At the beginning of the year I accepted the Year Beard Challenge to raise funds for The Tide Global Radio Ministry. Rather than broadcasting translations of English programs, The Tide works with partners in Africa, Asia, and Europe and with local ministers to produce radio programs to share the Gospel with their own people in their language and in the context of their culture. These local ministry partners provide listener care and coordinate discipleship and leadership training activities. All funds raised through the Year Beard will be used to buy more airtime. If you want to learn more about The Tide here is their website, thetide.org.
I didn’t know exactly what to expect when I started to grow my beard on January 1st. I have grown a full beard before, but not with the intention of letting it grow for a full year with very little to no trimming. Since I am now six months in to the challenge here are a few updates and thoughts.
1) The Tide set the goal of $1000 for each man growing a beard for a year. I personally set a goal of $2,000. At this point I have raised $1,653 and around 15 different donors have contributed. Thank You! I really appreciate the donations and support I have received. I also want to thank Mary for being willing to live with a bushy husband.
2) You might be wondering how much has been raised by all of the guys participation. The last I heard over $12,000 total has been raised. Praise God!
3) There is a great opportunity coming up at the end of June to receive a $200 donation toward my goal. Photos of the guys that want to participate will be posted on The Tide Year Beard Facebook page for about a week. People will be able to vote for their favorite beard (head hair, as well) by liking the photo. I really like this, not only because there is a possibility of receiving a $200 donation, but because it is a great opportunity to get more people familiar with The Tide. I have a rather ambitious goal of getting 1000 likes. You can help by voting for me and spreading the word. When I told someone about voting for me he said, “What if you don’t have the best beard?” Well, I’m not going to ask you to lie for me. If beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so is the best beard and I think my beard will be pretty competitive.
4) In the February newsletter we shared that one of the reasons I accepted the challenge was to go beyond the superficial and not be concerned about appearance. To be honest, this has been a challenge. I do wonder what others think when they see me. I joke about when I’m out running or riding bike that I must really confuse people with my looks. I even ride a black bike! So, yes, this has been a learning and growing experience, but a good one.
5) You might be wondering if I really plan to leave my beard grow until the end of the year. In some shape or form, I do. I have a chance at having a really good Santa Claus beard so I might as well go for it, right?
