let the fundraising begin!

I have to be honest with you.  Fundraising makes me uncomfortable.  I hate asking people for money.  But when I really think about it, I realize that when I am asked to give money to a cause, I almost always want to.  I know I can't speak for everyone, but when I get a fundraising request, especially from someone I know, I always want to support them.  I should give people more credit instead of assuming I'm just another bothersome person asking for their money.  I've also realized that fundraising for South Africa is very similar to how pastors are paid.  If people in a congregation don't give offerings, the pastor doesn't get paid.  So I'm trying to keep that frame of mind; that this is how we'll be making a living for as long as Matt is a pastor.

We've begun to visit churches here in California in the hopes that they will be able to support God's work in South Africa through us.  So far we have visited Christ Lutheran Church in West Covina, CA, right outside of Los Angeles, and Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church in Valley Springs, CA, which is about 45 minutes away from where we live in Lodi.

We were humbled at the incredibly warm welcomes we received from both the churches.  It never ceases to amaze me when we are welcomed so warmly into a congregation and are asked when we'll return before we even leave!  The people were excited to have us there and we were excited to be there.  I love going to new churches and meeting new people.

Matt preached at both churches.  At Christ Lutheran he spoke about following the call of the Holy Spirit, integrating the call of God in our lives to go to South Africa.  Afterward we had the opportunity to meet with the council to tell them a bit more about what we'd be doing with Blessman Ministries.

At Shepherd of the Hills, Matt preached about the Good Samaritan and was given some time after worship to talk more about BMI.  The congregation, even though we hadn't even asked, expressed interest in supporting us financially, and said they would vote on it in their next council meeting.  What a blessing!  (This was a surprise as this church has less than 30 members!)

Our own church, Matt's internship site, Emanuel Lutheran in Lodi, has been incredibly supportive.  We have been blessed to the max by these people and we are really going to miss them.  They are so special and have been so wonderful to us.  (I'm tearing up a little as I write this, as it will be very difficult to say goodbye when we move back to Illinois in a few weeks.)  Emanuel has included our mission work in their recent capital campaign and even put together a team of church members to oversee this.

We are excited about our relationships with these three churches and looking forward to how God will work through them.

In the meantime, we're anxiously awaiting Stella's impending arrival.  My due date is in two weeks but we're hoping she decides to come a couple days early!  All in good time.  While we wait, Matt is busy with work at church and I am trying to get the house clean and as much packed as possible so I don't have to pack as much after the baby's born, since all I'm going to want to do is stare at her all day!