. Raising ministry partners requires effort and time. It is hard work. There are a few key things you can do that will help. There are also some things you should try to avoid.

8 Fundraising Do’s and Don’ts

Let’s list these in a do and don’t format. The contrast should make it clear.

1. BE COMPETENT

Don’t send random, poorly written newsletters.
Spelling and grammar mistakes are a turn off to many people and don’t reflect who you are very well. You don’t need to be professional or super fancy, you do need to look like you are a capable person. Use a tool like Grammarly to help you.
Do have someone proofread your letters, videos or PowerPoints before you send them out.
 
You may be in a hurry, but take time to do a good job in this. The quality of your communication speaks to potential partners of the quality of your ministry.

2. BE CLEAR

 
Don’task” by mentioning at the bottom of your letter, “Please pray for our finances.”
This is not clear. If you are raising support, ask them to consider doing that. Let them know how to give. Fuzzy communication of needs does not get good results.
 
Do share your vision, and then clearly ask them to think about joining your ministry partner team.
Be specific, clear, and straight-forward without being pushy.

3. BE PERSONAL

 
Don’t be an annoying salesperson.
Avoid looking like one. People can tell when you have sent them something that looks like you sent it to a hundred people.
Personalize your messages and emails as much as possible. Better yet, make a phone call that is specific to them. Make personal appointments with potential partners and share “in person” as a follow up to your email or message. In these days that may mean a video call.
 
Do be relational.
Show interest in their lives and work as well. Invest in the relationship, not only to get their money. Invest in it because you sincerely care about them. Share about your life and family, as well as your vision.

4. BE CONSISTENT

 
Don’t only communicate when you are in desperate need.
Many people only think about sending out letters or communications when they run out of money. Or when their spouse is frustrated about their lack of finances. Don’t be random in how and when you communicate.
Do be consistent in your communications with prayer partners and potential donors.
Many people do not open emails. PDFs attached are even worse. When you send out a letter, send a follow-up message, or give a call to see if people received it. Schedule time in your life and calendar to regularly communicate with prayer and ministry partners. I recommend you send them something each month and make a phone call every three months.

5. BE RESPONSIBLE

 
Don’t expect your leader, mentors or friends to do your job for you.
We tend to look at others with more connections or experience in fundraising and wish they would help us.
 
Do take responsibility for your own fundraising efforts.
God will certainly help you. From your side, be willing to put in a consistent effort. Be faithful in communications and sharing your vision with others. Your Father knows your needs and will work as you do this.

Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth.

Proverbs 10:4 NIV.

6. BE DILIGENT

Don’t only look to rich or foreign friends for support.
They may help, but many of the best ministry partners are your closest friends and relatives who don’t have much money. Never think that someone is too poor to invest in God’s Kingdom. Even a “widow’s mite” has great value in God’s sight.
 
Do be willing to work hard in raising ministry partners.
Set aside a few hours a week for this, or if you need to raise a larger amount, make it your full-time job for a few months. Making phone calls, having appointments, and preparing a vision speech takes time.

7. BELIEVE IN MIRACLES

 
Don’t expect a miracle if you haven’t been faithful in doing your part to raise up partners.
God rewards those who are diligent and do their part.
 
Do believe God will miraculously supply your needs.
He will bring you divine appointments with people who want to give to His Kingdom work. Are your eyes open for this? Are you listening to His Spirit’s direction about who to share with?

8. PRAY MUCH

 
Don’t rely only on your abilities to communicate or present your ministry.
Are you leaning on your own skills or leaning into God for the release of your budget?
 
Do show you reliance on God by praying often about this area of your life.
God desires to bless you. When you pray for this, you pray according to His will. Pray for the people on your potential donor list. Pray and bless them whether they give or not! Pray before each phone appointment where you share about your vision. Pray afterwards as well.
In 2021 YWAM FM ONLINE will be launching a BRAND NEW online training related to ministry partner development. Click here to be notified when this becomes available.
It is not God’s plan for you to live in poverty or great lack continually. We all go through seasons when budgets are tight. Covid-19 and the economic impact of this does not help.
 
