Missions 101

Anthony Bradley at the Acton Institute Blog writes:

The second-hand clothing industry in parts of Africa is big business. In fact, many charities receive substantial revenue from the sale of this clothes. Why buy a t-shirt for 10 dollars when you can buy one for 32 cents? These trends should come as no surprise to Americans because consignment shops and thrift stores are plentiful. However, the difference is that in many parts of Africa second-hand clothing is the primary means of buying clothes and is, therefore, inadvertently stifling the growth of local African economies. Sadly, charities are playing a role in killing this growth.

Read the rest of the article here.

If you are interested in more articles, Philemon Yong has written a post on hurting the church in Romania.

Here are some interesting statistics from chapter 1 of Toxic Charity: How Churches and Charities Hurt Those They Help (And How to Reverse It)

• Africa has recieved $1 trillion in benevolent aid in the last 50 year and per-capita income is now lower, life expectancy has stagnated and adult literacy is lower.
• 85% of aid money flowing to African countries never reaches the targeted areas of need.
• U.S. missions teams who rushed to Honduras to help rebuild homes destroyed by Hurricane Mitch spent on average $30K per home - homes locals could have built for $3K each.
• The money spent by one campus ministry to cover the costs of their Central American mission trip to repaint an orphanage would have been enough to hire two local painters and two new full-time teachers and purchase new uniforms for every student in the school.

Jamie Wright writes:

You can read the whole article here.

Here is an interesting find by FoxNews (no political crankiness please). It lists 12 charities run by celebrities and breaks down where they money actually goes. For most, the results are not good. I have put an asterick next to the ones that seem to be managing their money well.  The charities that make this list:

1. The One Campaign - Bono

2. Andre Agassi Foundation 

3. Michael J. Fox Foundation**

4. The Michael Phelps Foundation**

5. The Rainforest Foundation - Sting

6. Baby Buggy - Jerry and Jessica Seinfield**

7. The Dr. Phil Foundation

8. The Larry King Cardiac Foundation

9. Make it Right Foundation - Brad Pitt**

10.Elton John AIDS Foundation **

11. The American Foundation for Courtesy and Grooming - Letterman**

12. Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation**

On a recent trip to Romania (I am intentionally keeping things vague), I met a man who had been a pastor for over 15 years before his church sent him away.

As I got to know this man through several interactions, it became painfully obvious to me that he has given a sanitized picture of himself to the people outside of his area. He is well known among key pastors in the US, and his reputation here is positive, but the testimony about him in his own area is very poor.  Over the years, he has received lots of help from the US (thousands of dollars) for a ministry that is really not there (it exists only in name). He has used his connections with the US as a way of lording it over the people of his church and pastors in the area where he works. In fact, he was not happy that our work in the city was not directed through him. He is feared among local pastors.

Though he has received so much moneyfrom America, this man has not been helpful to the church in his own city. Instead, he is a problem among the pastors in his demand for their submission to him. He is lazy (so the local pastors say), but wants to be in control none the less. The question pastors in this place are asking is, “Why do people in America keep sending him money?”

Is it not the case that by supporting this man, we, in America, are hurting the church in this particular city? And not only the church but also the individual. He sees no need to labor for the growth of the church in his city. Why should he? He is able to set up fake ministries to get money. The kind of help he needs is not one that money can provide.

Thought: It is not a good idea to send money to people we have not met or whose ministries we have not witnessed first-hand.

Winning the big one does not guarantee anything.

Jack Whittaker: This West Virginia businessman won $315 million in the Powerball lottery in 2002, the largest jackpot ever from a single ticket in American history at the time. After being robbed of $545,000 in cash while at a strip club, Whittaker's granddaughter and daughter were later found dead, and Whittaker was sued by Caesars Atlantic City casino for bouncing $1.5 million worth of checks to cover gambling losses.

Juan Rodriguez: This New York City parking attendant was earning less than $30,000 in 2004 when he won $149 million in a Mega Millions drawing. But soon after taking the lump sum option of $88 million, his wife filed for divorce and was awarded half of his winnings.

Fred Topous, Jr.: Topous won $57 million, the seventh-largest jackpot in Michigan state history in June 2008, but eventually took a $33 million lump sum. The convicted sex offender, who was released from prison in 2006, needs to register as a sex offender until 2024.

Billy Bob Harrell, Jr.: This preacher working as a stockboy at Home Depot struck it rich in 1997, winning $31 million in Texas' lottery. Some 20 months later, after divorcing his wife and buying a half-dozen homes for relatives, he committed suicide using a shotgun.

Jeffrey Dampier: In 1996, Dampier and his wife won $20 million in Illinois' lottery and used the money to buy relatives homes and to start a gourmet popcorn shop in Florida. Nine years later, Dampier was kidnapped and killed by his sister-in-law and her boyfriend who targeted him for money.

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Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/03/29/lotterys-biggest-losers-big-wins-dont-equal-better-lives/#ixzz1qcD5cyMe