Sojourner #012: Fundraising For International Missions
"Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth! Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing!" - Psalm 100:1–2 (ESV)
The cost of funding and sustaining short / long term missions efforts only rises as time goes on. Funding a mission team's operations and providing long term missionaries and their organizations with the resources they need to operate in the various capacities in which they do is an extremely difficult task. The logistical nightmare of getting missionaries on the field, and continuing the work after they are gone is one that often goes unaddressed. Many people grow tired of being asked to give more and more and more, especially if they measure the success of missions efforts by any worldly metrics of success.
Thankfully, there are those within the local church who have made it their ambition to support the taking of the Gospel to the nations, supporting those who are on the front lines of this great work. This missionary endeavor is one that is an essential ministry of the church, and this article addresses several practical ways in which churches may support missions.
Giving and the Local Church
As previously stated, sustaining missions efforts requires funding. The chief source of this funding should be the local church. This is because it is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth (1 Tim. 3:15). The local church shines light in the darkness of a world without Christ, and sends workers into the harvest to declare the Word of God to all people.
Within the local church, the pastor / elders preach a global Gospel that calls its members to take action, whether that be by supporting missions or sending missionaries, and encourages members to give financially, as they are able, so that the good news of Jesus Christ might be carried to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). Giving is one of the essential ministries in the church (2 Cor. 9:7). God's gracious generosity is celebrated when His people contribute cheerfully as representatives of Christ's growing kingdom on this earth.
One of the primary means by which the church gives is through a designated missions fund or special offering, so that the money given might go directly to missions efforts. This allows local congregations to respond in joyful obedience to what the Bible says about financial giving in the local church, reflecting the nature of how Christ has fulfilled the law and set them free to "give freely" (Gal. 5:1). Furthermore, it allows the local church's elders to support particular missions organizations that are involved in taking the Gospel to the ends of the earth.
Many Southern Baptist churches in Alabama have the opportunity to give through the Alabama Baptist Cooperative Program, the state convention's unified plan of giving where Southern Baptist churches give a percentage of their undesignated receipts in support of the missions and ministries of both the Alabama Baptist State Convention (SBOM) and the Southern Baptist Convention (IMB, NAMB) (ALCP).
This year, the Cooperative Program celebrates 100 years of God's faithfulness to supply the funds needed to support missions efforts both within the state and to the ends of the earth. When Alabama Baptists give generously with the expectation that God will provide (Mal. 3:8-10), through the Cooperative Program, that giving is at work 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, throughout the entire year (ALCP).
Fundraisers are another way that the local church can raise money for missions efforts. When conducted within the context of the local church, fundraisers not only support missions efforts, they also allow the church body to meet their obligations to one another as they share in joyful obedience to the Word of God (2 Cor. 9:11-15). They give churches the opportunity to love and serve one another in such a way that brings glory to God, builds one another up, and furthers missions efforts in the process.
In Arkansas, Family Christian Fellowship conducts fundraisers of various kinds throughout the year in support of the Hurley Mission Team. Sojourner Magazine reached out to Sheila Hurley for information about the different fundraisers they conduct throughout the year and how those fundraisers allow them to take the Gospel to the nations. This is what she had to say:
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| Members of the Hurley Mission Team while in Honduras last year |
A Conversation With Sheila Hurley about Fundraising for Short-Term Missions
Q. Sheila, how many people are on the Hurley Mission Team and what exactly does the team do when they deploy in support of the Honduras Baptist Dental Mission?
A. We have twenty-eight on our team this year. Family Christian Fellowship is my church with twelve members going and Gospel Mission Church is sending seven with us. The others are scattered about with one or two each. Our team has built two churches and I understand we are the only team to do that. We’ve only done medical once so far. Every year our mission is a little different but we always do VBS for the kids and go door to door.
Q. Could you talk a little bit about the various ways your church fundraises throughout the year for the Honduras Mission Fund?
A. Gosh, it seems like we are always fundraising. All year long. We’ve had bake sales, a charity golf tournament for the church we built this past March, selling t-shirts, donation only meals after church service, pancakes with the grinch, fish fry with worship music, selling homemade tamales, sending out sponsorship letters, selling chances at a raffle basket, we put a donation jar on the counter of my cafe, and I think next year we are gonna do mini photo sessions as a friend of mine is offering her services.
