That's a Wrap! 2019 Year End.
Dear Guitars For Glory Friends & Family,
We hope you all have had a beautiful 2019. We cannot believe we’re wrapping up year six and entering into our seventh year as an organization. As we reflect on all that has been accomplished over the last six years, we can’t help but recognize God’s provision. As an organization completely run by volunteers, the progress that has been made is clearly nothing short of a miracle. This year you helped us place over 65 guitars with people who needed them most! But we’re not finished yet. Two days from now we’ll be making the final push to send out another 14 before year-end. While each guitar recipient carries a unique story, I wanted to share about one specific recipient that has impacted us deeply this year.
Every week we receive a handful of applications from people all over the world making a request for an instrument. We carefully sort through each application and use our best discernment to qualify and validate each request. Earlier this year we were able to place a guitar with a young man in India. When he submitted an application, he had no idea this gift was going to come at just the right time. This young man in his mid-20’s has never owned his own guitar, but has a passion for music and worship. The guitar took about six months to make it to its final destination. During those six months, this young man had his life turned upside down. We received an email from him just a couple days after he received the guitar. The email contained a video of our recipient playing guitar and worshipping next to a man laying in bed, clearly clinging to life. He was shaking, in tremendous pain, but still had his hands raised! The video instantly brought me to tears. I wanted to share his email with you all.
"I want to share with you that it (the guitar) has been a blessing already, especially with the first song I played on it. My family has been through a storm the last couple of months. In November, my dad (the man laying down on his bed in the video) fell seriously ill, in December we came to know that dad has prostate cancer in its fourth stage and it has spread to his spine. My mother was doing fine, suddenly last week, she had a heart attack and God called her home. Our family has been a mess. We are battling with so much at this moment.So yesterday I took the guitar home and opened it in front of my dad. He prayed and dedicated it. We thanked God for GFG and I asked him, "Dad, what song should we sing" and without any hesitation, my dad said, “son, sing Give thanks".All this is to testify that GFG has impacted me and my family from the very first time I played the guitar. You can't believe what a timely encouragement this gift has been. I must thank my GFG family, for there are times I look at the guitar and admire and thank God for his love through your obedience."
In the midst of pain and sorrow, this young man and his father’s first response was to worship and give thanks to God. What a testimony. These stories serve as beautiful reminders of why we continue to ship these wood boxes with steel strings to some of the most remote parts of the world.
You haven’t just helped build a ministry. You’ve done so much more than that. Your support has helped create a community that cares for each other in ways I could have never imagined. You’ve helped create a family that has bridged the gap between those who share faith and those that don’t. Your generosity has been the catalyst to deep, meaningful, and intentional conversations about why Guitars For Glory exists. This year, more than any other year, God has opened doors for GFG to touch people in some of the darkest points of their lives. This is not because we’re good at what we do or because we’re super strategic in our planning, but because you’ve been faithful to support the work we’ve been called to.
In the not-for-profit world, there is a lot of talk around the importance of “donor retention.” How do we inspire our current givers to continue giving or even increase giving? Perhaps you believe that is why you’re receiving this letter. The first few years of our existence, we spent more time worrying about this hot topic. I’ll admit, it’s important. If we’re not bringing in the cash, how can we send guitars? However, we’ve realized over the last couple years that so many organizations are backwards in their approach. The most valuable thing we can receive from someone is their heart, not what’s in their wallet. Someone once asked me, “Would you rather have one supporter give GFG one million dollars, or have one million people give one dollar each.” A good businessman would say that it’s a lot easier and more efficient to manage one person than it would be to manage one million people for the same amount of money. But that smart businessman would also be missing out on 999,999 relationships. Relationships are everything. People are everything. This is what we cherish most. Where hearts are aligned, God makes a way.
“If you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”
– African Proverb
This summer you helped bring together over 350 people and multiple businesses from all walks of life. The first ever Eatza Pizza fundraiser was a huge success. Yes, we raised over $10,000 with 100% of proceeds going towards placing the next 40 instruments with people in need around the world. But the biggest win was seeing the faces of people we know that would likely never step foot in a church. People seeking genuine community and wanting to support something bigger than themselves in purposeful ways.
I could go on and on about all the great things that occurred this year, but nobody reads much more than a couple pages of these kinds of letters. So, I’ll leave you with this: You mean the world to us. Your support has literally saved the lives of dozens of people whose new guitars gave them that little bit of hope they needed at just the right time. And your impact hasn’t stopped there. We as a leadership team are only able to do what we do because of the support you give. Thank you for pouring into us. We love you.
Sincerely,
Jeff & the Guitars For Glory Team