On the last Sunday of each month a lesson on various Nazarene Missionaries is presented in the Cornerstone Sunday School class at 11:15am. For more information about missions contact Bulah Farmer, NMI President at 825-4607.

Click here for the NMI Calendar of Emphasis

Alabaster Offering The Alabaster Offering provides funds for property and buildings around the world.  Alabaster Funds provide land for most Work & Witness projects.  The entire offering goes to construct churches, schools, medical facilities, and homes for missionaries and pastors. 

Education Knowledge is key to involvement. With an understanding of the needs of the world and what the church is doing to meet those needs, we are more likely to commit to the support of missions through prayer, giving, communication, and going.

International Ministry - Bible Schools & Seminaries Nazarene educational institutions around the world are training preachers, teachers, evangelists, nurses, and vocational and lay leaders. This education is essential to the success of evangelistic efforts. Please remember the students, faculty, and their staff in your prayers.

LINKS stands for "Loving, Interested Nazarenes, Knowing and Sharing." The LINKS program of the Church of the Nazarene is a network of personal connections between missionaries and Nazarenes around the world. Missionaries are assigned to districts and, then on the district level, connected to local churches. This gives each church an opportunity to become personally acquainted with the missionary family and their field of service. Typically, churches send packages, cash gifts, cards, and other remembrances to their LINKS missionaries. In return, the churches feel a sense of involvement with the world mission enterprise of the church through regular correspondence from the missionaries, updates from their field, and even through deputation services while the missionaries are on furlough. The missionaries are encouraged, knowing people care and pray for them. The relationships built over time personalize names and faces that both the missionaries and their LINKS churches value highly.

Our LINKS are Kent and Kathleen Pelton famliy. Their children, Hannah & Chauncy, attend college at Northwest Nazarene University and Mount Vernon Nazarene Univeristy. If you'd like to send a card of encouragement please contact Bulah Farmer for contact information.

Mission Priority One Since the earliest days of NMI, achievement standards were set for both local churches and districts. From the Standard and Superior Societies (1924), to the Seven-Point Society (early 1950s), and to the Star Society (1956), the concept was changed to Mission Award (1976). In 2002, the achievement program was renamed Mission Priority One to reflect a church's priority on missions. The achievement goals are based on the four objectives of NMI. A record of a church's participation in these four objectives should be kept throughout the year. The district will send a report form near the end of the church year for the local president to submit the church's participation in these objectives. An objective must have a design whereby it can be fulfilled-thus, the Mission Priority One program.

Nazarene Compassionate Ministries In 1984, the Church of the Nazarene General Board instituted Nazarene Compassionate Ministries to meet the physical, emotional, relational intellectual, and spiritual needs of the world. The Nazarene Compassionate Ministries coordinator on the district NMI and/or local NMI council offers encouragement of Nazarene Compassionate Ministries worldwide through prayer support, information, Crisis Care Kits, and hands-on opportunities. The first Sunday in December is Compassion Sunday in the Church of the Nazarene. The Board of General Superintendents designated Compassion Sunday to encourage a spirit of compassion and personal involvement among Nazarenes everywhere.

Volunteer: The Church of the Nazarene offers many opportunities for volunteering. In fact, the Church of the Nazarene is the second-largest of all the volunteer sending agencies in the United States. Thousands of people of all ages volunteer their time and talents for missions around the world.

The main avenues of volunteer ministry through the Church of the Nazarene are:

• Work & Witness — a ministry for all ages providing construction, evangelism, medical work, office work, or other services needed in a world mission area — approximately two weeks.

• Mission Corps — allows individuals from every age group and background to use a variety of skills and abilities in a world area. Opportunities vary from a few weeks to one year, depending on the need and the individual's availability.

• Nazarene Medical Organization — Nazarene Health Care Ministries (NHCM) provides a link between the need and the response.

