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A sweeping aerial view of rugged desert mountain peaks bathed in warm golden light under a soft pastel sky, with the text Experiencing God and the scripture reference Exodus 24:9-10 in a rustic handwritten font.
Fundraising Verse of the Week

Experiencing God

by Ron Haas
July 20, 2026

“Then Moses went up, also Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and they saw the God of Israel. And there was under His feet as it were a paved work of sapphire stone, and it was like the very heavens in its clarity. But on the nobles of the children of Israel He did not lay His hand. So they saw God, and they ate and drank” (Exodus 24:9-10).

Imagine receiving a personal invitation to experience God. Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy elders were called specifically to the mountain to eat and drink in God’s presence. This was no ordinary dinner. It was the most exclusive event you could imagine. This encounter offers four applications as you plan your major donor events.

Special Invitation

“Nobles” means “corner pegs,” the structural supports holding everything together. Your ministry has corner pegs. You may have twenty of them. You may have five. These are the donors who anchor your mission. They deserve a personal invitation to an insider event. The ask begins long before the ask. The ask begins with the invitation itself.

Special Place

The setting God chose was breathtaking. Under His feet was what appeared to be a pavement of sapphire, clear as the heavens themselves. Your major donors can go to the finest restaurants and the most exclusive resorts. You probably can’t outspend their personal standards. What you can offer is something money cannot buy: a front-row seat to what God is doing through your ministry. Find an appropriate venue, even if modest. What happens inside the room matters far more than the room itself.

Special Speaker

The elders saw a glimpse of God. Your event does not need to produce a complete picture of your ministry. It needs to move hearts. Outside speakers can draw a crowd, but showcasing changed lives is much more effective. One Christian high school asked three graduating seniors to deliver the main address together, each taking ten minutes. They were well-scripted and well-rehearsed, and no guest speaker could have matched what they communicated. Your ministry’s stories, told well, are your greatest platform.

Special Outcome

The elders did not see God face to face, but they saw enough of His glory to strengthen their confidence in His leadership through Moses. What outcomes are you planning for your next major donor event? Identification? Cultivation? A campaign solicitation? Each of these requires a different design. A cultivation event that accidentally feels like a solicitation can set a relationship back months. Know your purpose before you plan a single detail.

Do not overlook this: God wanted them to eat and drink in His presence. Fellowship was part of the agenda. Some of your most important conversations will happen around the table, not from the podium. Build time for it.

Think About This: The elders went back as eyewitnesses. Imagine their conversations around the campfire: “I cannot fully describe it. But I was there. And it was real.” Your most faithful donors, when moved and inspired, become your most credible advocates. Design your event to create witnesses, not just attendees.

Response: Lord, help us create gatherings where our donors see You moving in the lives of those we serve. Make our events less about us and more about You. Amen.

A row of dark human figures with one glowing figure standing out from the crowd, with the text Too Many Fundraisers and the scripture reference Judges 7:2 in gold lettering against a dark background.
Fundraising Verse of the Week

Too Many Fundraisers

by Ron Haas
July 6, 2026

“The Lord said to Gideon, ‘You have too many men. I cannot deliver Midian into their hands, or Israel would boast against me, My own strength has saved me'” (Judges 7:2).

A key question in any capital campaign is, “Do we have the right people to lead this effort?” Jesus taught a parable about planning: “Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand?” (Luke 14:31) Good counsel. Know your team. Plan carefully.

But God told Gideon the opposite: you have too many men. The tension between those two ideas is where Christian fundraising actually lives. God reduced Gideon’s army from 32,000 to 300 to make clear that Israel’s victory would come from His power, not human strength.

Finding 300 Men
God first released those who were afraid, leaving 10,000 volunteers. Then He tested and chose those who scooped water to their mouths. Those men stayed alert with their eyes up and hands ready while others knelt down and lost sight of what was happening around them. In a campaign, that distinction matters just as much. The most effective volunteers know why the work matters, read the room, listen carefully to donors, and stay spiritually and relationally aware. The right people who are engaged, discerning, and mission-aware can carry extraordinary impact even when your team is small.

