“‘Weren’t there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?’ They replied, ‘Certainly, O king.’ He said, ‘Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.’”

Daniel, along with his three friends Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, were men of principle. Although their faith was tested several times, they did not waver; even when they were challenged to either worship King Nebuchadnezzar or be thrown into a blazing hot fire. Against the threat of a fiery death, these men would not denounce their faith in the one true God.

There has been many a Sunday School lesson on this story about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego as well as songs that children have learned about these three men. It’s a powerful story about God’s protection. Some might say it’s a “nice” story about three men in a fiery furnace. A powerful story, yes. A nice story, not at all.

“heated seven times hotter than usual”

But much to Nebuchadnezzar’s surprise, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego did not die. The very clothes they were wearing were not even singed by the flames. Their lives were spared. How? Because there was someone in the flames with them, protecting them – God Himself.

“When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze”

What kind of flames or trials are you facing in your life?

When you consider the capital campaign that you have been asked to be a part of, what kind of challenge does that place before you? How easy it is to think that you have to “go it alone.” But the lesson Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego learned is about God’s presence, power, and protection in the face of a great challenge. In obedience to God, walk into the challenge of this campaign and trust that God will be there. Trust that God will be there to reveal to you immeasurably more than anything you could ever ask or imagine.

“One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked Him – and he was a Samaritan.”

In those days, leprosy was a dreaded disease. It still is today. Not only is it dreaded because of what it does to a person’s skin – the pain, the discomfort, the unsightliness of it – but because it often necessitates isolation. A leprous person (at least in those days) was not to be in contact with others. They were to keep their distance. And not only were they to keep their distance, but when anyone came within a reasonable radius they were to announce that they were “unclean.”

How dreaded.

“Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”

Without hesitation, Jesus ordered them to be clean. He didn’t use those exact words, but by the fact that He sent them off to the priest implies their healing. So they went. And they were cleansed. We can only assume that from there they went off and celebrated their healing.

But one of the ten returned to offer thanks.

For the one who returned to thank Jesus, we know he actually received more than the others. Yes, they all received the same cleansing and healing. But for the man who returned and fell at Jesus’ feet thanking Him, the circle was complete.

“Raise and go; your faith has made you well”

How about you? Have you received any gifts lately? What kind of gifts have you received from God in your life? Maybe too many to count. But go ahead and try. Because when you recognize the gifts God gives you in your life and thank Him for them, it’s not only an expression of your faith, it’s an immeasurably more experience of the gift received.

How can you express your “thanks” for the many gifts you have received in your life? Maybe consider a gift to your ministry’s capital campaign as a display of your faith and an expression of your thanks?

“Jesus said to her, ‘If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked Him and He would have given you living water.”

It was the heat of the day . . . high noon. No one went to the well to draw water at noon, it was too hot. No one is there that time of the day, but that is why she went then. She didn’t want to see anyone. She was tired of all the gossip and half truths that others spoke about her. Yes, she had made some poor choices in her life. Choices she wasn’t necessarily proud of but she couldn’t undo them. Did people really have to keep reminding her of her mistakes again and again?

But just when she thought she would be there alone, it turns out she isn’t alone. A man shows up. A Jewish man. He asks for a drink. A drink, really? She’s a Samaritan. He’s a Jew. Jews don’t associate with Samaritans.

But this man does.

However Jesus wasn’t there that day to simply satisfy His thirst. He was actually there to satisfy her thirst. But to do it, He had more to offer than a cup of cold water; much more!

Jesus knew all about her life. He knew about her past. He knew about her present.

“The water I give you will become a spring of water welling up to eternal life”

How about you? Perhaps there may be much more that the Lord wants to give to you than you have received in your life so far.

Maybe there is more that the Lord wants to do in your capital campaign than what your church has planned.

Maybe there is much more the Lord wants you to give toward this campaign then what you have considered so far.

After all, there really is no limit to what flows from the “living water” God offers.

“Which is easier: to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins . . . He said to the paralytic, ‘I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.’”

When the paralytic’s friends brought him to Jesus, they came hoping Jesus would heal their friend. In fact, they were so sure that Jesus could heal him that when they realized they could not get their paralyzed friend into the house where Jesus was, they dismantled the roof and lowered him down. These men believed without a doubt that Jesus could heal their friend and they were not going to leave until He did.

“When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, ‘Son, your sins are forgiven.’”

Jesus knew why they came. Jesus knew the man couldn’t walk. Jesus knew He could heal the man. But Jesus also knew the deeper need the man had. It’s not that there was specific sin in the man’s life that caused him to be paralyzed, but paralyzed or not, because of the man’s sins he needed God’s forgiveness.

