ONS - Day Three

Back at Michelangelo's Coffee Shop here in downtown Madison taking some much needed and appreciated introverted time in the midst of a full day of fundraising training. The first few days have mostly been made up of informational sessions regarding the fundraising process. Though I have been through a lot of it before, it is amazing how helpful a thorough reminder can be every once in a while. Fundraising is one of those great disciplines that can never be truly mastered or its methods exhausted. It is in a constant state of evolution as communicational trends continue to become increasingly digitalized (i.e. Facebook, Twitter). I have been inspired by incredible stories from other staff workers who have shared about their experiences of God's faithfulness to provide and the work He is doing both in their own lives and in the lives of their donors. It is so good to hear again and again that fundraising is first and foremost a form of ministry. It is not a necessary evil but an opportunity for blessing. It is a privilege to be able to invite someone into sharing the vision that God has given us for SLU and our students there. I am blessed with the chance to get up everyday and speak truth into people's lives about the needs of a college campus and invite them to live out the Gospel through investing in the work of Kingdom-building at SLU. In our financial turmoil, investing in the Kingdom is the one investment that can never fail or run dry. It is a humbling honor to be entrusted with these gifts and an even greater honor to be entrusted with the Truth and sent to deliver it to the courts of Ninevah or the streets of Babylon or the student center of Saint Louis University. This honor is bestowed upon all of God's children and, whether we tread the vocational mission field or support those who do (or both), we walk in the shadows of the saints and martyrs of old. We are the hands and feet of Christ in the 21st Century. He would have it no other way.