If you are facing a financial crisis, ask God to show you what to do. He loves you. Allow Him to gently correct or mature you in this season. Seek Him for wisdom in what to do to apply what has been shared above. Choose one or two things from the list above to work on changing this coming month.
 
Which of these 8 important keys will you begin working on this week?
 
 
Let me know in the comments below or join the Missionary Life Facebook group and comment there.
Healthy Singleness

Healthy Singleness

“I want to get married,” she said. Her eyes were sad. In her culture, unless she was a wife and mother, she was a non-person. Many women in Asia don’t even use their names. They are “John’s mother” or “Raju’s mother.” Their own name has 

Book Review: Across the Street and Around the World

Book Review: Across the Street and Around the World

For years we served in missions before anyone from my husband’s family visited us. We longed for them to come to Nepal and India. Finally, they did. How fun it was to have them meet those we’d discipled and invested in! It’s a joy to 

Facing Visa Issues Once Again

Facing Visa Issues Once Again

Was this the writing on the wall? God’s final no? Were we too stubborn and deaf to hear what He was saying? I tried to steady myself as I reread the email in my inbox. “Your application for a residence permit has been denied. You are advised to leave the country before your current permit expires.”

That gave us only ten days, even though our visas were still valid!
Everything within me froze. I wanted to scream.

This was not the first time we were told to leave our host country because of visa problems. This was the fifth or sixth time. I could not even remember how many!

How were we ever going to pack our house in a week and find tickets for the four of us? Was this a short visa run, or were we saying goodbye to fifteen years of relationships and the only home our children knew?!

What do we say to our landlord? Do we keep the house or not? What about our kids’ school? The second semester of their school year had only just begun. The biggest question in my mind was, why was this happening again? Had we been blacklisted this time?

These and so many other questions raced through my mind as I tried to make sense of what was happening.

We Never Could Have Imagined

Fifteen years ago when the adventures in our host country began, I would never have imagined that visa issues would be a constant thorn in the flesh. I thought that finances would be our number one battle on the field. Boy was I in for a surprise!

Our nationality itself raised suspicion for immigration officers. Africans, as we came to know through years of living in Asia, were mainly associated with scams or drug dealing. Hence, there was always extra scrutiny by officials whenever our passports popped up.

The humiliation of being called aside many times as others stared at us, in the immigration line, is something that we came to expect and prepare for. As we talked with colleagues, we noticed that every country had different regulations for visas. These were affected by the bilateral agreements in place with our host country. Yet God had called us all from many nations to this one country to serve and honor Him amongst the unreached.

In the midst of this sudden storm, we felt despair. We also had many encouraging calls from friends all over the world. God reminded us of the words and pictures that brought us to this beautiful nation.

Praying as a Family

After spending time together as a family in prayer, we all ( including our young children), sensed that God was not saying this was the end. He took us back to Psalm 2:8. God says “Ask me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession​.​”

Instead of giving up, He was urging us to hold on to our inheritance. His small, still, peaceful voice simply said “I will make a way. I will bring you back to this place.”

A few years ago, in a similar situation, my husband had to leave alone on a visa run. God had spoken to him through one of Paul’s letters. Visa issues would always be a thorn in the flesh, but God would hold our hand through it. Those words made sense to us and encouraged us to hold on to His promises and not give up. Yes, there were many uncertainties and many questions to answer at this point, but we had the peace of God and His call to walk by faith.

Packing, Tickets, and Visa Applications

We did manage to pack house in a week, buy tickets to get home, and tell our landlord we would be back in six weeks. We did this without knowing for sure how it would turn out.

By God’s grace, we made it to our home country and submitted our visa applications within three weeks. At the consulate, they questioned why we were applying for new visas when we still had valid ones. We told them exactly what home affairs in our host country had said.

God was gracious to us, the embassy officials were kind and very helpful despite the fishy circumstances surrounding our visas. After a week we heard from them. We had been granted new visas!