Q. What kind of impact do you see this type of giving have on the field over time?
A. This year we’ve raised $1475 from people who are sponsoring audio bibles for those homes we visit that have people who can’t read. I’m really excited about that. Also, my brother’s church is gifting $1800 for us to buy worship equipment for the church we built in March in honor of my late husband Joe. We are excited about getting that set up for them and my dad bought new chairs for the church as well.
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| Scotty Dunar (Third from Right) served alongside several mission teams last year in Honduras |
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| Fundraisers build community within the local church and allow members to love one another |
Giving to Advance the Kingdom of God
In many ways, your giving is a direct representation of Christ's Kingdom here on earth. Accordingly, your giving can, and should, advance the taking of the Gospel to the nations - especially when you give within the context of the local church. There are many ways you can do this, but here are several specific ways you can give to support ongoing missions efforts:
- If you are a member of a SBC church in Alabama, ask your pastor / elders about the Alabama Baptist Cooperative Program and about how your church can support missions through the Cooperative Program.
- If you would like to give to support the Hurley Mission Team, send us an email at sojournermagazine@gmail.com and we will direct you accordingly.
- If your church has a mission fund, consider making a special donation to that fund, and speak to your pastor / elders about how your giving is advancing the Gospel.
- If you are interested in directly supporting the work of the Honduras Baptist Dental Mission, visit their website here.
About the Honduras Baptist Dental Mission:
The Honduras Baptist Dental Mission is a non-profit 501(c)(3) mission organization that "aims to spread the Gospel to the people of Honduras by filling both physical and spiritual needs, fulfilling God's instruction in James 2:15-17, and living the Great Commission from Mark 16:15" (HBDM).
Throughout the year, the Honduras Baptist Dental Mission hosts numerous short-term mission teams who support the long-term / indigenous missionaries who operate in the region full-time. The impact that the Mission has on the people of Honduras is significant, shining the light of Christ in the midst of great darkness. Furthermore, the impact that following Christ in obedience to His call to carry the banner of Zion to the nations has on those who go is tremendous.
When asked about the affect that serving in Honduras has had on her own life, Josarah Slover, who has been serving with the Honduras Baptist Dental Mission for many years, said, "It is such a blessing to be able to spread the Word of God to these people and foster these relationships with them. Having the opportunity to help water the seed that is planted is life changing and a beautiful process I’m grateful to be apart of."
The Honduras Baptist Dental Mission believes that medicine is the magnet that draws people to Christ (HBDM), and the Hurley Mission Team shares in their belief that while the people they serve are in great need of physical healing, their greatest need is that they know Christ; that they receive a greater healing from a greater disease: sin. Praise God that this salvation has come through His Son, Jesus Christ the Righteous.
Editor's Note: Honoring the Life of Scotty Dunar
Scotty Dunar, a short-term missionary team member with the Honduras Baptist Dental Mission, passed into glory on January 26, 2025. Scotty was my friend, and I will miss him terribly. He was a great encouragement to me last year while in Honduras, and I am thankful that the Lord saw fit to bring us together for the time that he did.
Last year, Scotty began serving with the Mission, truly embodying the belief we hold here at Sojourner that the Gospel, the love of God, must be taken to every tribe, nation, and tongue.
We are thankful for the work that the Hurley Mission Team is doing in support of the Honduras Baptist Dental Mission, and we are profoundly thankful for the sincere joy and earnest conviction with which Scotty conducted himself, both at home and abroad.
In the midst of great grief, we rejoice all the more in knowing that because of what Christ Jesus has done for us, Scotty is now in the presence of His Lord and Savior - beholding the face of God in light and glory.
His family has requested that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Honduras Mission Fund through Family Christian Fellowship in Hazen, Arkansas to honor Scotty’s dedication to spreading the love of Christ.
Please, join us in celebrating the redeeming grace of God that saved Scotty from sin and death, and join us in celebrating the life of our dear brother-in-Christ - may the work he accomplished here below have an impact that would echo for eternity.
Giving Address:
Thank you,
The Sojourner Team
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