As a non-profit organization, fundraising is a central activity that is foundational to the work we do. The truth is, we wouldn’t be where we are today without the support of thousands of people who have partnered, either with a one time gift or in monthly partnership. The donations that come in every month keep food on the table for kids who would otherwise go hungry, and provide jobs for people in need. It keeps our kids in school and provides medical care for the sick.
It would be easy for us to follow the traditional guilt-driven approach to fundraising by posting pictures of crying, starving children everywhere and begging people to empty their bank accounts for our work. Truthfully, we might even see more donations come in if we did just that. But you won’t ever see that from us, because at Marked, we’re not looking for gifts that are given out of compulsion or pressure. We’re not interested in "guilt giving out" of obligation. Our mantra has always been that although we are grateful for donations, we simply are not looking for donors but rather partners. Partners that link arms and run together towards a common vision: the dream of emptying orphanages by empowering lives. These partners have come in sometimes the most unusual of places.
There’s a reason that we call our monthly donors “key partners”. If you take a look at every individual, family, or business that has committed to invest in Marked monthly, they have shared their hearts with us as well as their finances. They keep in touch, ask how they can pray for us, and ask questions in regards to our work. And likewise we pray over every gift. Whether it’s a one-time gift or a monthly partnership, we ask the Lord that we would become known as “good soil” in which to sow seed. That people who give into the mission will see a tangible return on their investment. Since we have begun this practice of partnership both in sowing and reaping, we have heard many testimonies from some of our most faithful and largest financial contributors. Stories of how they have seen supernatural provision, increase and blessing since they made a commitment to link arms and partner with us in the greater vision of an orphan-less world. These testimonies have fueled our faith and belief that a culture of generosity will always pay for itself.
“A culture of generosity will always pay for itself.”
We believe wholeheartedly in this thing that we call a “culture of generosity”. Generosity actually has nothing to do with the size of your gift or your bank account. It has much more to do with the position and culture of the heart.
You probably remember the story of the widow’s offering in Mark 12. Jesus sat himself down in the church with a perfect view of the offering plate. And he got a good look at every person who gave. He sat and watched as many rich men brought bags full of money and dropped them in as the churchgoers stood in awe. Then, in the midst of all the rich men and their giant, impressive offerings, one person who had literally nothing to give walked in. She was a poor widow, who probably didn’t even know where her next meal would come from. She came and gave all she had: just two tiny copper coins that didn’t add up to much at all. The church was never going to be able to fund a renovation project with her gift, or pay anyone’s salary. It probably wasn’t even enough to purchase a single meal. But Jesus said that she gave more than anyone else.
When we started Marked, we had heard this story a thousand times. It was encouraging, a nice story about Jesus, but we hadn’t learned the depth of this truth yet. We appreciate and value the offering of the rich man as I imagine most organizations do. Those big monthly checks really got us through those first few years and now continue to sustain us and promote growth. But since then we’ve also learned the value of the widow’s offering. We’ve had the honor of receiving financial gifts from people who have zero extra money, but they believed in our mission so they gave everything they had.
One time at a conference as we were taking an offering, a little girl walked up to me and put a quarter in my hand. She looked up at me with the sweetest, most compassionate eyes, and said, “Can you take this to the orphans for me?”
It would be easy to look at that quarter and think of all the meals that it couldn’t buy. In the natural, twenty-five cents is basically nothing. But that quarter from the little girl lit a fire in our hearts, and marked us with the true meaning of generosity. I still have that quarter. I pull it out often and remember that little girl, and every time I realize how true it is that the widow’s offering was worth more than the offerings of all the rich men combined. We can get pretty far with a big financial gift. But there’s no limit to the impact that this little girl’s offering will have. Maybe it planted something in her heart that will change the course of her life. I can tell you without a doubt that it changed ours.
This is the heart of a culture of generosity. Giving with a heart full of love, full of faith that God will accomplish his purpose with any offering, no matter how big or small it may have been. After years of running Marked, we’ve become 100% confident that our mission isn’t fueled by giant contributions only. It’s fueled by giant hearts that have decided to invest with radical generosity, and that’s worth so much more than just a number.
If you’ve been supporting Marked for any length of time and for any amount of money, THANK YOU. We can’t even describe how thankful we are. If you are looking for an opportunity to partner with us, feel free to click the link below to learn more.