“Look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world”

The paralyzed man received healing but he also received immeasurably more – forgiveness.

“I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home,” the man took up his mat and walked. The man was healed. He was able to walk. He was healed and

As you work on this campaign process in your ministry, pray that the Lord will provide immeasurably more through this effort. Not just more than enough money to build your building or expand your ministry. But how about also lives transformed, hope renewed, faith inspired, and more.

“This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, ‘We have never seen anything like this!’”

When something is full, it is full. There is no room for more.

Years ago I gave a children’s message in church where I had a glass jar filled with ping pong balls. There were enough balls in the jar to fill it to the top. I also had another glass jar filled half way with rice. I asked the children if they thought that I could fit all the ping pong balls in the jar with the rice. They quickly concluded that I couldn’t.  They were right. There wouldn’t be enough room for all the ping pong balls in the jar of rice.  

But then I took the jar partially filled with rice and poured the rice into the glass jar with the ping pong balls. The rice filled in the open spaces around the balls. Consequently, both the rice and the ping pong balls fit in the jar together. There was enough room for both.

Sometimes you can’t imagine how you can fit one more thing into something that is already full. Sometimes our lives seem so busy that we can’t imagine adding on one more responsibility. There aren’t enough hours in the day.  

Likewise, perhaps there are times when you can’t imagine responding to one more financial request. Your financial resources may be maxed out as it is. But then someone comes along and invites you to participate in this worthy effort. And it is a worthy effort. Can you do it? Even if your immediate answer is “No” or “I’m not sure,” how about rereading Luke 6:38? You see, this is a prime example of how God is able to do “immeasurably more” than anything we can.  

If this ministry you are a part of is indeed a worthy effort, and if the word of God challenges you to “. . . give and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over . . .” then the fullness of God in your life and the fullness of God from your life will be God’s doing. God can always do more than you can do. And thank God that He does.  

Pray today for what God might want to do in this capital campaign to display His fullness to you and through you.    

“And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty well up in rich generosity.” (2 Corinthians 8:1-2)

There is always the opportunity to put a certain “spin” on why people do what they do. Maybe all too often we tend to question motives. Do people do what they do in order to draw attention to themselves or to encourage and inspire others? Good question.

In the above Scripture, the apostle Paul begins to address the Corinthian church by making a comparison to the actions of the Macedonian church. In an effort to collect some financial resources to assist the hard pressed Jerusalem Christians, Paul says that the Macedonian Christians responded with “rich generosity.”  

But now in talking about the Macedonians “rich generosity” was Paul bragging about them? Hardly. After all, what was so unique about the Macedonians is that their “rich generosity” flowed out of their “extreme poverty.”  Paul mentions the Macedonians to the Corinthians in order to inspire them and encourage them to take similar action.

Inspiring and encouraging others. This is such an essential part of any capital campaign process. People don’t have to know what others might be doing. However, on those occasions when someone might share their spiritual journey that has lead them to a particular commitment or pledge to a campaign, it is always intended to inspire and encourage others.  

How might the actions and faith of others encourage you?

How might you encourage others through your actions and faith?

As you encourage others and as they encourage you, God can use such encouragement to bring about immeasurably more than you or anyone else can do on your own.   

“For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures . . .”  (1 Corinthians 15:3-4)

“They asked each other, ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while He talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?’ They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together and saying, ‘It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.’” (Luke 24:32-34)

There is no other information more worthy to tell others than the message of the resurrection. In the first verse above, the apostle Paul passes on the message of the resurrection as that which is of “first importance.” But what is noteworthy here is not only the information Paul shares – the resurrection – but the very fact that he passed it on. Paul knew that there is no way for people to receive this “good news” unless he (or someone else) informs others.  

Paul goes on to say that after the resurrection Jesus appeared first to Peter, then to the Twelve, then to 500 others, then to James, then to all the apostles and then finally to Paul himself. As Paul describes the various appearances of Christ, more and more people became aware of the Lord’s resurrection. As Christ appeared to more and more people the word spread and as the word spread, more and more people could declare their faith in the risen Christ.

But it’s not just what is communicated that is important, it is also how the information is communicated. In reading the verses from Luke, after the Emmaus disciples witnessed the resurrected Jesus, you can’t help but detect joy and excitement in their voice as they spoke about Christ to others. “It is true! The Lord has risen,” they said. The disciples embodied the sense of hope and promise that the resurrection offers.

A capital campaign is an opportunity to inform others about what is happening in your ministry. It’s an opportunity to spread the word, to tell the story, to embody the enthusiasm of how God is at work to further advance your ministry efforts.  

