The Mission Outreach of the New Old Otterbein UMC is focused around our goal of becoming a Global Mission Partner church and our supporting a "covenant relationship" with missionaries and persons in mission.  But it is not all about overseas missions support.  The New Old Otterbein is also engaged in supporting mission outreach in the city of Baltimore and across the U.S. through our partners as a part of our Outreach ministry.  For more information on our local outreach efforts and our partners, please visit the Outreach page.

COVENANT RELATIONSHIP PROGRAM

The Covenant
Since 1974, the Covenant Relationship Program has enabled United Methodist congregations to surround mission personnel with love and prayer and grow in understanding the context in which they serve: to learn about the place of service and its people, culture, traditions and religious life. The mutual relationship called Covenant calls for the church to participate in the work of the missionary through financial and prayerful support and for that missionary to share with the church firsthand experiences in mission.

The Covenant Relationship goes far beyond simply a financial one. Through this program, both congregation and mission personnel promise to enter into an ongoing and dynamic relationship with one another. Whether they are geographically near one another or far away, members of the local church and the supported missionary agree to communicate regularly, to uphold each other in prayer and to meet face-to-face during itineration assignment.

The Relationship
When a covenant is established, the General Board of Global Ministries encourages a relationship between the local congregation and the missionary. Mission personnel covenant to communicate with supporting congregations by letter at least three times per year about the ongoing ministries, needs, progress and stories of their places of assignment.  All Covenant Relationship churches are eligible for visits from mission personnel during their itineration assignments. 

The Program
The Covenant Relationship Program is one of the three financial support bases for United Methodist mission personnel commissioned by the General Board of Global Ministries. Of primary importance is the World Service Fund (WSF), one of eight funds to which congregations contribute through their apportionments. The WSF provides basic financial resources for the core ministries of our denomination, underwriting the work of the GBGM and its mission personnel, as well as the work of other general agencies of the church. Second, a portion of support for mission personnel comes from the undesignated Pledge to Mission from local United Methodist Women's units channeled through the Women's Division of the General Board of Global Ministries. The third avenue of support is through the second-mile giving of the Covenant Relationship Program, part of the Advance for Christ and His Church.

No one of these three financial support bases alone can fully sustain the financial responsibility for the more than 2,000 mission personnel serving through the General Board of Global Ministries. As the number of missionaries increases and the cost of supporting them continues to rise, financial support must increase as well.  In addition to salary for mission personnel, total support includes such items as training, transportation to and from the assignment, housing, insurance and other benefits, children's education and itineration expenses.

Our covenant with Dr. Muembo, a physician at Kissy Clinic in Sierra Leone, is $500.00 a year.