Staff Size or God
Like Gideon’s army, our campaign teams can become a source of false confidence or unnecessary fear. We count staff, consultants, and volunteers, then feel confident or discouraged based on what we see. But are we trusting our team size or trusting God? He tends to show up most powerfully when our resources look insufficient. When the key volunteer steps back and a better one steps forward. When someone who never seemed engaged becomes the most effective advocate in the room because the Holy Spirit moved them. Don’t let a small team become an excuse. Let it become an invitation.

Same Vision, Smaller Army
God didn’t reduce the goal. He reduced Gideon’s army. Brother Andrew founded Open Doors and spent decades smuggling Bibles into communist countries during the Cold War. He knew something about stepping forward with inadequate resources. He once said, “If your vision doesn’t scare you, then both your vision and your God are too small.”

Gideon’s 300 men didn’t know what would happen when they broke those clay jars and raised those torches. They only knew they had been called to step forward in obedience. Your job in fundraising is the same: be faithful, prepared, and obedient. Make the calls. Write the proposals. Cultivate relationships. But hold all of it loosely, because God reserves the right to thin the army when He wants the glory.

Think About This: The goal of your campaign isn’t just to hit a number. It’s to tell a God story. Make sure you’re leaving room for Him to do something you can’t explain.

Response: Lord, forgive us for when we’ve trusted more in our plans than in Your provision. Give us the courage to trust that You will do what only You can do. Amen.

A gleaming ornate sword against a black background with the text Be This Kind of Fundraiser and the scripture reference 2 Samuel 23:9-10 in white lettering.
Fundraising Verse of the Week

Be This Kind of Fundraisers

by Ron Haas
April 27, 2026

“Next to him was Eleazar… As one of the three mighty warriors, he was with David when they taunted the Philistines gathered at Pas Dammim for battle. Then the Israelites retreated, but Eleazar stood his ground and struck down the Philistines till his hand grew tired and froze to the sword. The Lord brought about a great victory that day. The troops returned to Eleazar, but only to strip the dead.” (2 Samuel 23:9-10).

What makes a great fundraiser? It’s someone who finishes what they start. The person who stays until the last guest leaves the gala. The gift officer who keeps making calls even when no one picks up. The one who keeps building relationships when donors seem uninterested, and keeps asking for gifts long after everyone else has given up. This kind of fundraiser is rare. Eleazar shows us what a tenacious fundraiser looks like, the person who keeps going when everyone else quits. Here are four things we can learn from him.

Don’t Run Away
There’s something almost funny about this story. The Israelites trash-talked the Philistines (think of that famous scene in Braveheart), got them all riled up, and then ran away. Sound familiar? It’s like when your board gets excited about a big campaign but disappears when the work gets hard. As one board member joked, “We’re behind you…way, way behind you.” But Eleazar didn’t care. He stayed focused and refused to run.

Keep Going When You’re Exhausted
Picture Eleazar fighting wave after wave of enemies until he’s completely worn out. That’s fundraising, right? You’ve got events to plan, mailings to send, reports to write, and then there’s the actual work of finding donors, building relationships, and asking for money. There’s never enough hours in the week. When you feel like this, remember: “I am weary, God, but I can prevail” (Proverbs 30:1).

Hold Tight to God’s Promises
Here’s the amazing part—Eleazar fought so long and so hard that his hand literally froze to his sword. He couldn’t let go even if he wanted to. That’s how you need to grip God’s Word in your fundraising work. You’ll face conversations and situations you can’t handle in your own understanding. You need God’s wisdom and strength daily. “But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded” (2 Chronicles 15:7).

Let God Do His Part
The passage says, “The Lord brought about a great victory that day.” Yes, Eleazar did something incredible, but God made it possible. You might be the most talented fundraiser around, but your success ultimately comes from God’s strength and blessing. You can do your part, make the calls, write the emails, build the relationships, make the ask. But only God can move people’s hearts to give.

Think About This: When the battle ended, everyone came back, but only to collect the valuables from the dead enemies. All the hard work was already done. Here’s the question: Are you the one doing the heavy lifting, or are you just showing up after someone else has done the work?

Response: Lord, give me the strength to keep asking when everyone else runs away. Help me be a mighty fundraiser for your glory!

