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It's Chocolate AND Children, Says empty tomb®, inc.'s Mission Match®

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NEWS PROVIDED BY
empty tomb, inc.
May 4, 2021
  
CHAMPAIGN, Ill., May 4, 2021 /Christian Newswire/ -- The choice is not between enjoying chocolate and reducing global child deaths, says empty tomb, inc.'s Mission Match project. It can be a both/and success story.
 
Americans spend about $30 billion a year on chocolate. In 2018, that amounted to $91 a person, for example. empty tomb's Mission Match is designed to help church members want to give another $106 to help, in Jesus' name, reduce global child deaths.

Here is a list of average annual per person spending statistics in the U.S.:

  • Chocolate (2018): $91 
  • Greeting cards (2020): $21
  • Teeth whitening (2015): $34
  • Self-storage Units (2020): $120
  • Jewelry and watches (2018): $251
  • Soft drinks (2020): $815

The Mission Match effort is designed to show church members can have their chocolate and save more children's lives, too.

According to an analysis in empty tomb's The State of Church Giving through 2018, $16 billion a year is needed for church people to help, in Jesus' name, stop 1.2 million under-5 child deaths each year. That works out to $106 a year per church member.

That amount would be even less if empty tomb's Mission Match is able to provide a matching amount. The cost would then be $53 per church member.

Since 2002, congregations that designed mission projects of any type could apply for matching funds from Mission Match.

As of 2018, the Mission Match focus has shifted to reducing the number of child deaths in 40 countries. These 40 countries were behind the curve in meeting their 2015 target reduction goals for preventing child deaths. Now the goal is to help these countries reach target reduction goals by 2025.

The problem does not seem to be that the children are too expensive to save, given the spending statistics above. The problem seems to be one of vision and leadership, according to empty tomb, inc.

So empty tomb is working to locate entrepreneurial philanthropists who can help roll out the Mission Match vision. Through Mission Match, churches are encouraged to support projects through a distribution channel of their choice. The projects are focused on reducing, in Jesus' name, child deaths in one of the 40 countries. The churches then apply for Mission Match matching funds, provided by the small group of venture philanthropists. A total of $9.412 billion is the goal to match churches' projects, and to lay the groundwork for an expanded source of matching funds.

More information about Mission Match can be found at missionmatch.org. The 40 Countries page lists the focus countries, and the Both/And page describes the potential for making a difference.

The 30th edition in empty tomb's series, The State of Church Giving through 2018: What If Jesus Comes Back in 2025? (December 2020), is available from Wipf and Stock Publishers.

Reference Resources:

SOURCE empty tomb, inc. 

CONTACT: Sylvia Ronsvalle, 217-356-9519, research@emptytomb.org
 


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