Neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 1 Corinthians 3:7
I created Scattered Seed in July 2009 to help small Christian nonprofit ministries. The beginnings of my company, however, trace back much further.
By all accounts, I have been blessed beyond measure. I was raised in a Christian family, who encouraged me to actively give both time and talent to my church and my community. I received full tuition scholarships to both my undergraduate institution (UNC-Asheville) and my law school (UNC). When I passed the bar exam in 2002, I was convinced that I would be working in corporate law. I had a highly coveted clerkship at the North Carolina Supreme Court that I loved, and a job lined up after that at a Raleigh firm. My plans were all laid out, or so it seemed.
God, however, had other plans for me. With the birth of our first child, I realized that I wanted more family time than a typical legal job would provide. I decided to focus most of my efforts on my family. However, I still felt God wanted me to use my education – I just didn’t know how.
So when a friend asked for help starting his nonprofit ministry, I eagerly accepted. Here was something that I could do from home, while raising a family, using the skills that I had worked so hard to achieve to make a difference. That work was followed by more work with a nonprofit school of ministry -- first as a board member, and then as a grant writer. And in these small steps, I finally found my passion : I like to help people and ministries GROW.
It takes more than a vision to begin a nonprofit ministry, more than just a seed. Every good idea must be nurtured. Like the parable of the seed in Matthew 13, the conditions must be exactly right. If there’s nothing feeding the vision, the ministry will quickly die, much as the seed did that fell along the path. Without adequate planning and attention to sustainability, the ministry will fail to take root. But if there’s proper soil with room to grow, the ministry can produce a bountiful crop, “a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” (Matthew 13:8)
Unfortunately, one third of all nonprofits fail within the first five years. For Christian nonprofits, that number is even higher. Growth beyond the initial stages of an organization is impossible without focused attention to fundraising and financial sustainability. Many visionaries, however, struggle with this area and require outside help. The old business adage that you must spend money to make money is true – but most ministries can’t afford the steep fees demanded by nonprofit consultants.
That’s where I come in. My background in business and law has uniquely prepared me to tackle even the toughest of nonprofit challenges, whether it be strategic planning, program development, or fundraising. I’m not a visionary, but I love helping those who are bring their dreams to fruition. My fee structure is flexible, never more than half the going rate of other nonprofit consultants. My goal is to help each organization I work with reach financial sustainability. I don’t want an organization to become dependent on me; I’d much rather teach them how to manage their own growth so that their ministries live on.
And of course, in doing so, the seeds of His Kingdom get scattered further and further!