• Youth In Mission — a summer program that provides short-term mission and ministry opportunities for individuals between the ages of 18 and 30. Programs include: Contact — ministering to North American children Mission to the Cities — a ministry to selected North American cities

• International Student Ministries — an opportunity to witness in various world areas and to work with missionaries and/or local leaders

• YouthServe — provides opportunities for Nazarene youth with mission participation, helping them develop a global perspective and facilitate mission awareness

• Grateful Heart — raises mission awareness and mobilizes youth in supporting missions — 1-2 days

• Near to Here—offers hands-on experience for youth in reaching out to others in a local or district setting — 1-5 days

• Touch the Nation — youth serve others and are examples of Jesus to a specific national community — 1-5 days Go Global — students travel to another country and experience cross-cultural ministry — 1-3 weeks

• Local and District Opportunities — possibilities for ministry close to home, allowing all ages to take part Community Service Projects Compassionate Ministries Centers

• Good Samaritan Churches Special Needs Groups — within local churches Prayer — those involved in volunteer ministries are in need of intercession. Through prayer, everyone may participate Crisis Care Kits — A cooperative effort between NMI and Nazarene Compassionate Ministries,

• Crisis Care Kits (CCKs) contain a variety of hygiene materials to assist disaster victims or others in need.

• School Pal-Paks — provide students in Nazarene primary schools with the supplies they need to faciliatate learning, such as pencils, scissors, etc.

The World Evangelism Fund is the cooperative genius of the mission enterprise of the Church of the Nazarene. It is based on the concept that we can do more working together than could ever be done working alone. Why do we have World Evangelism Fund? Missions in the Church of the Nazarene is a large enterprise. To accomplish the Great Commission—spreading the gospel and the message of holiness around the world—requires money. In "faith" missions, missionaries must spend valuable time raising financial support. They conduct services, take offerings, receive pledges of support, and then pray the amount raised covers living expenses. Sometimes if the money runs out, missionaries are forced to return home and begin the process again. In this type of support, churches do not always share equally in the mission work. Larger churches are sometimes visited by more missionaries than they could possibly help, while some smaller churches are overlooked. The World Evangelism Fund was created to allow missionaries to work more effectively and to encourage all churches to support missions. How does the World Evangelism Fund work? Full-time missionaries (excluding volunteers) in the Church of the Nazarene are employed by the World Mission Department. Each missionary receives a monthly paycheck based on a standard amount plus a cost-of-living adjustment. Missionaries also receive medical insurance (see Missionary Health Care), a pension provision, and other items (such as housing and travel costs). The World Evangelism Fund comes from Nazarene churches around the world. Each church is challenged to give an amount based on its income as its participation in the world mission enterprise. Approximately 75% of the World Evangelism Fund is used for world evangelization in one form or another. The remainder supports the structure of the system through such ministries as office administration, literature, and other resources. How is the World Evangelism Fund collected? Traditionally, it has been through two large offerings a year—the Thanksgiving and Easter offerings. Some churches continue to successfully raise their entire fund this way. Faith Promise is a plan based on giving at systematic intervals rather than just twice a year. Through Faith Promise, people pray about the amount they should give for missions (over and above their tithe). The amount is often given weekly, biweekly, or monthly. Over time, churches find they raise their mission support and often go over their goal through this giving plan. The Benefits of the World Evangelism Fund Missionaries—They receive a regular paycheck, freeing them from the added worry of raising finances. Missionaries still write letters and conduct deputation services to inform people of happenings in their field of service; however, such activities do not consume a large portion of their time on the mission field. Churches—Regardless of size, each church has the opportunity to take part in the global mission endeavor. Also, just as individuals are blessed by God when they commit a portion of their resources for His kingdom, so churches are blessed when they allocate funds to help reach the lost around the world.

World Mission Broadcast The annual World Mission Broadcast Offering provides resources to reach millions around the world for Christ via broadcast media, especially radio. Received in June each year, the World Mission Broadcast Offering provides funding for program production, airtime, and follow-up materials. Holiness programming, delivered by radio, television and the Internet, reaches around the world with the message of Jesus and his redeeming love and helps to disciple those who respond.