Season 2 EP22 - Mission Increase, Wally Martinson

Welcome to Season 2 - Episode 22 of The Bridge to Kindness Project Podcast.

On this Episode you will hear from the following organization:

Mission Increase -  Wally Martinson, Area Director                               00:00 - 19:30

Each episode features interviews on how you can be involved, volunteer, donate and make a difference being a part of these non-profits in our region.  To learn how your organization can become a part of The Bridge to Kindness project send an email to theBridgetoKindness@gmail.com.  Thanks for listening!  New episodes air each week at 1pm on Saturdays.

You can also find out about The Bridge to Kindness Project by visiting our website at www.TheBridgetoKindness.com.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:14

Welcome to season two of episode 22 of the Bridge to Kindness Podcast. I'm Ron Smith. This podcast is made possible through the generosity of EPS, signature carpet care, Pathways Financial Credit Union, Expression's Floral Design, and Lindsay Honda. On our website, thebridge tokindness.com, you'll find out more about our mission and have access to links to the organization's websites that we spotlight, as well as an archive of the interviews we have here on the podcast. We would love to hear from you, whether you're a volunteer or you lead a nonprofit organization. You can reach us through the website or email us at thebridgetness at gmail.com. Our guest today is Wally Martinson, Area Director of Central Ohio with Mission Increase. Mission Increase began in 1999 when founders Dale and Gail Stockham and Ron Post responded to God's call to start a nonprofit foundation whose sole purpose was to help ministries grow. At the same time, Dale owned a successful healthcare consulting business, and for years he and Gail had financially supported Christian ministries, including the disaster relief and development organization Ron had founded and led. But they had a growing sense that what ministries needed most was not their short-term donations, but rather biblically based fundraising and leadership training so they could grow and thrive long term and help transform more lives for Jesus. Since its founding, Mission Increase has served more than 10,000 ministries, reaching virtually every corner of the globe, resulting in more than $3 billion in increased kingdom capital. They strive to help donors, nonprofits, and churches steward the resources that God has entrusted to them. They also leverage the resources that God has given Mission Increase for the greatest return on ministry impact. They are all about urgency and accelerating the kingdom impact we can make on this earth. And we hold fast to the truth that God owns everything and provides for our needs. So, Wally, how did you find your calling to do the work you do with Mission Increase?

SPEAKER_01 2:26

I I introduce myself a lot of times as a recovering banker. Banking is my background and finance. Um I but I also I came to Christ with a ministry called Young Life, which is an outreach to high school kids. And so um when the Young Life job opened up and where I live here in West Central Ohio, um uh felt like the Lord calling me to take that. My wife and I are newly married and looking to do full-time ministry, so did that for a little while, and then we got called to the mission field with a group called Youth with a Mission. So I went from banking to youth work to missions work. I I think my in-laws saw my myself working my way down the career ladder. But wouldn't you know that missions work and youth work and banking are all a part of what I'm able to do today, which is come alongside, help ministry leaders and churches grow. I use those skills pretty much every day. I didn't know that was God's training program for me, but turned out it was. So I I I'm very grateful for that.

SPEAKER_00 3:32

With such an amazing background, how have you seen that experience make an impact with the nonprofits you have a chance to work with?

SPEAKER_01 3:39

With Mission Increase, what we do, Ron, is we come alongside um organiz Christian organizations and churches and help them basically help them grow. Um, our our saying was we want to help world changers change the world. And so a lot of times um there's great ideas, great vision, powerful calls, but gosh, how do I communicate this better? How do I build a board of trustees? How how do I build a uh a volunteer team? How do I have a great fundraising event? All of these important things pop up on the screen, and it makes it um pretty challenging because um most people didn't sign up to do the ministry they're doing so they could because they couldn't wait to have board meetings, you know. So we we come alongside of them and basically help them build their toolbox, you know, put tools in their toolbox, help them how to use these tools to help them build the capacity. So again, it's it can be finance work, it can be, you know, I know when I was on Young Life staff, uh a lot of it was about recruiting volunteers, so how to recruit volunteers. They're just just little things that add up to big things that really keep not only keep somebody in ministry, but allows them to grow as well as the ministry grows.

SPEAKER_00 5:01

Share with us about Mission Increase and how every day you're working with the nonprofit community.

SPEAKER_01 5:06

Mission Increase is an international ministry um focused primarily in the United States. There's 29 chapters of us. Um my wife Ann and I we serve in the central, west central Ohio area. So Franklin County, Central Ohio, West Central Ohio, Miami Valley is our purvey. And we basically come alongside ministry leaders by doing workshops, um, one-on-one coaching sessions, and small group sessions. So we'll pick a given topic, like how how to really disciple your donors would be a topic. And then we would do a workshop on it in our different locations. We have workshops in Columbus, Springfield, and Xenia. Um, and then um we have a pretty potent online presence. People can go to missionincrease.org to check us out. But um, people can sign up for free. Our services are at no charge to ministry leaders and churches we get to serve, which is a real privilege to say that. There are people that are underwriting our work, and the people that are underwriting our work are also investing in these churches and ministry leaders and their communities as well. So um, yeah, so people kind of onboard through the through our online platform, sign up, no charge. Um, you get access to our workshops, our web, our our webinars, our small group sessions, and one-on-one coaching.

