The purpose of the sale was identified as benefitting the Military Outreach Ministry of SBPC. This turned into a motivator for both the ministry and the church. Thank you notes were given to the buyers to further the potential of learning more about MOM.
$686 was profited from donated items plus we received a $500 cash donation to MOM. Several other very large items were donated to the church. Original $100 investment turned into $5586.
Group enjoyed their project, the interaction with friends, neighbors and customers.
Small Group Leader(s): Richard & Jeanne Stoller
Small Group Members: Jim & Betty Friend, Tom & Betz Lewis, Ed & Melanie Munsch, Jim & Ann Peter, Morris & Nancy Pike, Harold & Barbara Tollerup, Evelyn Weidner
Description of your project: Hosted a garage sale.
How did you come to your idea? We brainstormed on other rather exotic ideas, and decided they were too difficult with high risk and not enough positive attributes. We thought a garage sale would provide us an easy opportunity to interact with our neighbors and our customers in a positive venture.
How did you “invest” the $100? We bought a $27 newspaper ad.
Beneficiary(s): Military Outreach Ministry Camp Pendleton www.militaryoutreachmininstry.com
Process or procedure:
• We distributed notices and chatted with our friends and neighbors identifying that we were part of a small group Bible Study/Care Group. That in itself is an investment in the kingdom.
• The notice included SBPC as the motivating organization. That is good too.
• We said our group is helping Military Outreach Ministry Camp Pendleton, a Christian Ministry. That is honorable.
• We talked to people at the sale, and several people indicated interest in our church and a small group, more investment in the kingdom.
• We gave out thank you notes to buyers which included a bit of the above plus a website where they could learn more at www.militaryoutreachmininstry.com. Who knows what more the Lord will do with that?
• We made good use of (Evelyn) Weidner’s Gardens facilities, and perhaps created some good will for Weidner’s Gardens (a Christ honoring Christian business) in the process.
• We ate good snacks that we all brought in.
Outcomes to date: We sold $686 of donated surplus goods, plus received a $500 cash donation all to Military Outreach Ministry (MOM). In addition, we received brand new cabinets valued at $4000 and new flooring valued at $300 which we donated to SBPC. So the $100 seed money became $5586, and many people got rid of things they did not need. We had Christ honoring interaction with our neighbors in receiving donated items for the sale, as well as with customers at the sale. We worked hard, and had fun. We did a little bonding. In all, we think Christ was honored.
Stewardship Lessons learned: Low risk investments can have surprising, even remarkable, results.
Would you invest your money in this way again? Yes. We would assess our “investment in the kingdom” as a success. It was fun to do, not too much trouble or risk, financially profitable, and it facilitated good interaction with friends, neighbors, and customers.