Many of you are aware of the reality that our International Mission Board has to bring home somewhere between 600-800 missionaries from the mission field. Over the last number of years mission giving has not kept pace with cost and resources have been stretched as far as they possibly can be and there simply is not enough money to keep them in the mission field. The average Southern Baptist give 2.5% of their income to their church and many churches are not faithfully supporting the Cooperative Program or either of the mission offerings.
I am grateful to serve in a church that gives faithfully to the CP and supports the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions and the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions. Last year this church gave over $10,770 for the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering and that is a great thing. However, I want to challenge us this year to consider giving even more!
I would love to see many churches step out and give sacrificially and turn the tide on the number of missionaries that has to come home. There are still over 6,000 people groups that have not been reached with the Gospel. That means that in those people groups they don’t likely even know a Christian or a Christian church. We can make a difference through our giving.
Our Thank You goal this year will be $10,000 and I know we are thankful for God’s forgiveness and eternal life. Our Praise the Lord goal will be $12,500 this year and I pray we will reach our Glory to God goal of $15,000 this year. We can reach and surpass each of these goals and I know you are a generous group of givers. Consider giving more this year that the Gospel can go even farther into these yet to be reached groups.
Rev. J. Daniel Rosser