SPEAKER_00 6:31

Where's the most need today with nonprofit leadership?

SPEAKER_01 6:35

Excellent question, Ron. And that's that it's hard to pin it down to one thing, but I'll I'll I'll share this kind of as an allegory um or as an example. Um when we go to Kroakers for for our shopping, there's normally like a sale, like $1.99 milk, and the but they put it in the back of the store. So you have to walk through everything else to get there to get to the milk. Most people, when they come to us, they need help with their fundraising. And that that is that that's not just a felt need, that is a real need. But what we really discover is that there is a theology of we call it transformational giving. But there's we we we tend to not have a right view of resources. We, you know, it's like ministry, ministry, ministry. Uh-oh, I'm about out of money. So I feel like I have to take off my ministry hat and put on my quote unquote fundraising hat. You know, try to get to know rich people, learn to play golf. You know, what Wally, tell me what we can do to get more money into our mission. And we just have to back the boat up a little bit and say, okay, wait a minute. Let how let's just think about what does what does God have to say about money and giving and fundraising? And I really see that as uh uh uh almost like a God charism that He's given mission increase to really talk in a meaningful way about money and giving and fundraising that is actually freeing instead of you know feeling like a big weight on us. Can you share with us where you've seen that happen? We've been doing this 15 years now. So we we've worked with hundreds of ministries. I can think of one that really pretty significant ministry in Columbus College Ministry. They were working with international students and just doing a great job with that. They were growing. Of course, what what's the saying? If if failure doesn't kill you, success might, you know, like as they were growing, they were dealing with some new challenges, bigger banquets. I don't know any more people. How are we going to grow this mission? And as we kind of were working through these mission increase principles, we call them again transformational giving principles, we realized that people were driving in from other communities in Ohio to help fund the Columbus ministry, when in effect what if this ministry could equip people to do ministry in Bowling Green, in Toledo, in Cleveland. Instead of asking people to drive in to help me do something, what if it's not what I want from my donor, it's what I want for my donor. So what does it what would it look like for for us to help equip people to maybe start their own chapters for international students in their community? And that by God's grace, that really started taking off. And and this ministry is now in, I think, I think they're on 50 campuses around the country now. So it's just it's really become a move of God. And I'm not saying mission increase was a big part of that, but I it was fun to kind of be a little intel chip in their supercomputer, you know, to kind of help them see ministry as how can we take our cause and make it a movement versus it just being something that we're doing, you know, just for us. That and that that that there was some pain points there, but it was it's just been a blessing really to see them grow like that.

SPEAKER_00 10:08

When we come back, we'll talk with Wally about what it means to be generous in a very unique way. That comes your way next. As the Bridge to Kindness Podcast continues, I'm Ron Smith. We'll be right back.

SPEAKER_02 10:30

You're listening to the Bridge to Kindness Podcast. Today's episode is made possible through the generosity of EPS, Pathways Financial Credit Union, Signature Carpet Care, Expressions Floral Design, and Lindsay Honda. For additional information about today's guests and the organizations we spotlight, go to www.thebridge tokindness.com. That's thebridge tokindness.com. To reach us, you can email us at thebridge tokindness at gmail.com. We would love to hear from you whether you want to nominate an organization to be on our show or share with us your own experience in the nonprofit industry. That's thebridge tokindness at gmail.com.

SPEAKER_00 11:29

Welcome back to the Bridge to Kindness Podcast. I'm Ron Smith. With us is Wally Martinson, Area Director of Central Ohio for Mission Increase. Wally, how has this work impacted you and your life?

SPEAKER_01 11:41

As I find myself, you know, teaching in the workshops or doing the one-on-one coaching, the Lord keeps reminding me by his spirit, like, Wally, you have to eat your own cooking. Like, how how are you being a more generous person? And um, I I I've learned generosity the hard way a little bit, Ron. I I I always remember a story a friend of mine was in the mission field for a number of years with athletes in action. And he was always, long story short, he was always complaining because he was working with world-class tennis players and golfers and always complaining about their they were stingy because they only had they only felt like they had a few earning years and they had to have that for the rest of their life and they weren't giving. And so my missionary buddy to those people was complaining how about their lack of generosity, and the Holy Spirit asked my buddy, Well, how about you? How are you being more generous? And he's like, Well, what do you mean? I've given my life to you. No, no, I'm I'm talking about your checkbook, Eddie. How how how's that going? Uh Lord, yeah, I guess not very good. Lord instructed him, Ron. Eddie, I want you to give one percent, start at 10% and give one percent more every year until I take you home or I come back. I said, Eddie, how long have you been doing this? He said, Oh, about 18 years. So I mean, he started out at 10% and then gave 11% and 12% and 13%. Now he said 28%. I'm like, Eddie, how does that feel? He said, Wally, I pray for Jesus to come back every day. To make a personal run, my wife I'm not saying my wife and I are perfect in terms of what I just shared, but that that's been a goal for us is to continue just to give a little bit more every year. And it's not just our treasure, you know, it's our time, our talent, our testimony. Lord, let me be an example of what generosity looks like. And that that that I think that would be a prayer for all of us, you know, in our churches and on our leadership teams of our ministries. Lord, teach me how to be more generous because God He is generous. God so loved the world he gave. So that that that's kind of been a personal impact for me.

