The days are shorter, skies are grayer, birds aren’t singing, and flowers aren’t blooming as much these days. So how about my adding a depressing thought. Paul Chitwood, CEO of the IMB said:
A look back over the last decade of LMCO receipts reveals that 10 percent fewer churches contributed in the past five years than in the five years prior. Paul Chitwood, September 26, 2019.
I understand that our oldest and most valued entity, The International Mission Board, has had some travails that discouraged churches from giving. The loss of over a thousand personnel as a result of the financial crisis that precipitated the voluntary retirement incentive and other RIF programs doubtless soured some churches on the IMB. Churches are king in giving, so IMB recognizes the need to “prioritize re-connecting with Southern Baptists.”
Indeed.
Best I can tell, the pastor of the church drives this bus. If he wants to lead his church to support the IMB they will surely follow. So, bruh, take a look at how IMB is a strategic destination for your congregation’s mission dollars. IMB has personnel engaged with close to a thousand people groups for the purpose of sharing the Gospel. I’m not against flooding the sunny Caribbean and Central America with short term teams. There are needs in those places and good work is being done. Try not to stumble over multiple other mission group while flying into these places. You will not have that problem in many places where IMB, at great expense and sacrifice, has individuals and families serving among unreached and unengaged people groups in other parts of the world.
Let’s think strategically on this. If ever there was and is a task that requires cooperation by all of our churches it is in reaching the world for Christ.
Every SBC church ought to give something, anything to the LMCO this year.
