Now is the time more than ever to give.
That sounds really backwards, right? Think: If I am making less money, facing layoffs, worrying about investment value, watching my home plummet, going back to work after I’ve stayed home with my kids, etc. isn’t now the time to save, pinch and worry? Right? Not necessarily.
I would suggest that NOW more than ANY OTHER time is the TIME TO GIVE.
I’ve never done this before: said something so bold on my blog or asked people to give to a ministry or cause. But today I am.
Raising money, asking for money, especially in these roller-coaster days, is very difficult. But I am trying to gather support for Youth For Christ. YFC is an evangelistic, outreaching, need-meeting, Kingdom cause. Different from money raised to fight breast cancer or research Alzheimers (not that those are not excellent causes), money donated to YFC goes directly to campus and student ministry.
YFC’s vision (from their website):
“Our vision is pretty simple: To see every young person, in every people
group, on every campus, in every institution, in every neighborhood, in Southern
California have the opportunity to make an informed decision to become a
follower of Jesus Christ.”
Youth For Christ mentors student leaders and trains them to lead Bible clubs on their secular junior high and high school campuses. They provide emotional, spiritual and physical support to teen mothers. YFC leads student groups in the heart of urban and lower-income areas in the southland. Youth For Christ is helping to train the young men and women who will be leading our churches in the next 20 years.
I can trace my adult decision for Christ to a Youth For Christ even when I was 13 years old. At a large youth event sponsered by YFC, I led another boy to Christ. It was then that I chose as a (semi) adult, to be a Christ-follower.
My father has worked for Youth For Christ for over 40 years. And, like every other ministry and cause, YFC has been feeling the economy’s tightening more than most.
Next Saturday, the 26th, my family and I will participate in Southern California YFC’s annual fundraiser. We will be walking, jogging, running or sprinting (Hope will be the only one sprinting) for one hour to raise money.
So I am asking you to give. I’m asking you, even though I may seem stupid to even pose the request right now, to donate to a ministry that is hurting financially, but is dedicated to seeing the cause of Christ worked out here in our cities, in our suburbs and in our schools.
If you choose to donate, if you can partner with this cause, please email me at sarah (at) markleytech (dot) com. Include your first and last names, your mailing address and the amount you can pledge. YFC will send you an envelope to return in a few weeks.
And, if you decide not to donate to YFC, please give to someone else. Give to your church. Give to your neighbor. Give to the man that always asks for money on the corner. Give from your abundance, even if you don’t feel that you have “too much”. I assure you, you have more than most.
So maybe, what I am really asking, is to give from your need. Because I think that now, more than any other time, is the time to give in order that we can see God’s people do the work they were called to do.
(If you have any questions, please leave them in the comments.)
You did good…
One comment?? Is anyone out there today?
Come on Church! Lets step up here and do what we are called to do.
Lets hear about how you are giving back. It doesn’t need to be to YFC but it needs to be somewhere! We as the American church have been good with giving out of our EXCESS over the last 5 years but now is the time we need to step up and give out of our lack of excess.
Speak up!
“give from your need” I like that. I enjoy random, untraceable acts of generosity. But of course the local church is always a good place to start. Like Cross Timbers Church in Texas. (This is a shameless plug becaue my husband is a pastor there. harharhar) I totally agree Sarah, now is THE time to give. Love ya.
Good word, Sarah. One of the very best lessons my parents taught me, for as long as I can remember, is that giving is part of living. You just do it. God will always provide enough for you. Give without worry. I know your family has done that forever. Great post and I pray that YFC receives much this year!
I totally agree Sarah. Now is the time to give, when we feel like we can’t give.
you are brave, my friend, and i admire you for it! calling people to do what they should be doing anyways can be a scary thing to do.
my mom just sent out a letter with a very similar message… that, yes, now is “logically” the worst time to be giving, but that the need for giving is as present as it ever was, if not more. she was asking in the context of the lupus walk, but i think the same idea applies. so there ya go, proof that two of my favorite people in the world are both very smart.
Good stuff.
Sorry I haven’t commented in awhile. Glad I stopped by. A good friend works for YFC. And my cousin’s husband. A great organization.
I think generosity is one of the most Christlike attributes. It enlarges all the others… generous grace. Generous love. Generous holiness… there’s a cool one.
Have a great day.
sarah,
you are one of Jesus’ most excellent gifts to me…
love,
dad
I loved this post Sarah. Lance and I just recently gave our tithing testimony in church. In front of people. At both services. I almost fainted. I dreaded every moment. We have been humbled and blessed by the stories we have heard.
I am a giver by nature, my parents were givers, and I pray my children are givers. I hope we are modeling to them how important it is to give, not just tithing but by serving others and giving to those in need. I love that feeling of giving to someone or something and knowing how it will bless them. God will bless our faithfulness in giving and helping others.
i love this post. although we all can always work on every aspect of our life more, my husband and i have been so blessed to have learned the joy of sacrificial giving. thanks for the reminder and the call.