SPEAKER_00 13:56

How can people get involved and join you on this journey?

SPEAKER_01 13:59

The the easiest way, I think, Ron, for people to get a hold of us is just go to our website, missionincrease.org. Um on the top bar on the homepage, it'll say locations, just click that. The drop down will be Central Ohio. All of our information is there. Um and and I would say the best way people can help is really just share, share what we do. Um well, prayer, first of all, you know, just to be be praying for the ministry leaders, be praying for the pastors. The the these servant leadership jobs are really difficult. They need a lot of prayer, a lot of support. Support your local pastor, support the ministry leaders. They're they're really trying hard. They're they're not perfect, but be praying for them. And then um, yeah, just um share the word about who mission increases with uh with your pastor, with your uh ministry leader. Um again, whether it's Young Life, Youth for Christ, Fellowship Christian Athletes, homeless ministries, anti-sex trafficking, um, any sort of neighborhood ministry, you know, obviously, Ron, all the work you're doing with Bridge. Um, you know, let's just kind of get the word out that there's these resources available.

SPEAKER_00 15:16

As we wrap up our time together, Wally, you have a great perspective on looking at this type of work and how it is vital for organizations today. Can you share with us how we can look at nonprofits and service organizations in a new way and a new definition of what it means to be generous?

SPEAKER_01 15:33

I just really want to encourage people to think of um giving uh and fundraising in a different sort of way. Um one of the things I didn't share with my background is that banking, youth work, and missions work all came together. And I worked for a number of years at a Christian foundation, and we were raising it's basically a Christian United way. And we were raising a lot of money for ministry in our community, and I ended up getting burnt out doing that because of I I just kept seeing it as the pressure was on me and pressure was on us to raise more money. The board would raise the goal every year. By God's grace, we made our budget the year before. Now, God, how are you gonna do it? So when when when I discovered mission increase, I realized that they actually talk about giving as not some dirty thing we have to do to get to the good stuff, but it giving actually is the good stuff and and I I think about it in terms of church, Ron, because most of the times in church, for most churches, not all, but most churches when it comes time, for example, to take um receive the offering, what do we share with our visitors? Hey, put your money away. You know, giving is just something that members do. And I think the unattended concept, I know why we do that, because we don't want to look like we're money grubbing, you know, that's what we're all about. I I I understand the felt need there, but we if giving is really like something to be learned, like a spiritual discipline to be developed, we would never say that about any other spiritual discipline at church, like when it was time for prayer. Okay, everybody, okay, visitors, we're getting ready to pray now. Now don't pray. Because praying is just something that members do. You know, we're getting ready to worship, but don't worship ca like like we put giving in this weird box of like it's it's like a it's like a have to thing. And and I I love Bridget Kindness and what you guys are doing, and just the idea of like being kind with our resources, like knowing that God's given our resources to Stuart, and we want to teach people how to do that, not shy away from it, and not talk. We want to actually talk more about it in a way that Jesus would talk about it. When Jesus talked about giving, it it was an adventure. Hey, give a little bit of oil, you know, take the coin out of the fish's mouth, file your 1040 with Rome, come follow me, kind of thing. Like that that's the journey that I I was able to go on, and still am going on, obviously, with mission increase. So that that I think for everybody who's listening, just really lean into what does it mean to be generous, you know, and and how generosity and peace and generosity uh thank and thankfulness go together. Thankfulness is a great antidote to anxiety, like like God's made us to be givers. And so really to kind of dive into that. That that that that's on my heart this morning, Ron.

SPEAKER_00 18:39

That brings to a close this edition of the Bridge to Kindness podcast. This podcast is made possible through the generosity of EPS, signature carpet care, Pathways Financial Credit Union, Expression's Floral Design, and Lindsay Honda. Special thanks to Wally Martinson with Mission Increase for being with us today. Take a moment and think about how you can engage with a nonprofit or service organization in your community to make a difference to those around you. Join us again on our next episode, and we'll profile more individuals and nonprofits in the Columbus region and share how they can help people and how you can be involved. Until then, from all of us at the Bridge to Kindness, I'm Ron Smith. Make a difference, make an impact.