Most of us have been downtown, pulled into a parking place, ready to fish out a coin for the meter, only to find there’s still time on it. It kind of feels good. A little guilty pleasure. We’re getting something for nothing. 

But it’s not really something for nothing. Someone else paid for our “free” parking. 

We know many of you reading this support The Catch Ministry every month. Some respond when we have a fundraising campaign. But those who donate represent only about five percent of those we serve. There are plenty of reasons for this. 

We make our services available free of charge. The daily Catches if collected into books would be worth hundreds of dollars a year. Counseling services provided by the Catch, if offered by private counselors, could cost $150 or more per session. That doesn’t even include Church at the Catch open to all without an offering plate, and Music that Matters radio featuring a mix of songs you won’t find elsewhere at any price. 

However, just because the services are offered free of charge, doesn’t mean we don’t have expenses. We have to pay for internet services, website hosting, music mastering, and other types of overhead. 

We make it free to everyone, but it’s not free to produce. 

Others may reason that we have large corporate sponsors or massive amounts of income coming in from commercial sources. We don’t. Our funding comes primarily from our MemberPartners who give an average of $22 a month. Only one in 10 people who read The Daily Catch are MemberPartners. Nine out of 10 are not. 

Likewise, we don’t have a large collection of branded products to sell. Indeed, working on the tight budget we have, we cannot afford the cost of creating those products. We prefer to put our resources into the ministry and not T-shirts. 

Some may think that someone else is going to step up. And maybe they will, but isn’t that kind of like driving around just looking for a meter with some time on it? Is it really fair to take advantage of something “free” because you assume someone else will essentially buy it for you? 

Finally, and this is probably the majority: you just forget. You put it off saying. “I’ll give tomorrow or the next day.” But “the next day” never comes. Don’t lose out on the opportunity to join us in doing the work of God. 

And just think about how good you will feel knowing you are no longer parking on someone else’s dime. 

We are truly looking for donations today. We are still a ways from goal.

Click on the meter to add your amount. Let’s finish this today.

Thanks to those who have given so far.

Merlyn, Goodyear, Arizona

Steve, Nashville, Tennessee

John

Hilbert

Gary

John, Hampton, New Hampshire

Rebecca, Cullman, Alabama

Jimmy & Olivia, Hong Kong

Evangelos

Theresa, Gilbert, Arizona

Cynthia, Harlingen, Texas

John, Coralville, Iowa

Andy

Daryl

Lyn

Marge, Lansing, Michigan

Joe, Sugar Land, Texas

Nancy

Darrell, Nevada, Iowa

Sara, Hopedale, Massachusetts

Darin, Cozad, Nebraska

John, Hawthorn, Australia

Michael, Dayton, Texas

David, Lakeville, Minnesota

crossways.net

Neil, Lancaster, Pennsylvania

David, Liberty Lake, Washington

Roger, Whittier, California

Michael, Sacramento, California

Keith, Berea, Kentucky

Ruth, Artesia, California

Lynn

Susan

Sharyn

John

Sharon, Jackson, Mississippi

Lisa

Robert, Nashville, Tennessee

Paul, Wayne, Pennsylvania

Kent, Bryan, Ohio

Lewis

Drew, Vancouver, Canada

Keith, Portland, Oregon

John, Chicago, Illinois

George, Barefoot Bay, Florida

Markus, Köln, Germany

Christopher, Edwardsville, Illinois

Lynn, Duluth, Minnesota

Garry, Ozark, Arkansas