Boycott boycotting: Support instead – Part 2

Note: If you haven’t already read Boycott Boycotting: Part 1, I’d suggest you check that out first. Otherwise, jump in.

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Most of you won’t do anything this article says.

You’ll remember Part 1. Part 1, as you recall, was about why Christians should quit boycotting. The title bluntly calls for a boycott of boycotts. You’re on board for that.

This second part, however, is about supporting. Most of you don’t like supporting. Supporting means actually doing something.

But I write this for the few of you who do choose to support instead. For you, I’m giving five reasons to support and some examples of how to do it that actually make a difference. After all, that’s why you wanted to boycott, isn’t it?

So why support instead? Until now, I’ve only given reasons to dump boycotting. To be true to this belief though, I need to give you some reasons to convert to supporting. Coming right up…

5 Powerful Reasons to Support

It’s Biblical, effective, reputable, direct, and helpful. Let me explain…

1) Support is Biblical

There are hundreds of verses that support support. Some examples:

“I have shown you in every way, by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.'” – Acts 20:35

“But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you…” – Luke 6:27

Later in the same chapter, Jesus reveals what He means by ‘doing good’ in this previous section.

“But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.” – Luke 6:35

Sounds a lot like support to me. Yes, the Bible does tell us to wipe the dust off our feet in towns that don’t accept the Gospel, but remember, the primary commandment was to go, make disciples, baptize, and teach. If that’s not support, I don’t know what is.

2) Support is effective

I’m going to play on your personal experience for a moment.

Think back to a time when someone affected you. Maybe that person showed you a new insight into God’s word, or maybe it was something more trivial. Has someone convinced you see a movie, read a book, or take up a particular hobby or habit recently? Maybe someone convinced you to get out of bed this morning.

It doesn’t really matter what it was. Now consider what actually convinced you.

We are convinced of normal things in life through support.

Apart from political or religious activism, which has come to be associated boycotts, supporters usually convince us. Let me give you an example.

3) Support is reputable

Quick survey: Would you rather be known for what you like or what you dislike, what you love or what you hate? Boycotts tell the world what you dislike, what you detest. Supporting, however, shows what you love.

Reputation matters for marketers. In a way, as Christians, we’re called to market the Gospel in that we’re called to spread the good news. Reputation matters for us. Remember the “they’ll know us by our love” verse?

No one listens to people who offer nothing positive. More precisely, people listen to those who are known for offering positive direction.

4) Support is direct

I preached on this in the first part of this series, but it’s worth repeating. Boycotts are indirect. They rely on others to act to change something. Support is direct. It’s an action that affects problems directly instead of trying to prod others to be the catalysts.

5) Support is more helpful

Say you’re trying to learn how to make cranberry sauce. A friend offers to help by showing you a recipe… that’s lousy. Your friend hasn’t help much. The advice only saves you the trouble of trying that recipe only to find that it taste like red Jell-O. You still have the hastle of finding a good recipe.

You would have preferred your friend to give you her “quick and easy yet totally scrumptious” cranberry sauce recipe.

In life, we’re on a quest for what to do, not what not to do.

That’s the crux of this whole series. As Christians, we’re in the ‘what ought to be’ business. We’re in the New Testament now. We’re not called to be not bad. We’re called to be good.

Now here’s the hard part – the reason so few choose support:

Support Requires Giving

Giving, unless it’s giving of the pain-n-suffering variety, is uncommon. In fact, it’s downright unnatural. As fleshly beings, we are designed to horde. It’s that survival instinct.

As spiritual beings, though, we are designed to give. Thus, support is a way of embracing our spiritual nature and throwing off our fleshly nature (That’s a bit “New Age” sounding, but it’s true).

To take supportive action then, bondChristians can operate in three broad areas to benefit causes. Each area requires giving.

1) Give money

This is the one you’ve heard about all your life. Donate here, donate there. Donate signs are everywhere. Money is popular because it’s so liquid, that is, it can be transferred and used for many different transactions. And, it can be transferred electronically over a long distance almost immediately.

Further, the beauty of money is that everyone accepts it (even if they don’t say they do).

The drawback of offering financial support is that it can be fairly boring. Ching, ching, and the money’s gone, never to be seen again. You can trust that the money is going to a good cause, assuming you’ve researched well, but it is rather dull otherwise.

The remedy?

Get creative. Do some research. Google makes this fairly simple. Make specific donations. That is, try to pick specifically what the money is going to be used to do. For example, don’t simply give money to a firehouse to be spent in any which way. Instead pick something the firehouse needs and buy that instead. Better yet, if it’s too expensive, gather a group of friends and buy it with them.

Of course this could seem to be counterproductive in that we already established that one of the advantages of money is its ability to be used in for many different purposes, leaving the recipient more options.

