I Seek to Raise 100% of My Budget—Nothing Less
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A mission-worker told me his mission was raising the salaries of their staff by $500 per month.
“Good!” I said.
But my discouraged friend replied, “It might as well be a million, I’ll never raise it anyway.”
I’m sad to say that most mission-workers do not believe they can raise 100% of their budget. Most hit a glass ceiling around 60% or 80%. They can “get by.” After all, aren’t we supposed to be poor, like Jesus?
“It might as well be a million,I’ll never raise it anyway.”
That was me early on. I was content to raise a little funding here and there, struggling at 60% and plateauing at 85%. Somehow, Alma and I “got by,” but money was always tight, and we postponed saving. “Someday” we will save!
Though I would have denied it, I had a scarcity mentality. It seemed more spiritual to eke along paycheck to paycheck.
Wake-up Call: When I started teaching Biblical Funding Seminars, I urged gospel-workers to work on funding till they reached 100% of budget. But my supervisor confronted me. He said, “You exhort others to work toward 100%, but you’ve stopped at 85%!”
Ouch! His challenge woke me up. Immediately I put into practice what I was teaching and soon we were over 100%.
What I Learned: I didn’t realize the financial pressure we were under. 85% seemed “normal.”
But at 100% we began to save. Household financial stress decreased. Our giving increased. I wasn’t so tight with family fun. At the state fair I did not cheap-out on carnival rides as per usual—our kids wondered, “What happened to Dad!”
Was Jesus poor? No. He was an itinerant preacher, not an itinerant beggar. Many friends supported Him (Luke 8:1-3). The Twelve had a money box (John 12:6).
As mission-workers, is our goal to become wealthy? No, let’s simply raise enough to maximize the Calling God has given us. He is able.
