Editor’s note: This information was published in a previous issue of Heartfelt Magazine, CHM’s monthly magazine that provides CHM membership-related tips and tricks, medical advice from doctors, testimonies from CHM members and more. Please refer to the CHM Guidelines and applicable web pages for the most up-to-date information regarding CHM membership, sharing eligibility and ministry news.
Rev. Graham’s quotation has a lot in common with our CHM mission: To glorify God and serve His people.
Ministry: That’s what CHM is all about. That’s what we do. That’s all we want to do.
The Free Dictionary’s first two definitions of ministry are good descriptors of the underlying work that takes place here in our offices as we serve members:
a) The act of serving; ministration
b) One that serves as a means; an instrumentality
We’re providing ministration (care, attention, service) to our members through CHM’s programs and employees.
It’s sometimes easy and understandable—though an error—to think of CHM's ministry as a business. There are even business-related publications that list CHM as one of the largest nonprofit organizations in northeast Ohio. Different publications use various criteria to arrive at such rankings: Number of employees, dollar volume, customer base and more.
What they don’t consider (which is understandable since it’s not what they’re looking for) is the organization’s “heart.” A business has specific goals: Provide a service, receive payment, make a profit that enables it to pay its bills and expenses, and grow.
CHM is a ministry, not a business. Profit isn’t part of our thinking. That’s not to say profit is bad; it’s just not what we’re seeking within our purpose of glorifying God and serving His people. This is a charity that seeks to help people—just like churches and ministers, missions, outreaches to the homeless, and other, similar activities and organizations.
When you read through Heartfelt Magazine, please take special note of the comments of our employees in the “Meet Your Staff” articles. What you’ll find is that they regularly describe that they like working at CHM because we pray with and for our members, we meet in a weekly chapel service and we joyfully serve God while enabling Christians to share each other's medical bills.
The CHM testimonies are insightful for the same reason. A portion of a letter from Tom and Gloria Rueber of Rochester, Minn., shared how CHM members helped them, and how CHM affected them in terms of ministry:
Every financial need was met in full, and we knew other Christians were praying for us. We felt your prayers. Thanks be to God for this lesson, and thanks to all involved in meeting our financial and spiritual needs. I recommend CHM to other believers. Never underestimate the power of God and a loving, giving group of Christians!
Absolutely right. Never underestimate the power of God and the ability of His people to band together to provide for each other under a banner—not of business or profit—but of ministry.
