Grounded, Growing, and Giving
Is your church looking for a fundraiser for a particular ministry, program, or just a way for the congregation to grow together in a common vision for God’s Kingdom?
Church today is more than coming together once or twice a week to hear a word from the pulpit and embrace spirit-inspired worship music. This is important no doubt, but Church was never intended to be number 1 or 2 on your Sunday to-do list.
It’s more than that. It’s a social hub—a gathering place—a welcoming environment where people live and grow together as their faith is strengthened in the Lord…
It is the place where united Believers are in community with each other. It’s not an item on a checklist; it is an assignment and joy in your life.
As a result, church congregations have become homes for day-care centers, senior living programs, schools, youth groups, women’s ministries, and so much more!
The Church is God’s Instrument to the World
Witnessing your church being used by God as an instrument of light to those around you—meeting the needs in the community—is what it’s all about. When the Church was started, this was what it was intended to be…
- A Place of Fellowship and Prayer
“And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.”—Acts 2:42
- An Entity That Has One Vision but Many Parts
“For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. For in fact the body is not one member but many.”—1 Corinthians 12:12-14
- The People Who Care for Those in Need
“Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.”—James 1:27
If your church has grown into many parts (programs, services, missions) of one body, you can be sure the Lord is at work within your walls!
But with Growth Comes Growing Pains
You’re rejoicing as you see the Lord using your flock to do His will, but you also wonder how He will provide.
You know His promise… “And my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”—Philippians 4:19
Enter Church Fundraising
You know it’s needed—that it can work—but there can be an uneasiness surrounding Church fundraising. It can be a sticky situation asking for money to fund necessary and faith-growing programs. You want to have people feel connected to who they are giving to, as well as what they are giving.
You don’t want to engage in fundraising that people don’t find joy in either doing or buying. We’ve all tried them…
- Bake sales
- Item sales such as books, candles, and flowers
- Walkathons
- Yard sales
- Church carnivals
None of these are terrible ideas; however, there are three problems surrounding these forms of fundraising:
Problem #1 | One and Done
These are events that are built up to one moment in time. What if there are people who can’t attend the event? Yes, some will go ahead and step out of their way to give or contribute in some way, but there are more who pass on the opportunity because it’s not on their radar.
Problem #2 | Lots of Work
Another problem with these events is the preparations that need to be made ahead of time. Again, people are more likely to skip out on the prep because they have other commitments, or dare we say it… it’s simply too much work!
Have you ever stayed up till the wee hours of the morning pricing items for a church yard sale? Or got on Pintrest for carnival game inspiration? Then you have to find the items, build the games, and stand next to your station during the event. You end up missing out on the rest of the festivities!
Problem #3 | No Lasting Legacy
Now, let’s explain what is meant by “No Lasting Legacy.” Yes, the funds raised out of these types of efforts are obviously sown into the lives using them to participate in youth camps, mission trips, or outreach activities.
These lives will be forever changed as they join these faith-building experiences… which ultimately plant seeds of legacy within them.
But what if there was another layer of a legacy that could be left? What if there was a way to sow seeds into the lives of your congregants AND be a light to the world?
And what would be even better… if the prep work was nil!
The Olive Tree
Could the answer be the olive tree? The tree that the Lord uses in His Word to describe how the Church has been adopted and made part of His family?
“For if the firstfruit is holy, the lump is also holy; and if the root is holy, so are the branches. And if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree, do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you.”—Romans 11:16-18
Here’s the Mystery Behind the Motive…
- Fulfilling Environmental Prophecy
The prophecies of Amos 9 and Isaiah 35 speak of the lush land restoration with the establishment of His people.
“‘Behold, the days are coming,’ says the Lord, ‘When the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him who sows seed; the mountains shall drip with sweet wine, and all the hills shall flow with it. I will bring back the captives of My people Israel; they shall build the waste cities and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and drink wine from them; they shall also make gardens and eat fruit from them.’”—Amos 9:13-14
“The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad for them, and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose…”—Isaiah 35:1
- Blessing the Church and Israel
Along with the prophecies regarding the land, the Church has an active role in this restoration process. Paul writes in his letter to the Romans that God’s restoration project blesses both the Church and Israel. That the Church will help restore Israel, and that salvation comes to the Church through Israel (the olive branch).
“I say then, have they [Israel] stumbled that they should fall? Certainly not! But through their fall, to provoke them to jealousy, salvation has come to the Gentiles. Now if their fall is riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness!
“For I speak to you Gentiles; inasmuch as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, if by any means I may provoke to jealousy those who are my flesh and save some of them. For if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?…
“You will say then, ‘Branches were broken off that I might be grafted in’… For if you were cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, who are natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree?”—Romans 11:11-15, 19, 24 [Emphasis added]
What Happens When You Plant in Partnership?
Grounded
Those who sponsor trees place roots in the Holy Land, literally becoming “grounded” in the beginnings of their faith, thus possessing ties to the most sacred and historically significant soil on earth.
Growing
Your congregation becomes united in effort. Even a youth group or women’s ministry benefits from the funds. All church members become partakers in the process, unified in their prayers and growing together in a common vision.
Giving
Sponsors not only give to the cause within their own church walls but also give for generations to the people of Israel. Because olive trees can be harvested for hundreds of years and grow extremely well in desert conditions, they provide jobs for farmers, Israeli Defense Force soldiers, and subsidiary businesses.
They are also a way to honor victims of the Holocaust. These were people who were never able to set foot in their established homeland, but there are tree sponsorships that specifically honor these lives and represent their footprint in the soil.
Don’t miss out on these amazing opportunities for your church, part of the Body of Christ, to be directly connected to where your Savior was born, baptized, preached, and died for YOU—the Holy and Promised Land.
We want to encourage you to prayerfully consider taking a bigger step with your next church fundraiser. A virtual step to the other side of the globe—into Israel. A step that benefits your local congregants, church, ministries, and programs, as well as countless lives in God’s Promised Land.
At the same time taking an active role in fulfilling prophecy… The Lord has provided a way for the Church to directly get involved in this major movement that is gaining momentum!
Think About These Prophetic End-Time Statements…
“And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.”—Luke 21:24
- When Israel was established in 1948, many believe this began a timer for the countdown to Jesus’ return, as God promises a restoration of Israel and Jerusalem. And the recent U.S. Embassy move from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem seems to point in the same direction.
“And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.”—Zechariah 12:3
- It seems that in the news today there is a bigger split between those for and those against Israel. Movements such as the BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) of Israel have more news time; however, more and more evangelicals are aligning with President Trump’s vision of supporting Israel. There is a rise on both sides, but we already know the end—that the Lord saves Israel and we know the method He chooses to do so.
“For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written:
“‘The Deliverer will come out of Zion, and He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob; for this is My covenant with them, when I take away their sins.’”—Romans 11:25-27
Christ’s return will happen when the fullness of the Gentiles comes in and Israel’s blindness is restored. You have an active role in this! You can get involved, pray for Israel, support its restoration, and hasten the Lord’s return!!
Are you ready to get involved? Join the movement and bless your congregation in the process!
