STAY CONNECTED WITH FUMC HURST ||CLICK HERE FOR UPCOMING EVENTS

Neighboring and Missions


Ok, I keep searching for missions,
but I keep landing on this Neighboring page!

What gives? 


We believe that all people are uniquely called by God to serve as Christ’s hands and feet in the world. And we mean ALL people. Every child of God has gifts and assets to share, but sometimes it takes a bit of work to discover and apply those gifts in ways that benefit the whole community. As a church we strive to be a good neighbors in this community and around the world. Additionally, we strive to discover the many good gifts, talents, passions, and other assets that God has sewn into the fabric of our neighborhood in people who may not even go to our church. Whereas the conventional understanding of "Mission work" often involves things we do to others to make their lives better, "Neighboring" employs the mindsets of abundance, relationships, and joy to discover what God is already doing in others around us and invites everyone into the sacred work of contributing to the kingdom-anticipating work of the Holy Spirit in our midst. 

In light of this distinction between missions and neighboring, we desire to be in ministry "with" rather than "for" or "to." Our work seeks mutual relationships on equal footing. It seeks to restore dignity and agency to families and individuals for whom the experience of poverty has robbed any sense of control or autonomy. We seek to be companions for the journey, valuing relationships over tasks accomplished. 

Neighboring work in our church may look and feel a lot like "missions," as we go, we seek to honor the longstanding traditions of mission and service in this church while discerning with a fresh eye towards equipping and empowering all of our neighbors to participate in lifting the whole community together. 

CLICK HERE for a list of resources to learn more about Neighboring and Asset Based Community Development. 

Want to see the most up-to-date neighboring and volunteer news?
Check out our Neighboring Notes!

Read the Neighboring Notes

It is through mission outreach that we exemplify the spirit of Christian love to those in our own local community and around the world. 

FUMC Hurst has formed Sacred Partnerships with a number of organizations. We encourage you to be a part of one or more of these important missions. 

Sacred Partners

We know there are tons of ways to live out our discipleship-in our homes, in our church, in our community and in our world. Below are some of the ways you can be a disciple in action! 

  • Mission Central is always in need of certain items. Lists are available at the welcome center or visit www.missioncentralmetroplex.org
  • Adopt-A-School mentors and tutors are needed always. Meet with a student for only 30 minutes a week or month.
  • Buy some extra school supplies to donate to our Adopt-A-Schools (in August and January).
  • Join our backpack feeding ministry team.
  • Respond to an open CarePortal request.
  • Fill up a purple thanksgiving bag or two for our Thanksgiving turkeys (November only).
  • Volunteer to be a fill-in worker with Habitat for Humanity.
  • Become a trained Emergency Response Team volunteer with UMCOR.

If you'd like information on any of these opportunities, please contact Rev. Matt Ybanez.