A Letter of Thanks and Request for Support
How to become a patron of Children's Ministry research
Dear Reader,
Thank you for being a subscriber to The Child in God’s Church SubStack.
I've been greatly humbled and encouraged that you have found and followed this newsletter and regularly read the various articles and links that I have posted over the last few months. I have particularly been encouraged by the enthusiasm that many of you have shown for the launch of The Child in God's Church book and in my writing and research ministry.
I would love to continue to use some of my time outside of the local ministry of Soul Revival Church and lecturing at Youthworks College to think, read, write, and present on children's ministry and child faith formation research.
However, doing this (especially the 'presenting' bit) will only happen with the financial support of others. To see whether it is viable to spend time on this research, I'm testing the waters with two possible funding streams.
The first is through paid subscriptions here on SubStack. As a free subscriber, you can upgrade your subscription to a monthly ($8), annual ($80), or 'Patron of Kids Min' ($240) subscription, which will give you access to all the writing, pondering, etc., that I post on this account. You can upgrade through the link at the top of the article.
You could also share this SubStack with others who you believe will benefit from reading and thinking more about children in the church.
The second option is a one-off donation through this GoFundMe link. The target amount on that site would cover much of my travel and accommodation costs for the Intergenerate Conference in Kentucky in June. Many of you will know that this conference and the collegial friendships I've made through it have greatly shaped my thinking and writing on this key area. Donating through this particular campaign may be an option for you if you are keen to support my research but cannot commit to a regular subscription.
I realise that this is a bold and self-indulgent request. I also realise that many household budgets, like my own, are tight and there is very little pocket change. I'm not asking out of desperation. Spending time researching and presenting at an international conference is a luxury, not a necessity. However, as there may be some who are in a position to support this part of my vocation, I ask.
In humility,
Tim