Hard Work
From the Desk of Scott Nordstrom
Global Orphan Relief Musings – Hard Work
I had breakfast this morning with a good friend that I really enjoy getting together with and talking shop. For a time, he was involved with GO! and now works with another child-focused ministry. He’s the kind of friend I can ask anything, and though he’s no longer directly involved with GO!, he has a sincere desire to help me if he can. He’s got tons more experience than I do in ministry work and is a real resource. I am thankful for our friendship. I really enjoy our time together and almost always leave encouraged.
Anyway, I brought up the topic of hiring a development professional for our ministry and wanted to know his thoughts. For those who don’t know, this would be someone that we would have on staff to raise funding for the ministry. I wanted to know about the opportunities, the pitfalls, and the real question ‘did he know of anyone’! He explained that this is a tough process; you must find the right person, they must have contacts, they need to be focused on the right things, etc.
He went on to tell me about a friend of his that is now selling insurance after being a development professional for years, and that the friend said that asking people for money was the hardest work he’d ever done. This response really got me thinking about my own situation.
As many of you know I transitioned out of full-time employment in November of last year, and I have to say, it is the best decision I ever made. The process has not been without it’s challenges, mostly financial, but I am doing exactly what the Father wants me to do. I am talking about a real joy that only comes from being in the center of what our King is up to. You may also know, that I have been tasked to raise my own support. It is not a full-time salary or anything to that level, but something that will allow me to spend 30+ hours a week in the ministry and provides for a much more flexible schedule. In addition, I am also tasked with continuing the flow of funds for the children in the field. You can see the dilemma, but this is not what I am writing about today. My point here is that raising my own support has been more challenging than raising support for the children; not hard, but more challenging is all. And thanks to all that have stepped in to be a Cornerstone of this movement with support for my increased role in the ministry!
So, it would seem to some that I have been asking for money for our ministry since 2005 as we have deployed over $1.3 million to the field in the care for these children. I have never really looked at this this way. Typically, we present opportunities to others to serve orphaned children -primarily through their finances. I look at fundraising as my way of advocating for children who don’t have a voice. The scriptures are clear about this too, referring to caring for orphans as “Pure Religion” (James 1:27). When you boil it down, fundraising is ministry, and we can’t care for orphaned children without funding.
Asking you for money has never been hard work to me. Certainly, this process can be time consuming, requires some thought, and the method of communication can be critical, but none of it is hard. We have also been challenged by both our experience and our limited resources to follow-up with our partners effectively. Though we are getting better at this, we do appreciate the grace that you have extended to us over the years in this regard.
What we are asking for you to do is consider participating in Kingdom work. It is that simple. This is the kind of Kingdom work that is life-saving for some, and for others maybe the only exposure to the Gospel they will ever have. This is the kind of high-impact Pure Religion the scriptures refer to –caring for orphans.
Blessings, Scott.
P.S. To help support our efforts in growing this movement to serve orphans go to CAPACITY 1440 and be a Cornerstone today.
NEED: Our plan to serve 1,440 children can be achieved in 2018. As of January 2018, we serve 679 children in DR Congo, Kenya, South Sudan, and Zambia.
Here are following ways you can help:
1) Pray for Global Orphan Relief.
2) Volunteer -please reach out to us via phone, this website, or via email.
3) Keep up to date with our progress on our BLOG, FACEBOOK, and or YouTube.
4) Help us grow our resources for feeding the children in South Sudan at FEEDING PROGRAM. Since February 2016 we have provided for 169,000 meals in South Sudan.
5) “Teach One Child, & Save Thousands!” Help us keep the children attending School through our Scholarship program in DR Congo, Kenya and Zambia. The feeding program in South Sudan also keeps the children coming to school each day.
You may send support or other correspondence to Global Orphan Relief, 16352 Prairie Farm Cir, Parker, CO 80134 as well, or you may give also give electronically at https://globalorphanrelief.org/donate-support/.
Movement of FAITH | Voice of HOPE | Act of LOVE
Global Orphan Relief is a Christian relief agency serving Orphans in need and a recognized U.S. public charity, tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3). All donations are tax deductible to the extent of the law.