Outreach

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” —Acts 1:8 (NLT)

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.…Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ —Matthew 25:34-36, 40 (NIV)

How we treat others (near us and around the world) is an essential element of our life with Christ. Therefore, we are committed to share the grace and truth of Jesus Christ with those who worship here, with those who live around us, and with those throughout the world—people who are living in relationship with Christ and those who are not. In order to express our individual and corporate faith in Christ, we are involved in these outreach ministries.


Lay Shepherds/Congregational Care

Lay Shepherds offer and coordinate care-giving for those who have special needs within our congregation and neighborhoods. Lay Shepherds work closely with the Pastoral staff and provide support to families in times of crisis or transition. Lay Shepherds coordinate occasional informal neighborhood fellowship events and each Lay Shepherd group hosts one church-wide fellowship event each year. Every regular attendee at Houghton Church is placed under the care of a Lay Shepherd according to geographic location.

Wesleyan Kids for Missions (WKFM)

WKFM, which meets the 3rd Sunday of each month during the Sunday School hour, is an opportunity for our children (1st – 5th grades) to be introduced systematically to God’s work around the world. Through special guests—often college students or teams of students—the children are taught that being involved in helping people throughout the world know the truth and grace of Jesus Christ should be natural to their understanding of Christian faith.

International Missions

Involvement in the church worldwide is an essential part of the DNA of our church. It always has been; it always will be. We invest financially in various aspects of worldwide ministry. Our church family is regularly represented by career missionaries and people participating in short-term trips to various places of the world. Several missionaries and people of international experience worship here. Almost 20% of our church budget goes for some kind of missions. To learn more about missions we support, visit the Houghton Wesleyan Church Mission Website.

Compassionate Ministries

In addition to our involvement overseas, we seek to extend God’s love and grace by offering help to those in our church and community who find themselves in need of a helping hand. We have an active emergency food pantry which serves more than 50 different families a year. We also use contributions to our Benevolent Fund to assist people (congregants and area residents) with emergency situations that life can bring. Additionally, we support: