"A global adventure that will take you to the ends of the earth and will also inspire you. "

--Tagline for new TV series, The Philanthropist

The Philanthropist chronicles the heroic adventures of billionaire turned vigilante “Teddy Rist,” a successful and impulsive tycoon who decides to channel his passion, power and money into helping those in need.

The Ambassador family is praying for our own real life philanthropist this week—our Evelyn Gibson is in Africa visiting her Compassion family. While unlike Teddy, she may not be speeding on a motorcycle dodging bullets while carrying a box of vaccines, we praise God for the lives she is helping to save for eternity!

Thank you for joining us in prayer as Evelyn travels with Compassion to Ethiopia (where she will greet Bishaw—a Compassion Graduate). From there, she goes to Tanzania to encourage other families, then it’s off to Mt. Kilimanjaro and finally, to Nairobi. Evelyn takes not only gifts for the children and their families--she goes in prayerful anticipation of planting seeds that will hopefully result in the ultimate gift—eternal life in Christ Jesus.

The verse Evelyn chose for her trip: May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13

Though you won’t catch our Evelyn on NBC this Thursday night, it’s her real-life global adventures which inspire us and make her The Philanthropist!

Welcome Home Nick!

Celebrating with the Mattes Family on the return of Nick Mattes from his tour of duty in Iraq--due home any minute now to an anxious and eagerly awaiting father and mother. We join with many who rejoice in the homecoming of Nick (and other beloved soliders!).

You can catch Nick's first-hand accounts of his experience in Iraq along with other heartfelt stories from soldiers and their parents on the 4th of July radio special, "Life and Liberty: Calling a nation to prayer--for our children!"

As the 4th of July nears, thank you for your prayers for our nation and our troops!

Here Comes the Blog!

Congratulations to our own KiYong and Carolyn on their wedding on Saturday . . . a beautiful morning at Grace Church as we joined family and friends to help the happy couple celebrate their special day—in traditional American custom and Korean fashion.

KiYong and Carolyn shared an ancient Korean custom of Pae-baek in complete colorful costumes. Pae-back is normally a private ceremony between the immediate families in which the bride and groom pay respect to their parents while they are also welcomes into their new respective families.

We await the return of our newlyweds on June 24 . . . in the meantime, Carolyn has embarked on her “expedition to get my name changed from Ms. Carolyn Wallace to Mrs. Carolyn Kim” and Mr. and Mrs. Kim are now on their honeymoon!

It's Fiesta Time!

June is one of my favorite months . . . there's so much to celebrate--from graduation parties to wedding ceremonies!

And for the Ambassador family, this June is extra special as we look forward to celebrating the matrimony of our own KiYong and Carolyn!

Join us as we send them off to wedding bliss by sharing a special Bible verse, helpful hint or some sage wisdom from one married couple to another . . . here’s a few we’re sharing with them at our Fiesta Wedding Shower:

> Pray together (and pray often)!

> Actions truly do speak louder than words; Don't just tell your partner of your love, show it!

> Marriage is a partnership. Commit to each other and to your marriage from day one, and work on your relationship every day.

> Don’t stop dating each other—remember to set aside time to court after the wedding!

What’s your advice for our Bride and Groom?

Straight from the Studio. . .

. . . talk about heroes, their moms and dads and the protection of life. A behind-the-scenes glimpse of the upcoming 4th of July radio special from Life Issues,

"Life and Liberty, Calling a Nation to Prayer--for our Children."

"I’ve been privileged to be part of the production team pulling together the incredible stories of young men and women serving in Iraq and Afghanistan for the Life Issues special coming up 4th of July. This isn’t commercial. It’s the overflow of my heart hearing a mother who’s two sons and a son-in-law are choosing to serve in harm’s way; of a young successful neurologist—a doctor at Walter Reed who doesn’t have to do more than what she’s doing in healing the lives, yet is volunteering to serve in Afghanistan in an airborne medical unit; of a young 22-year-old who’s been a gunner on a Humvee and received citations for being shot at the most and surviving and who says, “I’m here so that just one child can have a life like my daughter has.”

For Brad Mattes and Ellen who’s son Nick (pictured above) is on his way back from Iraq, and who is the catalyst for this special—we are so proud of these young people. You will be too! Today after a recording, we prayed, we shed tears and we rejoiced to be just a small part of this story!" -Evelyn Gibson

"Don't Miss" Museum Experience

Did you know May 18 is "International Museum Day" -- of all those in the world you've undoubtedly visited, which one stands at the top as a "don't miss" experience?

Stu and Nancy Epperson (Salem Communications): At the very top we love the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. Why? Because of the high concentration of the Old Dutch masters (artists) like Jan Van Scorel, Frans Hals, Johannes Vermeer, including our favorite Rembrandt and many, many more. What a feast!

Peggy Campbell (Ambassador): There's just something thoroughly "all American" about Cooperstown ... it evokes memories of listening to Vin Scully on my little transistor radio hunkered under the covers on a summer's eve. Runner up? As a kid who read all the Black Stallion series and worked hard to win a Palomino by cleverly naming one of Trigger's offspring, I was captivated as an adult visiting the museum at Churchill Downs. I once kept a list of Kentucky Derby winners ... hmmm, guess I need to add Mine That Bird!

Jim Sanders (Ambassador): No question . . . Smithsonian: National Air & Space Museum (on the mall and at Dulles). That museum houses all the inventions which were to flight, what the iPhone is to telephony. :)

Robert Jacobsen (Ambassador): The Hermitage in St. Petersburg – It was Kathrin the Great’s Summer Palace and is simply awe-inspiring. Rembrandt’s “The Prodigal Son Returns” moved me unlike any other painting has.

