One Great Hour of Sharing

In the past few months we have seen the important work of the United Methodist Committee on Relief as they have responded to the earthquakes in Haiti and Chile. These events were just the ones that made the headlines. There are so many other disasters that the rest of the world may have over looked, but not the God we serve. Before the cameras come, the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is there transforming the lives of people as servants of Jesus Christ. After the cameras have be turned off, the United Methodist Committee on Relief is still there, not just for days, or weeks but for decades helping people rebuild their lives as the presence of a caring Christ in their midst.

One of the reasons people love to use UMCOR to respond to emergencies, is that 100% of the money donated goes to that concern. Nothing is taken out to pay for the overhead: to share information and make appeals, to pay for staff and for readiness. That money is raised through the “One Great Hour of Sharing” offering. The cost of the initial response, before even the first dollar has been donated to meet the emergency is raised through this offering as well. The money needed for the United Methodist Church to respond to all the needs the news media never tells us about comes from the undesignated funds raised through the “One Great Hour of Sharing” offering. When we use 100% of money designated for a particular cause, we don’t use money raised for one appeal to pay for another. Without this offering the church would be limited to only funding those causes that interest the news media.

Please give generously to “One Great Our of Sharing.” (March 14th). Allow your United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) to have the resources to respond to human need, not just for the short term, but for the long term, until the job is done. When the rest of the world has moved on, God still cares. Your gift makes a big difference in the lives of many desperate people. Pray about your gift. What does God want to do through you?