REDEMPTIVE STRATEGY

We define a clear mission to guide our giving, focusing our attention where “[our] deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” Through learning, discernment, and design, we create a set of theses to help us direct our resources to the most strategic activities and opportunities. Instead of responding to emotional appeals or trusting in our own wisdom, we pray for our work to be the servant of a prophetic imagination, recognizing that God’s plan for the world far exceeds our own vision. 

We design a philanthropic portfolio to achieve the enduring outcomes of our mission. We choose partners and make gifts along a spectrum of risk and across multiple theses, avoiding the temptation to deploy capital only toward prominent ventures.

 

REDEMPTIVE OPERATIONS

We establish gift terms that align with a venture’s objectives and stage, resisting the norm of using financial power to redirect an organization’s goals or unsustainably accelerate its growth. We make gifts in a way that signals our trust in a venture’s ability to use funds wisely to meet their goals. Because our commitment to the venture extends beyond the gift, we dedicate time to understand, pray for, resource, and encourage their work. 

We develop trusting and generative partnerships with peer funders, subject matter experts, and ventures adjacent to the daily work of our grantees, recognizing that no challenging issue can be solved alone. We co-fund key initiatives, develop joint or templated processes, and share learnings and assets—all with particular attention to empowering those who have less access to the influence and authority that normally accompany wealth.

We relate to nonprofit entrepreneurs as whole persons, refusing to treat them merely as delegates of our missional aims. We recognize that launching and growing ventures is an act of great risk and difficulty, and we seek ways to affirm healthy ambition in the leaders we support. We pray for them regularly and invent ways to bless and support them in their personal, spiritual, and professional growth. We communicate clearly and directly, offering open lines to dialogue. 

 

REDEMPTIVE LEADERSHIP

We cultivate a sense of worth that is separate from our role and resources as a funder, and we understand our identity as redeemed and loved by God. We dedicate ourselves to the work of generosity, surrendering to God our influence and discerning ways to give more away. As appropriate, we are transparent with our financial decisions, avoiding the exploitative pitfalls that come with secrecy. We pursue the deep joy of giving as one part of a life of radical dependence on God.