How generosity changes the future

Some people don’t like talking about money, but it’s an essential part of our lives so we want to be open and honest about it.

We’ve attended a lot of Christian events, large and small. People tend to have positive experiences and continue to attend in their thousands. Even so, events face bigger challenges now more than ever in making the price of attending palatable. 

You would think that costs could be covered by ticketing, but in the current financial climate it simply can’t be done at an accessible price. Most events we know of are kept in action by charitable giving and fundraising. For Spring Harvest, almost 20% of our income came this way in 2023. Generosity makes a huge difference. We simply wouldn’t be here without it.

Power in pilgrimage

We don’t think many people doubt the value of gathering like this. We know there is power in pilgrimage - uniting with others and setting aside focused time to worship God, to learn more from him and about him, and to wait on him. We give to him and inevitably gain much in the process. 

After Spring Harvest in 2023, we received an email from a parent. ‘My 8-year-old daughter has had an awesome week. She gave her life to Jesus. We go to church as a family, so I asked her what was different. She said “Before, I knew about God, but this week I met him.” She woke up on the morning after making a commitment to follow Jesus, and immediately was reading her Bible, instead of playing on her tablet.’ 

Earlier this year, one of our team met a man who told the story of hearing God call him to be a missionary when he was a child at Spring Harvest. He wrote a letter to his mum with the details. She still had that letter years later when he told her he was going to work with Mission Aviation Fellowship. Now he is serving remote communities around the world.

The seeds that generosity plants now turn into something beautiful in the future.

Mountain-top moments

It is the mountain-top moments with God, these out-of-the-ordinary experiences, that can sustain our faith in the more mundane months and years ahead of us. It is when we step out of the ordinary, committing time and money to connecting with God in a new way, that he has a chance to shape us for ministry and mission. 

Many plan and save carefully in order to experience these events and I believe God honours that devotion. Many give generously to support others to be able to access these events and I’m sure God blesses that, too. Many of these events only continue because God is calling philanthropists to worship in their way and God must surely delight in their offering.

If we believe maintaining this kind of pilgrimage for our children is important, these methods and more will be required, alongside great care and great prayer. We cannot let it become an opportunity only for the wealthy. As God’s people together, we will have to continue finding ways of making these gatherings accessible for all, just like the one in Nehemiah Chapter 8…

As all ages squeeze into a square at the Jerusalem wall, Ezra reads the Scriptures. The people are helped to understand and they respond in praise and worship, leading to tears. Nehemiah declares that this is a holy moment - a time to celebrate, to share food and make sure no one is excluded, to share the good news and to find their strength in the joy of the Lord. So they begin an almighty knees-up intermingled with mission and evangelism as they connect with God and each other. It’s a beautiful Bible passage, showing the power of a large group encounter with God - a worthwhile pilgrimage.

And long may they continue, thanks to prayerful stewardship of funds and the generosity of God’s people. 

The Spring Harvest Offering is taken on Thursday evening at the event.

All one-off gifts given between 1 April and 30 June are considered part of this offering.

Many give monthly to support the ministry of Spring Harvest and Essential Christian.

We are so grateful for this generosity. It truly makes a difference. We partner with Stewardship for the gift administration which makes a big difference to us, too. Their team do what they do best, allowing us to concentrate on doing what we do best.