Fundraising . . .

I feel like I have learned so much about the monumental task of fundraising these last several months!  Not just in our attempt to raise funds for our mission trip, but also at my kids' school.  I am chairing the spring fundraiser at our school and the fundraiser starts today.  The financial needs at the school deepen every year with all the budget cuts.  This year though, the PTO took a jump into a joyous thing called debt.  It was not something discussed at any prior meetings or voted on.  Just a mistake that happened and we are paying for now.  The school board jumped in and bailed us out, but we are now in debt to them for playground equipment that we bought that we couldn't afford. Oops is right.  This all unfolded this winter after the playground equipment was already installed.  Nothing to do now but pay off this debt.  Well the only income the PTO has is from fundraisers.  That means our spring fundraiser has to raise enough money to pay off this debt.  That is a HUGE burden for the chairperson (me) to bear.  HUGE!  I feel the pressure.  I see the writing on the wall.

It makes me think about our mission trip though.  What would happen if we were $1000 short of the money needed for the trip?  Would we finance it?  That's a politically correct way of saying, "would we go into debt to make it to Africa?"

 I want to tell you that as a person who has recently clawed her way out of personal debt and reached freedom- there is absolutely NO WAY that we are going back into debt, even to get to Africa.  I would have to believe that if we didn't have the money in time to go on our mission trip then we would not go on the mission trip.  That would be a clear answer from God that we were not supposed to go.  We would not go into debt.

On the reverse, though, we are going to continue to work as hard as we can to raise the money that is needed for the trip.   It's a lot of money.  Especially for a one-income family with three children.  However it isn't impossible.  Sheesh, in Exodus 35, God told Moses to ask the people to give gold, silver and bronze for the making of the tabernacle.  He asked that only those who "were of a willing heart" to bring this offering of gold to the Lord.  In just the next chapter we find that the craftsmen tell Moses to make the people stop bringing their offerings because they HAVE TOO MUCH!   I get goosebumps every time I read this story.

God will provide if it is His will.  He is amazing.