Trust me – there is NO shortage of money. The reality of your situation is that there are lots of people with lots of money that want to give it to a worthy cause. What will you do? Whatever it takes!!!! Will you face your fears? Will you be uncomfortable? Will you accept rejection? Will you remain prayerful and positive? Will you work 40 hours a week? Will you work 60 hours a week? Will you work 80 hours a week? Your answer to all these questions and a thousand more must be “Yes – I will do whatever it takes!” But we have to get the desperation that is in that phrase into our hearts and lives. I don’t believe Grant intended that and I certainly am not taking an extreme view of that word. Please do not take this too far and manipulate “whatever” to mean being immoral or unethical. When it comes to fundraising we need this same attitude. The ONLY correct answer is = “WHATEVER IT TAKES” How frequent will you be in your attempts? Grant Cardone asks young business leaders two questions in relation to obscurity: “Obscurity is the single biggest killer to a business or entrepreneur.” – Grant Cardone Their potential clients do not even know they exist. One author says 80% of all new business owners know they are failing in the first 18 months! Some will have bad business plans, too much debt, the wrong location… but the majority simply cannot overcome obscurity. 50% of all business start-ups fail in the first 5 years. This problem is not unique to fundraising. For this reason you must make it a priority to become known among the people and churches that you hope will fund your calling. People and churches want to know YOU before they know what you are called to do. More and more our culture is becoming relational. When you are starting out on the path of fundraising your number one problem is OBSCURITY. OBSCURITY : The state of being unknown, inconspicuous, or unimportant. Enjoy! If you haven’t read some of his previous posts you can find them here, here, and here. I am receiving such wonderful feedback about this chapter in particular.Below is post from guest author Pastor Chris. Originally this was posted in May of 2017 but thought it would be helpful for some of you newer to the blog to read. A platform built by social media rather than the important planks of character, integrity and truth will not endure the tests of time. Think on this important verse and discuss it with a friend today over coffee or lunch: “Be content with obscurity, like Christ.” -Colossians 3:4 - This entry is drawn from my chapter in The Jesus Life on The Way of Hiddenness, which is Chapter 4 in the book. A voice not seasoned by times of pain is not a voice that has authority. Something happened in the soul of Jesus while being formed in hidden places that could not and would not be formed with him in the spotlight. This has major implications for people who serve on a team and not the Chairman people who are assistants and not the President people who are vice presidents rather than the one who gets the credit early, frequently and often! In this world of social media rage, instant availability and huge ways to gain influence quickly, we must remember this important point: A shallow life is not a life we are impressed with. God used his obscured voice muffled by prison bars to elevate his platform. Jesus spent 30 years in obscurity and only 36 brief months in the public’s eye. Our heart is shaped more in times of isolation and obscurity than at any other times in our lives. It was in prison where Paul wrote many letters of the New Testament-not preaching in big cities. God wants long seasons of development long times of character forming long periods where he can teach us, form us and shape our heart. This is an important fact that we cannot neglect or ignore in life. In the hidden places, the obscure places and the isolated places where we live our lives, God is at work. God wanted Paul right after his conversion to go to into the arid desert of Arabia for three long years. God allowed Joseph to spend years in prison when falsely accused. What has happened is that in the world of technology and instant fame, now everyone can have a voice and everyone try to have influence-no matter what kind of influence it is. When you look through the men and women formed through time, faith and God’s hands, we notice a different way about going about our lives. We have falsely assumed that the better known we are the more exposure we have the bigger the platform we develop that we will live a better life. If that were so, Jesus would have told us to expand our world, make ourselves known and be stand-outs in the crowds.
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