When I was young, I couldn't wait for Christmas and my birthday. Those dates meant special gifts were coming my way and I was eager to receive them! I remember the month building up between Thanksgiving and Christmas. It was filled with anticipation. What would Santa Claus, my parents or my relatives give me for Christmas? I was dying to find out. There were times I would try to sneak a peek at what those gifts might be and other moments where I would surreptitiously inquire to see if I could figure out what I might be receiving that year.
The older I became, the more I enjoyed giving rather than receiving. Watching the joy on someone else's face when I gave them a special gift was far greater than actually receiving the gift myself.
You might ask, what in the world does this have to do with mission? This past year, the A3 board suggested looking into the "Gifts in Kind" being donated by national leaders and working teams. We were astonished when we discovered the time being given. It was practically double what we raise in our development efforts on average each year.
The men and women you see pictured here are a part of a much larger team of volunteers who give the equivalent of $800,000/year to make A3 a reality! I would call that generosity on steroids: a gift that keeps on giving! I can't even imagine how far this reality extends as the alumni keep reproducing the training, leaders and churches across Asia.
The other day, while speaking with a former board member, he said, "Joe, that number is far higher. You are working with senior pastors and the metric used to compare was the average American assistant pastor. If you used the senior pastor average, the number would be at least $1.5M in Gifts in Kind!"
How powerful is that! It moves me to tears to know how much these leaders of leaders are investing "to see a vibrant community of servant leaders… leading the Church across Asia: to unite the Church, multiply leaders and congregations, and extend the transforming power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ."
I'd love to hear your stories about generosity… Please share with me:
Joe Handley
