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Regional gatherings celebrate NCMO work
Melissa Lilley, BSC Communications
September 13, 2011
5 MIN READ TIME

Regional gatherings celebrate NCMO work

Regional gatherings celebrate NCMO work
Melissa Lilley, BSC Communications
September 13, 2011

When North Carolina Baptists give to the North Carolina

Missions Offering (NCMO) they help make possible Kingdom work such as church

planting, associational missions and ministry projects, and N.C. Baptist Men ministries

and partnerships.

N.C. Baptist Men (NCBM) recently hosted a series of Mission

Celebrations across the state to give North Carolina Baptists opportunity to

learn more about the work supported by NCMO.

“We want to help churches involve their members in missions,”

said Richard Brunson, NCBM executive director-treasurer. “God is using North

Carolina Baptist volunteers in a great way. Volunteers are serving as the hands

and feet of Jesus.” NCMO supports NCBM disaster relief ministry and 13 other

NCBM ministries.

NCMO also supports church planting efforts across the state.

During a Mission Celebration at First Baptist Church in Cary, attendees saw a

video about how NCMO helped Ronnie Morton start Greater Joy Baptist Church in

Oxford. “We’re here to transform the lives of this community, and to change the

atmosphere,” Morton said. “If we change the person from the inside out, that

transformation then goes into the community. We are claiming Oxford for Christ.”

Lin Honeycutt shares about North Carolina Baptist Men and the ministries that are supported through the North Carolina Missions Offering. Honeycutt, disaster relief volunteer and member of Highland Baptist Church in Raleigh, shared Aug. 23 at First Baptist Church in Cary about the tornado relief efforts in Raleigh.

Michael Royster is one example of how Morton and Greater Joy

are, through the power of the Holy Spirit, seeing lives changed. Royster used

to be a drug dealer. He was often in jail and would spend days away from home.

That was before Morton invited him to Greater Joy. Royster came, heard the

gospel, and gave his life to Jesus Christ.

Now Royster is involved in church and giving back to the

community. “Whatever I’m doing today is going to count. Not what I’ve done.

What I’m doing right now. I love the new Michael,” he said.

This year’s NCMO theme is “Compelled … By Christ, By Love, By Lostness,” and the offering

goal is $2.1 million.

During the Mission Celebration at First Baptist, Cary, North

Carolina Baptists shared about how they have been involved in local, national

and international missions and ministries supported through NCMO.

Lin Honeycutt, disaster relief volunteer and member of

Highland Baptist Church in Raleigh, shared about his experience in disaster

relief after a series of tornadoes stormed across North Carolina. About one

week after the tornadoes hit, NCBM recovery efforts were underway in 13

locations across 12 counties.

Trees fell on the home of Doris Pope, a 51-year member of

Carolina Pines Baptist Church in Raleigh.

“There are no words to express what Baptist men and women

have done for me,” she said.

Another opportunity to serve locally is through Deep Impact.

Deep Impact mission weeks are opportunities for middle and high school students

to serve and to share the gospel.

This summer, 1,161 students participated in activities such

as construction, Vacation Bible School, prayer walking and service projects. In

North Carolina, Deep Impact was held in Fruitland, Red Springs, Greenville,

Shelby, Caswell Beach and Bladen County. One week was also held in New York

City and Tegucigalpa, Honduras.

Allison Huber was one of the college students serving on

staff this summer with Deep Impact. Huber said each week she heard stories from

the youth about how God worked in the lives of people they met. “I was reminded

of how powerful He is,” she said.

Amy Malugen, member of Mountain Creek Baptist Church in

Oxford, spoke about how members of her church went to Pennsylvania to help lead

a Vacation Bible School. Ministry in Pennsylvania is one of the opportunities

North Carolina Baptists have to serve nationally through NCBM. Other sites

include Vermont, Hawaii, Appalachian Coalfields and the Rocky Mountain states.

NCBM also provides international avenues in which North

Carolina Baptists can serve, such as in Armenia, Ukraine, Guatemala, Honduras,

Cuba, India, Kenya and Haiti.

Alicia Jones, a graduate of Campbell University and student

at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, is involved with the work in

Ukraine. She made her first trip to Ukraine last year and went again this year

to work among the gypsy people, who are the poorest of the poor in this

country. Yet, “God is building the vision for His work there,” Jones said.

After finishing the weeklong mission trip with others from

Fairview Baptist Church in Apex, Jones stayed behind to spend several weeks to

take language classes. She plans to return to Ukraine next year to begin

helping start a kindergarten for the gypsies.

Jones said she has seen the Spirit of God move among these

people, and she is committed to serving God in Ukraine.

The North Carolina Missions Offering also helps make it

possible for North Carolina Baptists to serve at mission camps in Shelby and

Red Springs. The camps provide volunteers with housing and meals at reasonable

rates as they serve in communities around the camp. For more information about

NCMO, such as news articles, videos and free promotional resources, visit

ncmissionsoffering.org.