Anna Sinclair (Ambassador): The D’Orsay museum in Paris, France is amazing! It used to be a train station so the architecture of the building is very unique and lofty. When my family and I were there, we were fortunate to see the Degas ballerina sculptures on display – such a great experience!

What's your favorite?

I found out recently I’ll be a grandfather for the very first time. Subsequently, pictures of my little granddaughter, still in the womb, landed on Facebook. Seeing that image was nothing short of overwhelming.

It’s no surprise, then, these days have been filled with reminiscing. In some strange sense, I’m envious of the rich time my daughter and her husband will have with this little girl. I fondly reflect back on the seemingly endless nights reading bedtime stories to my children.

It always amazed me then, as it does now, how often they’d choose the very same story I read the previous night. In fact, we might have gone two weeks in a row reading the identical book. We read some of those volumes so often that, three decades later, I can still recall the first 10 pages of Dr. Seuss’ Star Bellied Sneetches from memory:

“Now the star-bellied Sneetches had bellies with stars
And the plain-bellied Sneetches had none upon thars…”

Here’s my point . . .

What spoke to my young children then, and speaks to constituents now (more than ever), are stories.

How do you communicate your vision? Stories.
How do you get constituents to move from knowing to involved? Stories.
How do you convince a donor that their gift is an investment, not just another donation? Stories.
Why is Susan Boyle such a phenom? It’s her story.

It’s stories. Always stories.

Seth Godin insightfully underscores this idea in Tribes. Here’s what the author succinctly prescribes for replicating your vision in others:

“People don’t believe what you tell them.
They rarely believe what you show them.
They often believe what their friends tell them.
They always believe what they tell themselves.

What leaders do is give people stories they can tell themselves...
Stories about the future and about change.”

Here’s our challenge: communicating our story in a winsome, compelling way. If done right, people will not grow weary hearing the yarn over and over again.

Three Quick Fundraising Points

Last night, I was listening to a podcast which was, in passing, discussing Apple’s marketing brilliance. The host pointed out a universal truth about which Apple is keenly aware (and smartly utilizes): People are moved to action by three basic elements…

1) A sense of Anticipation
2) A sense of Urgency
3) A sense of Exclusivity

It occurred to me that as we think about fundraising campaigns, these three elements should be kept top of mind.

1) Talk about upcoming events on air (and in direct mail, email, etc.), building a sense of anticipation. If there’s a special announcement coming at the end of the program, talk about that at the start. If it’s later in the month, talk about it early in the month. Makes sense for a number of reasons, none the least of which is increasing the reach of that message.

2) Then, when on air, communicate the urgency of the situation. These days, it’ll be no surprise to any listener. My concern is that if we don’t express our own sense of urgency, the “din” of others doing so will drown out our own appeals.

3) As we think about what package of materials might be available to donors, express the exclusive nature of this group of materials. It could be that exclusivity is related to the audience (“ministry friends”) or medium (special email offer). There are always items which are unique to a ministry which should be a part of that package.

Apple's proven the success of this thinking. Time to implement on the ministry side too!

Where do you enjoy God's creation?

Our question of the month (as seen in the April edition of Ambassador's Update) is:

Do you have a favorite spot that exemplifies in your mind the glory of God's handiwork in creation?

Alaska’s Inside Passage, New Zealand’s South Island, and Interlaken, Switzerland. Obviously there were no buildings in the Garden of Eden—there is something magnificent about the creation of God in its pristine form. I’m always drawn to that.
--John MacArthur (Grace to You)

The mountains. Particularly Winter Park, Colorado; I like to meditate Psalm 95:5 while I'm skiing down the hill: "In his hand are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to him."
--Bill Bumpas (Fellowship for Christian Athletes)

And here are a few responses from the Ambassador staff:

One of my favorite places is being out on the boat on Lake Mojave as the sun is setting across the desert landscape. The canyons and mountains turn into brilliant reds, oranges and purples against the blue water and darkening sky –it’s truly breathtaking.
--Anna Sinclair

Always the ocean—the power of all that water never ceases to amaze me. . .”the sea is His for He made it!” (Psa.95:5)
--Evelyn Gibson

My wife Cathy and my two daughters age 9 and 11 share a favorite hobby. We happen to be a Southern California surfing family. We love to surf at a few favorite spots near where we live. And we love to head to the beach at the crack of dawn to get an early start. To be out in the water just before the sun comes up is an incredible feeling. Right before our eyes, we see all of God’s handiwork develop in the form of a slow fade up. And we become apart of this picture as we catch and ride one of these amazing waves God created.
--Mark Conner

Warner Springs Ranch!!! It is far enough from the city lights that the stars in the heavens give the most magnificent display of God’s handiwork!
--Jani Williamson

Rey Lakes Pass at over 10k+ feet in the California Sierra Nevada Mountains and the tide pools along the California coast. Amazing!
--Kathy Randall

Wherever I am, I think about this and it relaxes me with God's presence that our God would care so much for this tiny speck of a planet, when there is a whole universe he can enjoy.
--Jery Lee

Hymn-along with us!

We enjoy our fair share of hymn-singing at Ambassador – especially in our acoustically-charged “chapel” (read: racquet ball court). When entertaining visitors, it’s not unusual hear a steady, contemplative harmony coming from the east side of our building.

So what’s your favorite hymn? Read a few responses in the March edition of Ambassador’s Update newsletter. If you didn't get a copy, please let us know!

Here’s one response from Blue Ridge Broadcasting’s Jim Kirkland (Director of Radio):

The Doxology (Old Hundred Tune). It’s so clearly centered on the chief purpose of all creation: to praise God. And the words are so beautifully commanding. No mere suggestions there! When I hear it, I’ll often picture the church where I grew up and the earliest steps in my journey with Christ.