Those who’ve been to our church know that I’m not hung up on being called “Pastor” or “Pastor Marc.”
I usually say that I don’t call you by your gifting: “hi Intercessor Joe” or “Hey there Mercy Sue.” So why would I expect you to call me “Pastor Marc” any more than I’d expect to be called “Leadership Marc,” “Giving Marc,” or even “Tongues Marc.” (Don’t even get me started with “evangelist” or “prophet”!)
Reading Todd Bolen’s blog today, I remembered an interesting biblical passage that always caught my attention. I even got into an altercation with Father Fred in high school over this. (I was picking theological fights even back then. What a nerd-y thing to do!)
8 “But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. 9 And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. 10 Nor are you to be called ‘teacher,’ for you have one Teacher, the Messiah. 11 The greatest among you will be your servant. 12 For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.
Last Sunday, we had an brave soul give the sermon at the Vineyard Church of Waterville. I make it a point to not be in the pulpit every Sunday. It’s healthier for the group if others are being raised up.
Before Janice spoke, I gave everyone a primer on how to be a good listener. I even helped them loosen up their smiling muscles and the muscles that help the head move up and down in agreement. You can hear the warm up routine on the VCW podcast.
Today, I read a post by Seth Godin that reminds me of my warm up exercise. Go and read his post Always On (everybody markets). He points out that we’re always sending a message. “And more often than not, you get what you put in.”
I’m intrigued by how conditioned people can be to coffee that’s so old it needs to be injected with something called “coffee aroma.” It gets that way in church too. So when the real thing comes along, where the Spirit is a living and equal part of the Trinity we worship, it’s a culture shock.
Some of the folks in our church are so cool. They decided rather than asking “What did you get this Christmas?” they wanted to ask What did you give this Christmas?.
Isn’t that great?
So for the last few weeks they’ve been having Knit and Movie nights where they knit scarves, hats, and blankets for our local homeless shelter.
So they’ve decided to have themes for each week of Advent. So on:
In Secrets of Closing the Sale, Zig Ziglar says: Each year over 5 million quarter-inch drills are sold, yet it’s safe to say that nobody wants a quarter-inch drill. They want a quarter-inch hole. Isn’t that great? We do that in fundraising too. Donations are our “drill.” We spend lots of time talking about donations and ways [...]
I love The Boston Project. They do amazing work and have a long track record of effectiveness. They’re also one of the best I’ve ever seen at telling stories that reinforce their mission. Readers of my blog know that I’m a fan of good nonprofit storytelling! Today I woke up to find this fundraising email in [...]
Does your fundraising conversation with donors look like this: Or is it more like this? We tend to sell tools: tax-deductions, planned giving tools, stock transfers. We get all wrapped up in them. Fundraising tools should always be secondary. Donors are more interested in, and motivated by, the why. As you set your goals for 2009, why [...]
The Chronicle of Philanthropy highlighted an article in the Washington Post: Americans still giving, despite economic meltdown. Kudos to the Washington Post and the AP. It’s great to see more media outlets talking about fundraising in a recession using the actual data of how we behave, rather than whipping up fear and panic. Here’s a great [...]
FundRaising Success has a nice summary of a talk given by Blackbaud’s Samantha Cohen. As I Gen-Xer myself, I found this quote particularly compelling. “Tell them you want to end world hunger, and they’ll say, ‘No, you’re not,’” she said. “Tell them you want to put a piece of fresh fruit in every child’s lunch bag, and [...]
Last week, Lois Lindauer summed up some fundraising advice as: Keep Your Friends Close and Your Donors Closer: At a recent gathering of executive-level fundraisers in Boston, the following suggestions and thoughts for working during these uncertain times were elicited: Stay close to donors. Listen carefully to their interests. Place an emphasis on stewardship and reassure [...]
Debra Blum of The Chronicle of Philanthropy has a great summary of comments from Reynold Levy, president of the Lincoln Center, told participants of the Independent Sector annual conference. According to the Chronicle, Levy exhorted the attendees that: “Great fund raisers don’t whine about the economy. They believe in Noah’s principle: No more credit for predicting [...]
This week I’ve had two conversations with founders of nonprofits. I’ve had to tell both the unwelcome truth: you’re going to have to do the fundraising yourself. This was a bitter pill for both of them. You see, they’d created their nonprofit because of their passion. They saw a need and they filled it. And they [...]
Today the Chronicle of Philanthropy reported on a seemingly provocative comments from the head of the Wal-Mart Foundation, Margaret McKenna. According to the Boston Herald, she said some charities should fail. I whole heartedly agree. Some nonprofits should fail. Just like some businesses should fail. Aren’t you tired of receiving fundraising appeals with a message of “If [...]
