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By Richard E. Brown-Whale
Conference Secretary of Global Ministries

The General Board of Global Ministries of The United Methodist Church is challenging each annual conference in the United States to increase the number of their covenant relationships by 10 this year.

Conference leaders are hopeful that the churches of the Baltimore-Washington Conference will exceed even that challenge.

The Covenant Relationship is the way that United Methodist congregations build a partnership with a particular missionary. On the church's side is a promise to provide financial and prayer support. On the missionary's side is a promise to communicate and visit the supporting church. The financial commitment per year is $2,500 or at least $5 per member.

While United Methodist missionaries receive their salary regardless of how many covenant relationships they have, a church which enters into a covenant relationship enables the General Board of Global Ministry to expand the number of missionaries it can support.

It is a wonderful arrangement. When my wife Kimberly and I served for nearly 13 years as United Methodist missionaries with the General Board, we always knew that we were remembered, that people cared about what we were doing, and that we were connected to those churches.

We loved visiting those churches when we were home, getting a chance to meet the people who had been corresponding with us, supporting us and lifting us up in prayer. And they not only cared about us; they came to care deeply about the people where we were serving.

Churches need to realize they are not officially in a covenant relationship until the application is completed. These applications must be re-submitted when the term of commitment is over.

For more information about establishing a Covenant Relationship, contact me at 443-231-5260; by e-mail at .

Information on Covenant Relationships is available online at http://new.gbgm-umc.org/advance/missionaries/covenant/ or by calling The Advance at 212-870-3718.