However, which is better: a one-time gift that may be used in innumerable ways, or a continual flow of gifts that are focused on specific purposes?

If you’re creative, giving money can be a lot easier than you might expect, which means you’ll tend to give often.

Another tip for doing this is, once you find an organization to support, make that your go-to organization. If you have to re-research every time you give money, you’ll be less likely to give. But if you know exactly who you’re giving to and can make small donations easily, you’ll be much more likely to give.

Money Suggestions

~ Fund missionaries: I recommend Gospel for Asia. They train and send local missionaries so we get the most bang for our buck. Through them, a missionary can be supported for as little as $30 a month (or you can make lump sum payments for Bibles, tracks, bicycles, or other equipment that is used.) Even buying three Bibles a month is a positive action. Don’t let smallness intimidate you. It still makes a difference.

~ Buy groceries for a family:

~ Sponsor: You know all those people who walk around in circles for some noble cause? Usually they have sponsors, meaning for every mile they walk, their sponsor donates a certain amount. Try sponsoring someone. Even if you only donate a dollar for every mile, you, your sponsored walker, and whatever cause you’re supporting will benefit.

2) Give stuff

Have a heart for the poor? Give them some of your excess stuff. You know you have enough as it is. Consider giving away some of your blankets or jackets. Places like the Salvation Army are great for this, but I also suggest just walking down an inner-city street and give out things personally. You’ll find the experience much more rewarding, and you’ll be able to share the Gospel directly.

What about that old printer you don’t use but still works? Could you give it to a small Christian organization?

Tip: Don’t make it seem like charity. You’re not supporting people because they can’t do it alone (though that may be the case as well). You’re supporting because you want to be involved in making a difference, in helping people. Give as gifts, not as duty.

Stuff Suggestions

Give away…

~ Books: either to a library or, even better, to friends you know will read them.

~ Clothes: particularly useful for people during the winter.

~ Furniture: coffee tables, book cases, pictures… you don’t need every single one.

~ Movies: don’t take entertainment for granted. Some movies you’ll never watch again anyway.

What else do you have lying around?

3) Give abilities

This is my personal favorite. Most of the time, I don’t have much money or stuff, but I always have abilities. Giving abilities is also a much more personal approach to support. Your abilities usually match your personality more than your money or your furniture. Support with personality is a bonus for this category.

This is a fun one to do with others. If you’re a good cook for example (which I’m not), consider combining forces with someone else. Your friend can make dessert and buy everything, and you can cook the turkey and mashed potatoes and give them away.

Ability Suggestions

This is a little difficult for me because I don’t know what your abilities are. For this one, you’ll probably need to make up your own. However, I’ll throw some out there for you to consider:

~ Attend events like soccer games, concerts, or plays where your friends are involved.

~ Write to the editors of a newspaper, a magazine, or a blog to give Christian perspectives on current issues.

~ Teach someone how to do something that you’re good at (e.g. cooking, bike riding, windshield wiper changing, etc.).

~ Help a family move.

These three ways to support (with money, with stuff, and with abilities) can also be exchanged for one another. For example, you could use your abilities to earn extra money to give or to buy stuff to give. Or you could sell some of your stuff and give the money. You get the idea.

Ways to support are easy find if you look. Most times, I think we assume that it’s too hard, not worth the effort, so we don’t bother.

We should bother though.

Final Thought

You might have noticed that boycotts in general are against comities or organizations. Support, on the other hands, is for individual people.

You give a book to someone. You support a missionary. You encourage someone to pursue a creative career.

Support is given on a personal level, while boycotts are against impersonal establishments. As Christians, we are to work at the personal level. At certain times, mass evangelism is appropriate, but our primary focus should be on individual people.

[Glenn Packiam published an excellent excerpt from his book online on this topic of focusing on individual people rather than the masses. The book it called “Why Loving The World Is A Waste Of Time”, and I’d recommend reading at least the excerpt if you have a chance.]

Conclusion

Getting back to the verses I quoted in the first part of this series, Jesus said:

“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you…” – Matthew 28:19-20

Does that look like a boycott to you? Me neither. It looked far more personal, far more caring. It looks like a way to equip and support others.

It looks like a ‘how to love’ formula.

For the few of you who’ve made it this far in this article, you’re way ahead of the rest. But there’s still the doing to be done. Reading this by itself isn’t going to do anything for you.

You’ll set yourself apart from the rest of the world for Christ when you take action.

Serving Suggestions:

(1) Get off the computer right now and think of a way you can support (or borrow one from this article). It doesn’t need to be big. It doesn’t need to be fancy. Just show someone your support in a little way for now.

(2) Do it within one hour from now. By starting small, you’ll be able to better train yourself to make support a habit instead of a chore.

(3) Tomorrow plan something bigger and repeat the second suggestion.