When Christmastime rolls around, you might see volunteers standing on the street corners, ringing bells next to a red kettle. You might be inundated with mailers from charities seeking year-end donations.
 
Whether it’s during the holiday season or any time of year, how do we instill in our families the Christian principle that it is more blessed to give than to receive? (Acts 20:35)
 
Here are five ideas to get you started:

1. Develop the heart and lifestyle of giving.
   Encourage your children to give sacrificially of their money, possessions, and time throughout the year. It could be through regular tithing at church, helping to assemble a gift package for the needy, or volunteering at a soup kitchen. Remind them that we give out of love, not reluctantly or out of compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7).
2. Let the kids research a cause to support.
   Give your kids the opportunity to cultivate their passions. This will build their motivation and increase their level of involvement. Maybe your children want to sponsor an orphan in another country. Maybe they want to help the homeless. Find a credible non-profit organization or ministry that fits with their interests.
3. Create an annual family fundraising goal.
   Set a dollar amount and giving date for your family to meet together. Each member can pledge a certain percentage of their income, whether it’s from an allowance, a job, or gifts. Be creative in how you save up the money. You could have a physical piggy bank somewhere in your house. Or you could set up a bank account and track the growing balance.
4. Organize a family fundraising event.
   If Girl Scouts sell cookies and local schools sell candy bars to raise funds, what can your family do to help meet your charitable goal? Some families set up simple lemonade stands. Some families organize community workshops and summer camps. (Check out the Young Musicians Workshop as a great example of this.)
5. Celebrate your impact.
   After your family has made the charitable donation, rejoice in how you have helped others together. If the non-profit organization or ministry you supported sends impact reports, then take some time to read through it together and pray for the people you’re helping. Help your children realize that their sacrificial giving is truly a blessing.

April 27, 2018
Contact: Nancy Nguyen, Founder & President                                   
Agape Fish Fund
nancy@agapefish.org

WESTMINSTER, CA—Agape Fish Fund is pleased to receive the 2018 Gold Seal of Transparency from GuideStar, which demonstrates our commitment to transparency. This is the second year in a row we have earned the Gold Seal. GuideStar is the world’s largest source of information on nonprofit organizations. More than 8 million visitors per year and a network of 200+ partners use GuideStar data to grow support for nonprofits.
​
Commitment to Transparency
In order to get the Gold Seal, Agape Fish Fund shared and updated important information with the public using our profile on www.guidestar.org. Our community members and potential donors can find in-depth information about our goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress. We’re shining a spotlight on the difference we help make in the world. Find us on GuideStar at: www.guidestar.org/profile/81-3407033.

About Agape Fish Fund
Agape Fish Fund is a Christian 501(c)(3) US non-profit organization founded in 2016 in California. Our mission is to support kingdom ministries in East Asia to impact the world as Jesus commissioned. The ministries we partner with share our values—wanting to help impoverished children and families in practical and holistic ways, which includes improving their quality of life and helping them know Jesus more. Our goal is to connect individuals, communities, and churches in the West with these promising Christian poverty alleviation ministries in East Asia.

About GuideStar
GuideStar USA, Inc. is an information service specializing in reporting on U.S. nonprofit companies. In 2016, its database provided information on 2.5 million organizations. GuideStar’s mission is to revolutionize philanthropy by providing information that advances transparency, enables users to make better decisions, and encourages charitable giving.

###

​December 6, 2017
Contact: Nancy Nguyen, Founder & President                                   
Agape Fish Fund
nancy@agapefish.org

WESTMINSTER, CA—Agape Fish Fund is pleased to receive the Gold Seal of Transparency from GuideStar, which demonstrates our commitment to transparency. GuideStar is the world’s largest source of information on nonprofit organizations. More than 8 million visitors per year and a network of 200+ partners use GuideStar data to grow support for nonprofits.
​
Commitment to Transparency
In order to get the Gold Seal, Agape Fish Fund shared important information with the public using our profile on www.guidestar.org. Now our community members and potential donors can find in-depth information about our goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress. We’re shining a spotlight on the difference we help make in the world. Find us on GuideStar at: www.guidestar.org/profile/81-3407033.

Get ready to make a kingdom impact with us! We'd love to have your support in any of these ways.

Here's the story of how we do that.

​God had been working in the heart of Rev. Thang in Kalaymyo, Burma. He wanted to start an orphanage to care for abandoned children, a place where they could live safely, eat nourishing food, have an education, and most importantly, have a relationship with Jesus as their Savior.

In April 2016, Rev. Thang learned about Biak. He went to the village and brought him home. In May 2016, Thian’s pastor called Rev. Thang and asked him to take her in. The orphanage was established that month to meet the needs of children like these. One by one, Rev. Thang took in 11 orphans in 2016. And he hopes to care for 4 more in 2017.

​You might be wondering, “Is Agape Fish Fund just a middleman between donors and other ministries? Why can’t I just give to those ministries directly?” If you have questions like that, then this post is for you.

​Agape Fish Fund does more than simply raise funds and pass on donations. Our vision is to benefit both the donors and the ministries we partner with in these unique ways.

When you donate through us, we make it easy for you to give for maximum kingdom impact. 

• Convenience: You have a “one-stop shop” for donating to multiple ministries.
  We offer a centralized platform for you to support several different ministries at a time.
• Peace of Mind: You know your donations arrive in the right hands.
  We provide impact reports to show how your dollars were used to help people in need. We even travel to the field to follow up with the ministries and ensure faithful financial stewardship.
• Invest in Ministry Growth: You help ministries that are still maturing. 
  You’re probably familiar with those big-name, well-established ministries. But there are numerous lesser-known ministries that are doing meaningful work and need more support. Those are the ones we partner with. We identify and screen these promising ministries to ensure they are credible and impactful.

​The crowds thronged after Jesus. He was healing the sick. He was speaking words of truth. He was giving life. 

Setting aside their daily agendas, their workaday lives—and even their own appetites—they followed Him up the mountain that day. All 5,000 of them.

Jesus knew they were starving. And not just spiritually. He knew that their stomachs were growling in ravenous demand.

So he accepted the humble offering from a little boy—the simple meal of five barley loaves and two fish. He gave thanks, and the disciples distributed the food. 

It was a free, all-you-can-eat fish and bread buffet for 5,000 hungry people. And after everyone was stuffed, they still had 12 baskets of leftovers. 

That’s the kind of God we serve.