A Ukrainian friend asked me tonight about how I raise support and how I can live here and do what I do. I gave her the short answer...that friends back home give me monthly financial and prayer support. I told her that my list includes family and of course, friends...and even kids that grew up in the youth ministries I served. So tonight I came home and did a little math and here's what I found:
In this chart you can see that 77% of my support is monthly. Monthly giving is the life-blood of a missionary. To be fair, some of my "one time" supporters give large amounts which is pro-rated and distributed on a monthly basis. One-time support accounts for 9% of my supporters and then 14% of my supporters give occasionally- ie, not every month but throughout the year. Again, some of that is pro-rated and distributed monthly. The frequency of the gift doesn't reflect the amount...I didn't check to see how much of my budget I receive monthly or occasionally etc. I will say this: My biggest supporter so far this year is a "One-Time" supporter. Also, the amount of money that comes in every month has no bearing on my "salary"- it is determined at the end of each year and will remain constant regardless of monthly intake (unless of course it drops to a level that won't support my salary...which hasn't happened so far). It's a lot cheaper to live here than in the States but in case you're wondering...I take home about 1/4- 1/3 of what a Mississippi School Teacher takes home...and I pay US Health Insurance rates!
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This is where it gets really fun! The largest group of supporters this year (23%) are either kids that grew up in one of the youth ministries I served or the parents of kids I ministered with.
The next group is old and current church friends...but mostly friends that were church members in either Aberdeen or Gulfport, MS (20%).
Family accounts for 18% but that includes money that is given every month in the name of ALL of my great nieces and nephews. But let's just say my immediate family- parents, brother and sisters, and nieces and nephews all help me serve in Ukraine...and they take care of a lot of "business" for me back home!
11% of my Support Team is former World Racers- people I served with back in 2007. That's pretty huge!
10% is from friends of friends mostly or people that I've really only recently met- maybe someone that heard me speak in a church or something.
9% is former and current ministry friends- mostly my old youth minister buddies.
9% is friends I went to college with at Mississippi State.
And I currently have 1 church back in MS that sends monthly support.
I probably should have saved this post for later in the month...for Thanksgiving...because I'm definitely grateful to them and to God for these friends and family. I pray often that their trust in me is well-spent.
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The next group is old and current church friends...but mostly friends that were church members in either Aberdeen or Gulfport, MS (20%).
Family accounts for 18% but that includes money that is given every month in the name of ALL of my great nieces and nephews. But let's just say my immediate family- parents, brother and sisters, and nieces and nephews all help me serve in Ukraine...and they take care of a lot of "business" for me back home!
11% of my Support Team is former World Racers- people I served with back in 2007. That's pretty huge!
10% is from friends of friends mostly or people that I've really only recently met- maybe someone that heard me speak in a church or something.
9% is former and current ministry friends- mostly my old youth minister buddies.
9% is friends I went to college with at Mississippi State.
And I currently have 1 church back in MS that sends monthly support.
I probably should have saved this post for later in the month...for Thanksgiving...because I'm definitely grateful to them and to God for these friends and family. I pray often that their trust in me is well-spent.
2 comments:
Great post, Clinton! A good reminder for all of us missionaries to consider and pray for the individuals who make it possible for us to serve. It can become so easy to get caught up in what we're doing and forget that we're being carried on the shoulders of our faithful friends, who - by God's grace - trust us with their resources.
Love you, little brother... and I will pray for all your supporters... past... current... and future...
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