Shining Eyes

A question we want to ask ourselves in fund-raising is, "Are people richer after we leave?" I use the word 'richer' for a reason.

After we talk or share with a person or a group we need to think if are they better off after our time together than they were before we shared.

We all have been around people who help us be better, and around those who seem to drain the life out of us.

So when you are done sharing do people feel you just drained them and their wallets? (Subtraction giving).

Do they feel they got in a 'good deal' and feel good about the investment? (Transactional giving).

Or is their life richer as a result of ministry sharing? (Transformational giving.)

When the giver is changed by the gift as much as the receiver transformation is going on.

Ben Zander is the conductor of the Boston Philharmonic. He has a great lesson on getting people to not just love classical music but to use their untapped potential. As I watched this video at a conference I saw how this can teach us about our presentations and the times we share with people.

At the end of this video he talks about 'shining eyes'. That moment when people get it. I have seen this moment in people as they light up about ministry. They may support an outreach somewhere in town or around the world. Their support is obedience to God. As they talk about the ministry they talk of it as their own even though they may have never physically been present. They are transformed by their obedient giving. In other words they have shining eyes.

Enjoy this video and use it as a challenge for your ministry to have shining eyes, but be patient while you watch it, the end is what you need to see.