At Fairfield Mountains Chapel – Almost one-quarter of every dollar we collect in our offerings at the Chapel goes to support missions outside of our doors. We seek to model Jesus’ words to the disciples in the early pages of the book of Acts:

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you
will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)

     Jesus’ challenge was for the earliest disciples to start with those closest and work their way outward in being a witness of God’s love and grace. The book of Acts chronicles this journey of God’s mission through the followers of Jesus from Jerusalem to the end of the earth.  Our “Jerusalem” is the local mission and ministries that we support- helping those in the community with basic needs, supporting the work of Hickory Nut Gorge Community Outreach, and other local ministries that serve those in need closest to our doors.  Our “Judea and Samaria” include the county, state and national organizations that meet a variety of needs including food, shelter, ministry to those incarcerated, medical needs, and support for special needs.  Our “end of the earth” ministries we support include funding for missionaries, mission training organizations like EQUIP and support for those who work are literally reaching people who are at the “end of the earth” from Lake Lure.

In addition to supporting ministries financially, many of our members volunteer in
the community as well. We also participate in seasonal projects like Thanksgiving
baskets, Christmas Angel Tree gifts, and Samaritan’s Purse Operation Shoebox
throughout the year.

LOCAL

• Hickory Nut Gorge Outreach Serves families extending into four counties (serving some but not all of Rutherford, Polk, Buncombe and Henderson counties).  Their mission is to help eliminate hunger and provide emergency services with love and compassion to those in need.

 COUNTY, STATE, NATIONAL

• Camp Lurecrest supports “New Venture Camp”, a special 5-day session of camp for children in foster/DSS care, followed by a weekend at camp with their foster families.
• Carolina Elder Careprovides funds and other support to meet the many health challenges that face the elderly in  Rutherford and Polk counties.
• Chase Corner Ministries provides residents of Rutherford County with emergency support through food and a place to find gently-used clothing.
• Church of the Exceptional, located in Forest City, is a non-denominational ministry devoted to ministering to the physically and mentally handicapped in Rutherford and Cleveland counties.
• Freedom Life Ministries through the love of Jesus Christ, serves those in need, which includes the homeless, current and formerly incarcerated individuals and their families.  They help their clients secure jobs, offer counseling, and provide housing, food, and clothes as needed.
•  Gideons focus on distributing God’s Word to lead people to faith in Christ.  It is their hope that those new Christians then grow by studying their Scriptures and even use them to share their faith with others.
• Grace of God Rescue Mission wants to reflect the love of God by providing a safe haven for homeless men, women and children and to provide for the physical needs of the less fortunate individuals in the community while providing an opportunity to hear the Good News of Jesus Christ.  They are located in Forest City.
• Rutherford County Habitat for Humanity works to put God’s love into action by helping low-income families break the cycle of poverty housing. Through volunteer labor and donations of money and materials, Habitat builds houses with the help of the future homeowners or partner families. 
• Hands of Hope for Life offers free services for women and men facing an unplanned pregnancy.  They also serve those who have children under age 2 with emotional, spiritual, and physical support. 
• Kairos Prison Ministry (Men and Women) pursues its mission of ministry to those who are impacted by incarceration.  Through the grace of God, they are working to bring these men and women to know the healing and saving power of Jesus Christ and a new way of life.
• High Country Prison Ministry offers pastoral counseling, visits cell blocks and distributes Bibles to incarcerated individuals at Avery Mitchell Correctional Institute in Spruce Pines, NC.  Prior to the COVID pandemic, the chaplain provided weekly worship services to a wide variety of denominations.
• Ministry of Hope Chaplaincy is a community-funded chaplaincy program which raises funds to employ on-site chaplains at Swannanoa Correctional Center for Women in Swannanoa, NC.  Their chaplains conduct religious services in the center’s chapel and provide pastoral care and spiritual guidance to the inmates.
• Mosaic Hope equips and mobilizes communities to provide children, families and social workers in the foster care system with immediate assistance and ongoing support.
• Out of the Ashes provides drug and alcohol addiction treatment and emergency shelter at no cost. Programs include exercise, music therapy and counseling.
• PATH provides comprehensive family resources through advocacy, education, prevention, and intervention, in an effort to eliminate child abuse, family violence, and sexual assualt.
• RHI Legacy Foundation is committed to address health and wellness issues for the citizens of Rutherford County.  They applied our chapel’s most recent gift to their Lifeline program, which supports patients who live alone and require a notification system for EMS and their family members in case of a fall or medical emergency.  
• Rutherford HELP helps clients who are already receiving some sort of assistance to figure out long-term goals and pathways to reach those goals.
• Rutherford Housing Partnerships provides urgently needed repairs to the homes of qualified low-income, elderly and disabled homeowners in Rutherford County.
• Rutherford Life Services provides quality daytime care to aging adults with physical and cognitive limitations while providing a much deserved respite to their caregivers.
• The Salvation Army reaches out in God’s name by providing food and other vital help, responding with emergency disaster assistance and providing life-changing programs that give hope and faith to those who are disadvantaged, homeless, and/or need help right away.
• South Mountain Christian Camp utilizes Bible-centered ministry to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ.  Through teaching, fellowship, and physical activities, they hope to help campers respond in faith to the call of God and then nurture their faith and fellowship so they mature into responsible citizens of God’s Kingdom.
• Thermal Belt Outreach Ministry offers compassionate programs and services to Polk County families and individuals that need assistance with day-to-day necessities such as food, heat, and housing.  They also offer special programs for children and veterans.  
• Yokefellow is a crisis ministry assisting people in immediate need of food, clothing, household goods and/or financial assistance.

  INTERNATIONAL

• Agape Flights delivers mail and supplies to missionaries working in Haiti, the Dominican Republic and the Bahamas.  They also expedite relief supplies during disasters and emergencies, and they deliver humanitarian aid to Cuba as regulations allow.
• Ben Okellow (EQUIP)
• But God Ministries shares the Good News of Jesus Christ through building sustainable communities in Haiti and the Mississippi Delta.  They address spiritual, physical, educational, agricultural and economic needs in these communities.
• ECHO has been equipping and empowering hungry families with knowledge and the life-giving grace of God.
• EQUIP International shares the Good News of Jesus and shows what difference it makes to follow Him.  They train and send missionaries ready to make an impact for God’s Kingdom in practical, life changing ways.  They also partner with mission agencies and churches to help prepare them for work in the field.
• JAARS enables sustainable solutions in transportation, technology, media, and training to make Bible translation and language development possible in very remote and difficult places around the world.
• Joy in the Harvest is a Christian mission dedicated to serving Christ in Africa. They provide expertise and resources needed by the church in Africa for making Christian disciples.
• Matthew 25: Ministries helps more than 20 million people each year.  They ship supplies such as personal care items, medical supplies, cleaning products, clothing and food to support disaster victims and those in need of assistance.
• Rafiki Foundation works to help Africans know God and raise their standard of living in 10 African countries through Bible Study, Orphan Care, Classical Christian education, Teacher Training, and helping widows and poor women of the church.
• Sports Outreach International recruits, trains, equips and deploys committed Christian leaders to use sports as a platform to share the Gospel, build leaders, and alleviate poverty and suffering. 
• Wycliffe Bible Translators serves together with churches and Bible translation organizations around the world so that local churches have Scripture and other resources to meet their spiritual needs, along with the capacity to continue to meet those growing needs in the future.