Re-entry Ahead

Half the job was done. The other hurdle was reentering the country. I will never forget that flight back to Asia six weeks later. It felt like the longest journey ever!

A few days earlier, the Lord had impressed a scripture on our hearts. It was an instruction He gave to Jeremiah when he was facing immense opposition. “​But I will rescue you on that day, declares the Lord; you will not be given into the hands of those you fear​,​” Jeremiah 39:17.

Waiting for our turn and as they looked at our passports in immigration, I held onto that scripture for dear life. I was mind blown when the immigration flipped through our passports, stamped them, and let us pass without a single question asked! Once again God showed us His great faithfulness and grace.

Make the Most of Every Moment

After such an experience it’s easy to quickly move on without taking time to learn the lessons God was trying to teach us. After this ordeal, especially this recent experience, I have learned to make the most of every moment I am given to spend in my host country. I’m looking for opportunities to share God’s love more in my community.

Being in any country to serve Him is a privilege not a right.

Secondly, that last-minute packing taught me to keep and collect only the things that matter. Live light with less attachment to acquired material possessions.

This sounds like a cliche but, over the years we had accumulated lots of things we really didn’t need. In a crisis like this you want as little garbage to deal with. It puts pressure on remaining teammates if they have to be the ones to sort through your junk when you leave.

Where Home Truly Is

Hebrews 11 and Abraham’s nomadic life came to have new meaning to me. I contemplated where home really is. It’s neither my host nor my home country, it’s where God is and where He is leading us to go.

“​By faith, he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. ​For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”

Hebrews 11: 9-10 NIV.

Talking constantly as a family, praying together, and having other people to bounce ideas with, helped us remain sane. It kept us from crumbling under the pressure and darkness of the unknown.

Count the Cost of Your Visa Platform

As we evaluated and looked at the reason we had been sent back home, we discovered that it had a lot to do with compliance with visa regulations. We were on business visas and with new government requirements businesses needed to actually do business and make a profit. Through this experience, we learned that we need to work hard to make our role in our host country viable in order to be able to stay. We want to serve the people God has called us to serve in a way that honors His name.

Before you consider any visa entry strategy, carefully count the cost you will have to pay. Examine the time commitments and what you are expected to do under that visa. Remember visa issuance will differ from nation to nation.

A huge lesson learned is that none of us are indispensable. We need to train and empower others. This is especially true of those not bound by visas. They need to take their place in claiming a God-given inheritance in this wonderful nation.

God is Not Limited by Nationality

I have learned that God is not limited by our nationalities. He makes a way where there seems no way.

Are you called to a certain nation but it seems impossible to get there because of visas? Trust God to direct you and show you exactly what to do. Thorough research on visa entry strategies in liaison with others who have gone before can avoid costly mistakes.

We are still here.…..and for the record, we were not blacklisted!

Your greatest challenge may or may not be related to a visa. God is with you in the difficulties and will make a way for you. What is your biggest visa or other challenge today? We’d love to hear about it in the comments below or on the Missionary Life Facebook group.

*The above blog was written by an African missionary working in Asia. She wishes to remain anonymous.

4 Reasons Why Facebook Is a Terrible Place to Do Fundraising

4 Reasons Why Facebook Is a Terrible Place to Do Fundraising

Finances are often tight for missionaries. With COVID-19 taking its toll on the global economy, it is likely our financial challenges will grow. The struggle is often more acute for national missionaries, those working in their own countries. There can be a struggle to keep 

Member Care: Seven S’s for COVID-19

Member Care: Seven S’s for COVID-19

The 7s of Member Care is a tool designed to assist groups to understand how to do member care during this difficult time. Due to the rapid changes within the pandemic of COVID-19, here are suggestions that may be of help to you and your 

Coronavirus: Fear or Faith?

Coronavirus: Fear or Faith?

One of the new believers I’ve been discipling was confused. “I heard that Christians in South Korea are not afraid of the coronavirus. But they are not being wise, safe, or taking precautions. They are endangering others. My relatives who heard this are questioning whether or not Christianity is good. Are those people real Christians?” she asked. What is the appropriate response to a threat like the Coronavirus?

