How the money part works

Many people have been asking how being a full time missionary works when it comes to money so as much as this is a touchy subject I thought I should address it now.  We have chosen to go with an organization that does not provide housing or pay.  We will not be getting a ‘pay check’ from any one person but instead will raise our paycheck with pledged support from friends and people who feel God is leading them to be a part of what we are doing in South Africa.  Honestly as much as not having to raise our own support sounds good I feel like we would lose a bit of the personal relationship part.  When people pledge to support us and send in their money every month they are reminded to pray for us, a critical part of our ministry.  They know the missionaries they are supporting personally and can actively follow what God is doing with their money.  They will hear stories of triumph and struggle as we minister and maybe someday God will lead them to come and see what we are doing.  It teaches both sides to fully rely on God and stretches everyone involved.  So how much does it cost for a family of 5 in South Africa? Our goal is to raise $3,000 a month in support for the 1^st two years.  That money will cover all our living expenses for example; a safe rental house/apartment, all utilities, food and toiletries, all car expenses, internet, phone, health insurance, kids school, etc. It will also cover ministry items such as; school work sheets, books, snacks, activity items, bible study materials etc.

$3,000 a month sounds like a lot and it is for one person but that’s the beauty of raising support.  It isn't up to one person to carry it all, it isn't even up to 10.  We would rather have 300 friends giving $10 a month then 1 person writing a check for $3,000 a month.  This ministry isn't about Eddie and I, its about God. And we are so excited to have others to join us on this journey.  I know many people shy away from giving because they think “what could my $5 a month possibly do?” and the answer is a LOT. For us $5 buys our family of five 2 days worth of healthy meals. Or it buys 1 days worth of snacks for the kids in the township.  So here is our goal, to find 100 people who can give whatever God lays on their heart to give a month. That can be $1 or $1,000. I know I could give $10 a month to change a life in South Africa.  We leave Augusta at the end of July but our goal is to be fully pledged by the end of June, will you prayerfully consider supporting us?  You can send pledge info to us at openhandscp@yahoo.com We are asking people who pledge to send their 1^st monthly support amount, whatever it is, sometime in August. 

How our funding will work:  Friends will send their donation to our church, Windsor Spring Baptist Church in Augusta GA (see “how to give tax deductible donation”, online donations will be available soon).  Twice a month the church will deposit all our support collected into our account and we will withdraw the money for the month on the 1^st of every month.  In order to have money our 1^st month in South Africa money needs to be into the church in August.

The second financial need:  Moving expenses

It will cost us aprox $15,000 to move to South Africa. This covers airfare, shipping a small amount of clothing and household items, accommodation while we look for housing, rental car while we find a car etc. We are doing a variety of fundraisers to help us raise this money.  Plane tickets just went down in price to $4,300 and that is our 1^st and most urgent need.  We are hoping to raise $3,000 by the end of Feb so we can take advantage of the current low airfare. 

Ok that’s enough about money.  My goal is to never make anyone feel like we are being pushy about money.  We know God has a plan and we are excited to see how He funds the ministry. I didn't talk a lot about prayer in this post (I will be soon) but we need lots of prayer pledge partners, so even if you are unable to give towards our ministry we would love to have you along on our journey as a prayer partner.