We are ONE!
“What is the connection between One Great Hour of Sharing money and the work we love in Haiti? I’m trying to interpret to my congregation 2014 disaster response after the 2010 earthquake,” a pastor inquired of me earlier this year.
“Everything,” I replied, “because funding means relationships.”
“What is the connection between One Great Hour of Sharing money and the work we love in Haiti? I’m trying to interpret to my congregation 2014 disaster response after the 2010 earthquake,” a pastor inquired of me earlier this year.
“Everything,” I replied, “because funding means relationships.”
My response was one of my first responsibilities in my new staff role working directly with One Great Hour of Sharing of the United Church of Christ. I went on to communicate more clearly what I meant. Relationships – because the first steps in participating in that disaster response happened long before an earthquake devastated people’s lives. You have been part of people’s lives in Haiti through commitments of the United Church of Christ and Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) through Global Ministries to on-going partnerships of mutuality with churches and other organizations. Relationships – because through One Great Hour of Sharing you are part of the infrastructure of partner organizations with worldwide scope, such as Church World Service, ACT Alliance, the Fuller Center, that have expertise and work every day in disaster recovery. Relationships – because your on-going participation in One Great Hour of Sharing means that as soon as the ground rumbled and people’s lives were devastated, you were there on the ground with visible signs of life and of hope. Relationships – because One Great Hour of Sharing and special disaster appeals mean that long after the news cameras are gone and the world has “moved on,” you are present with people in Haiti as they rebuild their lives and their dreams.
How do these relationships get built and nurtured? Through people. People on the ground in Haiti are those who decide how their community will be rebuilt and its shape. People in the United States are present through the bonds of prayer and the sharing of resources. Among these are mission personnel sent through Global Ministries who connect with partner churches and organizations as a personal presence, offering specific skills and expertise as requested, enhancing the capacity of local organizations to rebuild. Tim and Diane Fonderlin, experienced with disaster recovery in Asia following the 2004 Tsunami and with disaster recovery in New Orleans and the U.S. Gulf Coast following 2005 Hurricane Katrina, now serve in Haiti through OGHS funding. Groups from the U.S. who visit Haiti are coordinated through the work of Global Mission Intern, Bethany Guy.
One Great Hour of Sharing funds mean relationships in sustainable development situations as well as in disaster and emergencies. OGHS funding means relationships in community development in southern Africa and Latin America as people develop their economic capacity and strengthen their community well-being. Global Ministries’ missionary, Don Westra, augments the work of the local partner church in micro-enterprise planning and management. OGHS funding makes possible the medical work of Anil and Teresa Henry in rural India. In Indonesia, Karen Campbell Nelson increases the capacity of local partner organizations through teaching and trauma counseling work with women.
We are ONE is the 2014 One Great Hour of Sharing theme. Indeed, We are ONE, in our commitment to relationships by sharing resources and working together in partnership. We are ONE, in building and sustaining relationships with all God’s children in any particular situation of need or disruption. We are ONE, by serving the whole person, body, mind, spirit and community for the fullness of well-being God intends. Funding does mean relationship because sharing resources changes lives.
It is a blessing for me to join you in One Great Hour of Sharing. The recommended offering date is March 30th. It is a blessing for all of us together to join God in mission. “We are ONE.”
Rev. Dr. Mary Schaller Blaufuss serves the UCC’s Wider Church Ministries as the Team Leader for the Global Sharing of Resources (OGHS).