DHM and NBA Bring Together Disciples Health and Social Service Ministries

by NBA Cares

Indianapolis, IN: November 2013: – A late-October gathering of representatives from more than 30 Disciples-related health and social service ministries made history as the first joint endeavor of its kind between The National Benevolent Association (NBA) and Disciples Home Missions (DHM). Presidents of the two general ministries that hosted the three-day event had the future in mind.

“We wanted to bring together social service advocates and care providers to learn how to better leverage the impact of these ministries by connecting them with one another,” said Mark Anderson, who leads the 126-year-old NBA.

“These care-focused ministries are providing direct care on behalf and with Disciples every day,” said Rev. Ron Degges, DHM president. “We believe connecting them will help further empower their ministries. What a blessing for everyone involved if we could help their mission increase!”

The 45 participants estimated that their 30 different ministries touch the lives of more than 130,000 persons each year.

The gathering brought together leaders from DHM-affiliated Disciples mission centers (such as Inman Christian Center in San Antonio, Texas, and All People’s Community Center in Los Angeles, California) with leaders from other Disciples-affiliated health and human service organizations for children and elderly residents (such as Juliette Fowler Communities, Dallas, Texas, and Tennyson Center for Children in Denver, Colorado).

Established congregation-based ministries rounded out the group (such as Faith Health Ministry of Louden Avenue Christian Church in Roanoke, Virginia) and emerging ministries (such as StoneSoup Community Venture in Tulsa, Oklahoma).

Illustrating the potential for common strength through peer connection, some of the ministry leaders met prior to the event to compare ministries and then reported their findings to the larger group.

Rev. Kathleen Kline Moore (Safe Haven Day Shelter of First Christian Church in Falls Church, Virginia) and Rev. Elizabeth McGill, (Worchester Fellowship of Berlin, Massachusetts) noted that their distinctive differences were as valuable as their similarities in terms of strengthening each other’s ministries.

  • “For example, I have to walk these lines in an established pastorate,” said Kline Moore. “But Liz is unabashedly drawn by the faith that propels her into this. It’s what drives all her decisions. I get lost in the administration sometimes. She keeps me awake to the faith side of all this.”

  • “And I need the administration!” McGill said, laughing.

“Participants shared information about Disciples relationships, best practices for service ministries, funding opportunities and effective communication strategies. But the “real meat and potatoes” were the conversations among ministry peers,” Anderson said.

“Those connections help twice: Once in the one-on-one relationships like Kathleen and Liz experienced,” he said, “and a second time as we (NBA and DHM) learn from this experience to more effectively advance mission through webs of relationships.”

Watch a video of some highlights from this gathering!

About the National Benevolent Association

The National Benevolent Association (NBA) serves as the health and social service general ministry of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) of the U.S. and Canada.

About Disciples Home Missions

Disciples Home Missions is committed to equipping disciples for Christ and connecting people to the life changing love of God. Disciples Home Missions is the enabling and coordinating division of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) of the U.S. and Canada in the area of congregational program and mission in North America. To learn more, visit www.discipleshomemissions.org.