Mission Ministry

Mission Needs | Mission Trip 2012

Current Mission Needs:

From time to time we post specific needs around the world that the UMC is responding to through UMCOR.

Here are three current large areas of need this quarter. Click each for more info. Peruse the whole site to see what God does with all your donations:

US Tornadoes
UMCOR Advance #901670
Africa Food / Famine Crisis Response
UMCOR Advance #982450
US Southern Storms Response
UMCOR Advance #3021326
Pacific Emergency
UMCOR Advance #3021317
Liberia Emergency
UMCOR Advance #150300
US Disaster Response
UMCOR Advance #901670

From Our Mission Team on the upcoming 2012 trip to Honduras

June 24-29th, we will have an opportunity to interact with our youth group during the youth's summer mission trip to Seashore Assembly in Biloxi, MS. The team will be working to repair storm damage from Hurricane Katrina. Sign up on the youth bulletin board, the deadline to sign up will June 3rd. We would like to have as many adults as youth on this trip. The last trip to Biloxi was filled with great memories for everyone involved.

There are many ways to be involved with this trip. My first choice for you would be to join us on the trip. The second choice would be for you to sponsor a team member, the cost per person is $150.00.

In addition to these two ways to participate we as that you keep the team in your prayers. These trips can be very emotional. Many times in the Bible we are promised that God will be with us when we do his work. When you pray for the team, I ask you to pray that each member has a safe trip, but also has a blessing from the trip.

Honduras Mission Team continues to raise money for their trip. "Memorial Bricks" from the chapel are available for $20/brick. There is a limited quantity of bricks, get yours soon!

Other fundraisers are ongoing, such as tree removal, yard cleanup or any other chore you might need done. If you would like to make a donation, just put "HMT" on the "for" line of your check so it gets to the right account.

Thanks to everyone who supported us at the Fish Fry. Thanks to your support we made enough money to pay one person's expenses for the Honduras Trip.

In God's Service, Harold Moore

Five years ago while we were in Biloxi, MS working on storm damaged homes, John Per-Lee shared a thought with the group. John said that as he returned thanks for the days blessings, he was reminded that he had asked God for someone to help finish sheetrock and that he had forgot to thank God for sending a helper. Until that time I had thought that I had been finishing sheetrock. I had no idea that God had used me to answer a prayer.

If my understanding, that religion is actually being in a relationship with God, is right, then being in a position to be used by God to answer a prayer needs to be our goal. I would ask that each member of my Bethel family find a quiet time to ask God how they could help do his work.

The Mission Team has opportunities coming up for which we will ask God to send helpers. We expect your prayers and would appreciate anything else you could do to help. On April 21st we will hold our world famous Fish Fry to raise money for our trip to Honduras. We invite everyone to bring all their friends and family and share a meal with us. We are planning to sell commemorative bricks from the Chapel to celebrate its move. We offer to cut trees or do yard clean-up for a competitive charge. Of course we will accept and appreciate dona-tions. All money raised will be used to pay for our Mission Trips.

On June 24 - 29 we are going to return to Biloxi, MS with the youth. In 2006 we had an equal number of adults and youth. I learned on the Biloxi trip that if you are willing to go, God will find a way to use you. This trip will be less intense than Honduras. What a great chance to find out how meaningful a mission trip can be.

On July 15 - 22, we will return to Honduras. Our challenge this year will be starting a new project. Most of the team has been to El Paraiso for many years and will miss our many friends. Justin & Carol Cabe will join us this year. We will count on them to help us through our changing experiences.

In God's Service,
Harold Moore

I was making a six month re-check appointment at the Doctor's office last week and I suddenly realized that in only six months I plan to be in Honduras. Time really does fly by.

The Mission Team met on Sunday and we set some important dates to prepare for this years trip. We will be in Honduras from July 15th until July 22nd. Our commitment date for the trip this year will be Sunday, March 21st. On this date we ask for the names of all people planning to go and a $100.00 deposit. Anyone planning to make the trip this year should be in touch with me very soon. I welcome the opportunity to discuss the things you need to do in order to be ready (passport, shots, medical) to go. Some of these items can take awhile to complete and time is moving along.

On April 21st we plan to have one of our World Famous Fish Frys. We look forward to seeing you there along with many of your friends and neighbors. The Mission trips are not budgeted items at the Church. This means that we raise our own money. The team does not want anyone left behind that wants to make the trip because of money. We appreciate the support that the Church has always given us. I sincerely believe that the trips are a positive influence on the people that make them. I think that we come back better people. Your support with your prayers, supporting our projects and any financial gifts help in this process.

In God's Service,
Harold Moore

Honduras Mission

For several years, Bethel has sent a mission team to help with construction of a new church in Honduras. We helped dig the footings and now return to work on the second story. What a blessing this project has been.

This year's team (pictured) returned with wonderful stories of the people of El Parisio and their passionate pursuit for the heart of God.

Bethel is involved with missions also through our United Methodist Men and Women's groups. The United Methodist Church has it's own spiritual form of "Red Cross" in UMCOR. Many folks don't realize this but UMCOR is often the first on the scene of disasters to begin giving relief. For more information about this great organization, click here.

UMCOR has helped to organize our mission trips and is a way for Bethel to use it's mission ministry in conjunction with Methodist churches all over the world to get huge amounts of God's mission work done. It's exciting to be involved in truly life-saving and life-changing projects that make a difference here on Earth and into eternity!

2011 Christmas Outreach at Bethel (COB)

About COB: In 2006, a handful of members here at Bethel collaborated to form a program called Christmas Outreach @ Bethel or COB for short. In case you are new to Bethel … or if you need a reminder — COB is a program designed to service families with hardships within our immediate area at Christmas. In our inaugural year, COB provided 13 families with an entire holiday meal, canned goods, grocery staples, blankets, toys, personal hygiene products, formula and diapers for babies and bibles for the youth. Since its inception, the number of families needing help just in the greater Stockbridge area alone has gone through the ceiling. For that reason, our goal this year is to serve 12 to 15 families. We are depending on you to help us reach that goal. You can do so by several means: serving on COB’s committee, volunteering your time and talents through various projects and of course, monetary donations. If you are interested in helping, contact Mary Ann Hill, Doreen Elliott or any COB member. If you’d like to read more about COB, please pick up a brochure.