The impact of this virus is broad. It is affecting millions across the globe, not only missionaries. For those of us serving the Lord on foreign soil, it is definitely a cause for concern, in more ways than one. Meetings and gatherings have been postponed or canceled. Missionary kids’ schools are closing, or parents are asked to show their passports before entering the school grounds.

How do we navigate the path between fear and faith?

Fear is not from God. Wisdom is. The fear of the Lord, not the coronavirus, is the beginning of wisdom. We must actively resist fear and panic. At the same time, we compassionately serve and educate those around us about how to stay healthy. This is our civic (and missionary) responsibility.

Gloves, Masks and Hand Sanitizer

I needed to travel through a country that had reported many cases of the virus. Was it safe? My friends assured me of their prayers for safety. I bought masks, gloves, and hand sanitizer.

Travel is stressful anyhow. Luggage can get lost, flights delayed. This particular journey had already been tough. We’d had to reschedule our flights several times due to the airlines canceling flights we’d been on. The day before we left to travel, we were checking every hour or so. Would the flights go? Would we be quarantined when we reached our destination?

Anxiety threatened my heart. “God is with us. He has given us the ‘green light’ to go. He will be with us.” I told myself.

This didn’t mean there was no risk. I knew from past experience, that being a missionary, or Jesus follower, doesn’t mean you never get sick! I’d suffered from hepatitis, malaria and many other maladies on the mission field.

I determined fear would not control my life. God would. As long as I listened to His still small voice, I was in the safest place possible.

“It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in humans.”

Ps. 118:8 NIV.

5 Things to Remember as We Face the Coronavirus Outbreak

1. Fear can be worse than sickness.

Resist it. It doesn’t come from God. Set a guard over your heart. Fight the urge to panic and reach out to God for the peace that passes all understanding. He promises to give that to us (Phil. 4:7).

2. Preparedness and panic are different.

There is a difference between being prepared and letting your imagination run wild. Take precautions. Go ahead. Purchase a few needed supplies. That is different than buying up the store’s whole supply of toilet paper, or cold medicine, as some are doing! When your adrenaline starts to race, pause and take a deep breath. Center yourself on God’s promises.

Avoid talking about the virus more than you talk about the goodness of God! If you find this dominating your conversations, you’ve moved from preparing to anxiety. Realign yourself and get back into the grateful zone.

3. Educate yourself, but limit media intake.

Limit conversation with others who focus on the coronavirus, and don’t obsess by watching the news continually. Limit Facebook and other social media intake so it doesn’t begin to influence you too much. Do some simple research, then stop. Be careful that you are not a part of spreading rumors or panic by sharing sensational news items.

4. Stay focused on what God has called you to do.

The coronavirus can be a huge distraction away from what God wants to do through your life. Don’t let it be. Continue to do what God has called you to do and do it with all your heart. There may be some adjustments needed for awhile related to travel and meetings. Don’t spend your whole day scrolling your phone, reading all the latest articles, or watching the news constantly. That would be a major distraction from God’s plans for you!

5. Look for ways to use the outbreak for the advance of the gospel.

This is a time for our light to shine brightly as Jesus followers. When the whole world is in a panic, we can be at peace. It is a great time for the world to see how radically different we are. Not crazy, not unwise, but peaceable and at rest in the midst of the crisis around us. We can serve, comfort, and help others.

It is also a great way to start spiritual conversations with people. As you share the peace within you, people will be drawn to Jesus. Pray for those who are fearful and minister the comfort of Christ. Do you know someone who is really worried about the virus? How could you minister to them at this time? Ask God to use you as an ambassador of His peace.

God promises to take what the enemy would use for evil and turn it for good. Let’s determine to be part of making that a reality!

Financial Miracle in a Locked Drawer

Financial Miracle in a Locked Drawer

Indigenous missionaries and national colleagues seem to believe God for miracles easily. I’ve watched them cast out demons and heal the sick. It doesn’t seem as difficult for them to believe God for these things, as for some of my Western missionary friends. When it