***NEWS RELEASE***

 

Samaritan Ministries’ Health Care Sharing Connects Thousands of Members Every Month

Young Families Share Their Personal Experiences

 

PEORIA, Ill.—Health care sharing ministries connect their members to each other in a deep and profound way, as Biblical wisdom is the basis of this direct-sharing model that is grounded in Jesus’ teaching.

Every month, more than 69,000 member households (nearly 228,000 individuals) give generously to other members with a qualified medical need through Samaritan Ministries International (samaritanministries.org), one of the leading health care sharing ministries in America. Members send checks, prayers and notes of encouragement directly to other members in need.

“Because we’re lifting each other up in prayer in addition to sharing monetary gifts, members can minister to the whole need, including the physical, spiritual and financial aspects,” said Anthony Hopp, Samaritan Ministries’ vice president of external relations. “Health care sharing is a unique opportunity for members to be the hands and feet of Jesus. The Samaritan Ministries direct-sharing model is a Biblical approach to paying for health care, based on passages like Galatians 6:2, which says to ‘Bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ.’ This is a charge we take seriously among our members and within the Samaritan family.”

Today, Samaritan members share approximately $25 million each month in medical needs, but, just as important, families are supported by each other and affected personally by those they don’t even know.

In a new video from Samaritan, two young families who have much in common talk about what health care sharing has meant to them. Michael and Sarah Johnson have three children, ages 5, 2 and a newborn, while Michael and Serena Grimm also have three: 8, 5 and 8 months.

“Initially, for me, if I’m speaking honestly,” said Michael Johnson, “I was a little nervous about how Samaritan was going to work and if it would work, especially with something like a pregnancy, because it’s not just a need, it’s a big need. Financially, it’s a big commitment. But it was a great comfort to us to know that we had fellow believers all over the country who were going to share with us. And we didn’t have to worry.”

Those fellow believers included the Grimms, whose monthly financial share was recently sent to the Johnsons.

“Today we got our mail, and we’re sharing with the Johnsons (who) just had a new baby,” said Michael Grimm in the video. “That’s something we just experienced—Rex is 8 months old—and I think those needs that you connect with, that you’ve gone through yourself, they become a little bit more real. When you’re writing that card to those people, I think it maybe takes on a little bit more significance.”

In the video, the Grimms drop their financial share for the Johnsons in their mailbox, along with a note that told the Johnsons they would be praying for the new little one—that she would grow up to serve the Lord.

In this case, the Johnsons and the Grimms and their children were able to actually meet, but hundreds of thousands of Samaritan members never meet face to face. Their faith in and obedience to Jesus, however, propels them to take care of their brothers and sisters in Christ through a Biblical community of believers.

Currently, Samaritan members give a monthly share of only $495 for a family of any size, while individuals give $220 and couples give $440. Just as significantly, Samaritan members also pray for one another and include notes and cards of encouragement with their monthly shares, which they send directly to other families.

Learn more about Samaritan Ministries International here; visit the Samaritan website at www.samaritanministries.org, or follow the ministry on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

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