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Special Letter to Our Fans
Thu., Feb. 20. 2014 11:08am EST
We sent out a special letter to our fans last Saturday. If you missed it, we've included it again below. If you already read that, please proceed to the next article, which will give you an update.
J. Jackson, lead singer and lyricist for ApologetiX here.
This email won't make me look very successful, but "If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness." (2 Cor.11:30)
My wife and I believe in this ministry -- so much that I haven't taken a raise since 2001. We had one child then; we have five now. I also try to take care of the band's other expenses before I pay myself, and I often get paid in small increments.
I still haven't received all of my monthly paycheck that was due December 1, nor any of the paychecks that were due January 1 and February 1.
We'd saved our tax refund check from the previous year, and my wife started a second part-time job with our church last fall. That's helped us survive. However, there are a number of payments coming due now for both the band and my family that we can't pay.
That's pretty embarrassing to report. Rock bands aren't supposed to be needy, but many people get our music for free these days from file sharing, YouTube, and other sources. The message is still getting out; the money just isn't coming in.
Some people think ministries that have to keep asking for money must not be very viable. Nevertheless, we receive encouraging emails every day from people telling us how our music ministers to them and those they share it with.
Earlier this month, a missionary in Asia sent us a donation. Here's an excerpt from a note he sent:
"I honestly support your band alone out of the thousands of Christian bands out there … Most bands "PLAY" at saying they believe in scripture. You guys live it, breathe it, and do all you can to drive home the message that scripture alone carries the message of God ... and I have seen it all."
I believe I'm doing what God has called me to do. I pray a lot, read the Bible daily, and regularly fellowship with other Christians, so the communication lines are open. I love what God is helping us produce, and I'm working harder than ever.
We've tried the standard methods of generating income through special sales (our current 3-for-1 CD sale), new items (songbook, shirts, CDs) and new downloads for a donation. Those do help, but only so much.
At times like these, I've found the most effective approach is to just be honest about our needs. Fans who feel led to give will do so. Fans who can't afford to give will pray.
You probably see the 66,000 members of our fan club and think, "Gee, if everybody just gives a dollar …" Actually, when we send out appeal letters, about 1 out of every 500 people in our fan base respond. If each of THEM gives a dollar, that's $132 total.
It doesn't matter how many respond or who responds – God is the one who provides. I never ever want anybody to feel compelled to give to us. I'm just making our needs known.
Every time we send an email like this out, we get some unsubscribe requests and/or emails telling us we should have more faith or go find another line of work. They're entitled to their opinion, but it's ultimately God's opinion that matters.
If the ministry of ApologetiX has blessed you, and you'd like to help us, any of these four things would help:
1. Pray (it's free, but it's priceless)
2. Order our CDs, songbook, or downloads at http://apologetix.com/store
3. Donate online at: http://apologetix.com/store/store-donate.php
4. Donate by check payable to "ApologetiX" and sent to ApologetiX, 208 Charlemma Drive, Pittsburgh PA 15214-1414
Thanks again. God bless you. This email goes out to all of our fans, so please don't feel any pressure to respond.
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