One of the ways Charis Fellowship churches live out their commitment to our common mission is by supporting ministries and global workers who share the same mission, both in finances and in prayer. Churches often find creative ways to raise awareness among their congregation for those they support through Sunday morning announcements, screen slides, prayer cards, email updates, and special events.

One Charis Fellowship church recently held an event to connect their congregation with their global workers called Hope on Mission. Hope Grace Church in Dillsburg, Pa., invited all of the ministries and global workers they support to prepare a short five-minute presentation to update the congregation on their ministry during a shared meal. Each representative was given the opportunity to set up a display in the back of the sanctuary and foyer, and attendees were able to visit the tables and mingle with the ministries and global workers before and after the meal and presentations.
Kim Shank and Charlotte Traub co-chaired the event and spearheaded the logistics. Kim handled the advertisement of the event and media presentations from the global workers and ministries, and Charlotte handled the communication with the global workers and ministries and coordinated host homes. The church family provided host homes, decorated for the event, handled the meal, and ran the tech during the event. The youth group served food at the dinner. Charlotte said, “From my point of view, it was a lot of work but was well worth our time and effort!”
This year Hope Grace had 17 ministries and global workers represented. 15 of them are currently being supported by the church, and two of them are being considered based upon the recommendation of people in the church. One global worker family was unable to be present but sent photos and updates that were shared on their behalf.

Several of the global workers attended church the next morning and participated in the service and classes and shared a meal afterward. One global worker commented after the event, “I was unbelievably blessed to be with the Hope Grace family and to meet all the missionaries. This, in fact, has been the highlight of my year.”
Kim said, “It is a wonderful time for all involved! The church family loves it because we get to see that our little church is really having a huge impact around the world! The missionaries love it because they enjoy getting to know us, and they are encouraged by the other missionaries, as well.”