Something that has been on my mind for awhile now is the topic of charity and giving to missions. I think mine is a calling to give. As a Business student, this does not seem at all intuitive, but that should not stop anyone from doing anything.
While it is the calling for every Christian to tithe a certain amount to the church/God’s work cheerfully and willingly, people often stop short when it comes to researching and gaining insight into where their money ends up going. Sure, a donation is a donation and it may be fine to trust the financial officers of the church to decide where and how to allocate funds, but there should still be a high level of accountability on the part of the people who are the ultimate benificiaries of charitable donations. At the same time, people who are cheerful givers should also be informed givers since it does not suffice to simply assume that the money they are offering up to God’s work is being put to its intended use, furthering His kingdom.
This is true in good Business and should be true in the church’s financial dealings. I mean, there’s a reason why we have SOX compliance and external auditor’s reviews now—because of things like the Enron scandal and other instances where people have played loose and fast with the law, preying on the unassuming public.
Thus, I am very proud of two groups of missionaries that I know (one closely, and another from a distances) who have been exemplary in both their stewardship of money received through donations and their accountability when it comes to communicating their needs transparently and honestly.
The Buzikievich’s, Village of Hope
First off, there are the David and Connie Buzikievich, a couple currently serving full-time in Malawi, Africa. David and Connie attended Waterloo Pentecostal Assembly before they were called to the missions field last year and have been serving over in Africa since then. They work with an organization called Village of Hope, and are serving as directors of a small village in Malawi. Basically, these villages are a place where children (often orphans) can go to get food, shelter, medical care, and education, while being cared for in a family-like, Christian environment. I think they also take in and care for women, who in turn help with the children by serving as village-mothers. Pretty cool stuff.
They spend the money collected through whatever means (be it a special offering from WPA or online donations) on feeding the kids, paying for the materials needed to keep the village running smoothly (malaria medication + prevention materials is a big thing over there), and building more facilities so that they can continue to expand the scale of services they offer to the people they serve.
Their latest financial request was for $50,000 (I assume USD), which might sound like a lot until you check out what it is they are using it for:
- A small tractor, to help plough the land and aid in planting their crops so that they can eventually be self-sustaining
- A variety of building and construction materials and equipment, to build new shelters for kids to sleep in (bug screens are really important, as it helps keep malaria-carrying mosquitos out at night)
- A large shipping container (like the ones you see on freighter ships) to ship this all over and to serve as a super handy storage area for the tractor/other things after its served its purpose
This is awesome. They are requesting a specific amount of money, and they are explaining and demonstrating the thorough planning and thinking process they went through before coming forth with their request. Not only are they open about their financial needs, they are also clear about what they intend to do with the money, which is 100% to serve the needs of those being served and not their own personal needs. Their integrity, honesty, and selflessness are earmarks of true servants of God.
If you’d like to read more about David and Connie’s ministry, please check out Village of Hope’s website here. If you’d like to donate to their worthwhile work, check out the online donation page here.
Kristen Tam, CTI
Update: I talked to Moyee a bit more, and here’s the breakdown:
- $5000 CAD is what she hopes to raise as her personal total
- $4350 USD is what CTI asks of her to pay for the flight from Minnesota, USA to where the trip is headed (Asia)
- That amount doesn’t cover her flight from here (Toronto) to Minnesota, so that is still a need that she has
She’s pretty close to the CTI goal but could definitely use monies to pay for that first flight from Canada down to the States. If you’re interested, you can ask her for a ticket for the dinner she’s hosting (just let me know if you don’t also know her directly), as any money raised through there will go towards her personal funds to pay for the costs of getting down to CTI in the first place.
Kristen has been my friend since… a long time ago. I think we met when I was in Grade 7, so there’s almost a decade of time that she’s known me, and we are still somehow friends, so there’s that. :) Most people call her Kristen (and I think she prefers this) but I call her Moyee because that’s the name I got to know her by (and because the hipster in me tells me to be different in annoying ways like that). Anyway, she is currently actively fundraising for her soon-time mission trip through CTI Music Ministries. Like several talented musicians from TJCAC (my home church in Toronto) before here, she’s been called to spread the good news through the medium of music in partnership with CTI, and this is pretty rad.
For as long as I can remember, she’s been one of the most honest and “heart on the sleeve” people that I know. You might say she is a no-nonsense kind of person with a taste for justice. She gets a handle on people’s feelings like nobody’s business and plays a mean variety of musical instruments, including the drums (which is pretty badass in itself). Oh, and she’s marrying my cousin later this year, so that’s pretty cool too.
CTI Music Ministries (check them out here) “works to make disciples of all nations by developing Christian leadership and character in young musicians, training them in servanthood, awareness, and the active sharing of their faith, and mobilizing them in partnership with the Church and other established Christian organizations worldwide to support mission and ministry through the impact of music.” I took that from their mission statement (like all good organizations have), and for Moyee, someone who genuinely loves music and God, it’s a perfect fit for her.
As far as financial needs go, Moyee has asked for $5,000 (in USD again, I think), purely for the costs of her trip. Specifically, about $4,350 is what CTI asks of her, to pay for things like airfare and accommodations, while she has set a personal goal of $5,000 in total so that she can use the difference to pay for unexpected expenses along the way, such as medication, random supplies, or… well, unexpected things are unexpected, right? In any case, there is, again, a very reasonable amount being raised, and it will be spent on meaningful, necessary, and ministry-related things.
Add to this the fact that she’s been working hard and diligently to raise funds for the trip (rather than goofing off, since no one likes a self-entitled goof-off who asks just for free money). Everything from making delicious cake from scratch (so, not a lie in this case) for a fundraising bake-sale to hosting a fancy CTI dinner on May 14th for friends to check out what she will be up to and give them an opportunity to help her out money-wise. This is the essence of being a baller for Jesus, and I’m pretty excited for her for approaching this with a tent-maker’s humility, especially compared with the attitudes of some other “missionaries” (but I’ll save that rant for another post).
If you’d like to help Moyee out (as I understand it, she could still use some help reaching her goals), check this online donation form out. Under “CTI Staff or Team Member Receiving Support” fill out “Kristen Tam”. Anything she receives over and above the amount required of her from CTI will just overflow into CTI’s general fund, which is fine too since they are a charity after all. Cool cool, cool cool cool.