What follows here is pretty personal stuff. Talking about this is very humbling. But we figure if you’re reading this update, you care. You’re family. We hope can share the hard stuff with you… so you can pray with us. Let’s see what God can do!
100 DAY PRAYER CHALLENGE
Our support has dropped to 66% of New Tribes’ recommended level.
In dollars, this means we are $2,200 short each month. That’s about $800 in living costs, plus a lot of ministry expenses, plus the additional taxes we’d have to pay on the new income.
This has happened gradually over the past few years as our support has gone down while our living expenses and ministry expenses have steadily gone up. We’re thankful for those who faithfully invest in our ministry. Recently, we have gained new financial partners, and God has blessed us with some amazingly generous one-time gifts toward tickets. But month to month, there has been a net loss over time. We have prayed, and we have trimmed our budget about as much as we can (if you’re interested, we’d be glad to tell you what common expenses we don’t have!)
If we had this additional $2,200, we would be fully supported. We would have what we need to live simply each month and to fully fund our ministry, including most of our ministry travel costs.
Your Part: Pray and Help Us Make Connections…
You Can Pray…
We are calling this the 100 DAY PRAYER CHALLENGE. Please join us in prayer that God would connect us with new ministry partners who can provide the support we need! Let’s ask God to meet this need by Jan 7, which is 100 days from now. We will post updates here so you can join us in praising God for his provision.
We’ve set three levels as goals, and are praying we reach Level 1 (at least) by January 7:
LEVEL 1: CRITICAL ($700 more per month)
LEVEL 2: BREATHING ROOM ($1,600/month)
LEVEL 3: FULLY SUPPORTED ($2,200/month)
You Can Be An Advocate…
What’s an advocate? Well, for churches or individuals to become ministry partners, first they have to hear about us and our ministry. We’ve found that people don’t support a stranger. Every one of the ~20 churches that have supported us over nearly 40 years did so because of the recommendation of a friend.
That’s where you might be able to help… if you believe in what we’re doing and feel God would have you to speak on our behalf, you can talk to your pastor, missions pastor, Bible study leader, Sunday School teacher, prayer group leader, or anyone you know who might be open to hearing about our ministry.
And just so you know, we are not going to ask anyone for money. Our conviction as we live by faith is that the finances are God’s business–this is His ministry, and he will touch the hearts of anyone he wants to invest in his Kingdom. Our role is to inform Christians about the needs among the Unreached People Groups around the world, to encourage them with what God is currently doing to reach the unreached, and to challenge them to pray for the world, and for us.
God is already working! We have one new financial partner this month, and a local pastor has offered to recommend us to a few pastors. You might also be able to expand our network and connect us with potential ministry partners we might not meet otherwise. We’ll stay busy in our ministry and following up any new connections that come our way.
We thank God for each one of you and appreciate your prayers and partnership in reaching the unreached!
Because Everyone Deserves to Hear in Their Heart Language
-Bill and Donna
My name will be great among the nations,
from where the sun rises to where it sets.
Malachi 1:11a
HOW TO GIVE
Anyone who wants to partner with us financially can invest in this ministry through monthly support, one-time gifts, or designated gifts toward specific ministry projects and travel. Gifts of any amount are greatly appreciated and receive a tax-deductible receipt from New Tribes Mission.
We want to be completely transparent. If you want to know more about our ministry, or have any questions about our financial situation, or New Tribes’ policies regarding support, please contact us. (you can use this this link, then select “send a message.”)