September marks the beginning of a month-long emphasis for the North Carolina Missions Offering (NCMO), an annual offering that supports numerous ministries across the state and beyond.
“The NCMO is the lifeblood of many vital ministries across North Carolina and around the world,” said Richard Brunson, executive director of N.C. Baptist Men (NCBM; also known as Baptists on Mission).
Under the umbrella of N.C. Baptist Men, Brunson’s organization is engaged in 18 different ministries, which include disaster relief, medical and dental missions, and mobilization for various short- and long-term projects.
NCBM and its related ministries are all supported through NCMO, which provides financial support for sharing the gospel with others through acts of love and service in Christ’s name.
The goal of this year’s offering is $2.1 million, and the 2015 offering theme is “So They Know,” which is taken from John 13:34-35. In those verses, Jesus tells His followers that others will know that they are His disciples by the manner in which they demonstrate love and compassion.
“Jesus’ words in that passage are so true,” Brunson said. “People will know that God loves them by the Christ-like love that we show to others. As we minister to hurting people and share Christ’s love, we open many doors for the gospel to be shared, and we make it so people want to know more.”
Brunson said the concept of loving others to Christ is exemplified in the life of Paul Kenny, a New Jersey man who lost his possessions and experienced significant home damage during Hurricane Sandy in 2012
Kenny was skeptical when members of the N.C. Baptist Men disaster relief team showed up to assist him and other N.J. residents, yet he was intrigued about why the relief volunteers would give of themselves to help strangers in need. After working and interacting with the volunteers over time, Kenny placed his faith in Christ and was later baptized last summer.
“It was through the love of those volunteers that he wanted to know more about this Jesus they were telling him about,” Brunson said. “It impacted his life in such a way that he wanted to give his life to Christ. The love those volunteers showed him was uncommon and unexpected for him.”
The NCMO also supports church planting efforts by the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina. It also funds two mission camps located in Shelby and Red Springs. A percentage of the offering is also returned to Baptist associations across the state to support ministry activities on a local level.
Church planting, particularly among the increasing international community that is moving to North Carolina, is a major emphasis in the state convention’s strategy to impact lostness through disciple-making.
In 2014, the convention worked with 103 new churches – 78 church plants and 25 new affiliate churches. Of the 78 church plants, 39 were non-Anglo congregations that spoke languages other than English. This year, 28 percent of funds received through the NCMO will go directly toward establishing new churches in North Carolina.
“The NCMO is a critical resource for North Carolina Baptists with regards to gospel engagement and church multiplication among the 5.8 million lost residents of our state,” said Chuck Register, who serves as the executive leader for the state convention’s Church Planting and Missions Partnerships group.
“These financial resources help the state convention assist churches, associations and networks in reaching 64 different language groups with the life-transforming message of the gospel and to plant disciple-making churches among these people groups.
“The generosity of North Carolina Baptists to the NCMO helps us help North Carolina Baptists reach the nations in North Carolina.”
Additionally, 10 percent of funds that churches in a local association contribute to the NCMO are returned to that that local association to use toward missions and ministry projects. Associations use these funds in a variety of ways to launch new ministries or expand existing ones to reach more people who need to know Christ.
“Churches who give to the NCMO see their contributions go full circle,” said Lester Evans, who leads the Associational Partnerships Team with the state convention. “They help fund various ministries in North Carolina, across the country and around the world, but a portion comes back and is reinvested at the local level.”
Although September is designated as the month for churches to highlight NCMO and receive contributions for the offerings, donations may be made at any time throughout the year. For more information about the NCMO and the ministries it supports, or to make a contribution, visit ncmissionsoffering.org.