Image of six copper pans hanging neatly on wooden pegs against a white wall, with text overlay reading “Firm Peg Donors Isaiah 22:23-24.”
Fundraising Verse of the Week

Firm Peg Donors

by Ron Haas
August 18, 2025

“I will drive him like a peg into a firm place; he will become a seat of honor for the house of his father. All the glory of his family will hang on him: its offspring and offshoots—all its lesser vessels, from the bowls to all the jars” (Isaiah 22:23-24).

Eliakim son of Hilkiah was a servant of King Hezekiah whom the Lord promoted to the throne. Isaiah described Eliakim as a peg driven into a firm place. Householders hung their kitchen utensils on pegs in the wall. Something on its peg was in its proper place ready to be used. This unusual image illustrates the importance of preparing major donors who are firmly in place to support your ministry.

Open/Shut
Isaiah gave Eliakim the keys of David meaning “what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open” (Isa. 22:22). John used the same description for Jesus Christ (Rev. 3:8). When the Lord opens a door for your ministry, no one can shut it—yet many will try to stand in your way (1 Cor. 16:9). Major donors can help you unlock opportunities that others can’t. Share your passions for what you believe God is prompting you to solve. Help them see how they can lay up treasures in heaven by partnering with you.

Hang On
Firm pegs illustrate security. Eliakim was a strong leader on which Israel could rely. Having trusted major donors by your side gives you confidence to tackle new opportunities. If your key supporters endorse your direction, then you will succeed. Who will stand with you to open your next ministry door? Identify those major donors in a feasibility study as you consider a capital campaign.

Large/Small
Everything was held by a peg—from the large pans and pots to the small bowls and cups. Don’t think that just because you’re not a big ministry major donors won’t be interested in what you do. Major donors have room for more than one ministry on their giving list. Giving is based on relationships. Concentrate on identifying, cultivating, and soliciting major donors already in your constituency.

Go Away
Eliakim was a “peg in a firm place” for a season. Eventually, he was broken off when Judah was finally sent into captivity (Isa. 22:25). Sometimes, when a major donor adopts a ministry, the ministry relies too heavily on that single donor. After more than ten years of giving $600,000 annually to a Christian school, a major donor decided to shift his giving priorities to other interests forcing the school to scramble to make up the lost revenue. Find more than one firm peg to hang onto.

Think About This: Robert Pierpont, from the Fund Raising School at the Indiana University Center on Philanthropy, observes that in a capital campaign the ten largest gifts set the pace for success. If you don’t secure key leadership gifts, you can’t find enough small gifts to fill the gap. Pierpont remarked, “Once the big-gift-first sequence has been seriously violated, the entire program is in jeopardy.1” Focus your efforts on finding firm peg donors and hang your capital campaign on them.

Response: Father, please bring us key supporters who will partner with us to fulfill your mission.

1Pierpont, R. (2002). Capital Campaigns. Retrieved from The Fundraising School: http://www.philanthropy.iupui.edu/files/course_resources/capital_campaigns_pierpont.pdf

Capital Campaigns, Donor Relations, Fundraising, Major Donors

When The Donor Isn’t Ready

by The Timothy Group
June 27, 2014

How do you know when the donor isn’t ready? If you’ve been involved in development work for long, you’ve probably had a situation where you made the “ask” of a donor before they’re weren’t ready. How so? A couple of differing ways, probably – either they were offended, said “no”, or gave a significantly smaller amount than you hoped for. No worries, we have all been there a time or two.

Maybe a better question is – how can you know (for next time)? The relationship between a donor, the development staff person or volunteer assigned to the donor, and the institution in need of support is a tricky one. There are guidelines of when a donor is ultimately “ready” for solicitation, but no hard, fast rules. Every donor, every organization, and every campaign is different.

Capital Campaigns, Major Donors, Stewardship

A Pleasant Million Dollar Surprise

by The Timothy Group
April 4, 2014

Recently, I was privileged to conduct Pre-Campaign Study interviews on behalf of a client. Essentially, these interviews are one-on-one meetings with their key stakeholders. This capital campaign would be the single largest fundraising effort ever entered into by this organization – the total needs exceeding $5 million. When we conduct these interviews, we ask the stakeholders several questions to gather their perception of the need. These are confidential conversations. We end each interview by asking if they would consider supporting the campaign as described and to estimate what their three-year giving level might look like. These are not pledge commitments, but they do help us to evaluate what the total dollars might project to.

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