Maybe ask yourself, “How can I effectively and enthusiastically share the story of what God is doing here?”  

When you think of “imagining,” you may think of “dreaming” or “envisioning.” You explore the possibilities. You see the potential.  

The capital campaign that you are involved in began in the “imagination” of a leader or a group of leaders. Someone, somewhere said to someone else, “What if we did . . . ?” With those words, a dream was shared. Plans were discussed. Prayers were spoken. “For the sake of God’s mission, as a way to expand our ministry efforts here, what if . . . ?” Here a dream was born. A vision was cast.

But the apostle Paul makes it clear that such a dream given to man begins with God. “No eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love Him.”  

That’s what is exciting about a capital campaign experience. This opportunity to expand ministry was born in the heart of God and given to His people. That’s why we believe that a capital campaign is a spiritual experience. Maybe “no eye has seen, nor ear has heard, nor heart has imagined,” but God’s Spirit has seen and heard and imagined. And now God’s Spirit is at work in and through you in this process so you can begin to see what God sees.

And what God sees is what you want to begin to “imagine.” To “imagine” or “envision” what can happen in this ministry and in the lives of the people involved begins by asking for God’s direction. You are encouraged to pray for God’s direction throughout this campaign. Pray for God’s direction on this ministry. Pray for God’s direction on the ministry expansion you are considering. Pray for God’s direction as each person begins the spiritual journey of considering their own gift toward this campaign.  

So often as the campaign itself unfolds, people pray and process what all is going on until they finally begin to “see” it all for themselves. What God is doing may even lead to an “aha” moment.  

Maybe no eye has seen, no ear has heard, no heart has imagined; but God has. So after “imagining” the work of God’s Spirit, may you begin to “see” how God can do “immeasurably more” through you and your ministry.

“. . . and to know this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” (Ephesians 3:19)

The foundational verse for this capital campaign process developed by Capital Funding Services is Ephesians 3:20-21. However, leading up to those verses the apostle Paul offers a prayer. In that prayer, he prays that you would “. . . know this love that surpasses knowledge . . .” (3:19). Well, to “know” something that “surpasses knowledge” is an oxymoron. How can you know something that is beyond knowing?  

Actually, Paul isn’t suggesting a knowledge here that is merely “information” or head knowledge. Rather, to know the love of Christ is much deeper than that. It is a knowledge that is rooted and grounded in God’s love for you. Therefore, knowledge isn’t enough. Love is equally, if not more, important.

As you work with the capital campaign at your church you may have “knowledge” of why this campaign is taking place. You may have knowledge as to the needs that exist in this ministry. You may be well informed as to the case statement and reasons for this funding effort. Likewise, you obviously have knowledge of your personal financial situation and the degree to which you can personally support and contribute to this effort. Knowledge is essential. Knowledge is helpful.

But sometimes knowledge is not enough. What about love?  

Do you love this ministry? Do you love what more this ministry will be able to do? Do you love the fact that lives are touched and people are blessed as a result of what takes place in this ministry? Do you love that God loves you and God loves the people who are (and will be) touched by this ministry? Do you love that God has blessed you with resources that He can use to bless those He loves through this ministry?  

Knowledge is good. Knowledge is helpful. But sometimes knowledge is not enough. What about love, God’s love, that is immeasurably more than anything you can ever “know.”  

“How wide and long and high and deep.” When you read that phrase it may prompt you to go to the tool box and get the tape measure. After all, if you want to know how long or wide something is you measure it. Is it 26 inches or 26 1/8 or 26 3/4? What is the exact measurement? After all, the old adage is “measure twice, cut once.”

But there are some things that are . . . well, immeasurable. There are some things that no tape measure is long enough for. There are some things that you can’t get your arms around. They are beyond measure. If that is the case, then what Paul is praying for in the verse above is nearly impossible. How can you grasp how wide, long, high, and deep something is if it is beyond measure?

Clearly the point Paul is making is to simply emphasize the greatness, the vastness of God’s love. In a world where we often put conditions and limits on love, there are no conditions or limits on God’s love.  

Human reason may suggest loving someone up to a point, but God’s love goes way beyond that. Therefore, you are loved “immeasurably” by God. And because of His immeasurable love, God wants you to grasp (as much as is humanly possible) how wide and long and high and deep is His love for you.

Knowing (or at least attempting to know) the immeasurable love God has for you is the place to begin as you consider a capital campaign for your church and how you may be a part of it.  

It is easy to put limits on what you think you can do (or give). But the place to begin is to realize that in loving you, in saving you, in forgiving you; God has no limits.