Southern Baptist churches with ongoing missions education programs appear to be stronger supporters of the Cooperative Program (CP) and Southern Baptist missions offerings, according to a review of data from the 2007 Annual Church Profile (ACP), a survey conducted by LifeWay Christian Resources.
The assessment of ACP data, conducted by national Woman’s Missionary Union (WMU) and the North American Mission Board (NAMB), examined levels of giving to the CP, Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions and the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions from churches that have WMU age-level organizations, such as Girls in Action and Women on Mission, as compared with those that do not. WMU and NAMB further examined the giving levels among churches that reported having Baptist Men on Mission (formerly Brotherhood), Challengers and Royal Ambassador programs of NAMB and those that do not.
Regardless of church size, the entities’ findings show that per capita giving to CP and the missions offerings was greater across the board in churches that reported having ongoing missions education.
For example, when looking at a total of 40,056 congregations across the country, the average per capita giving to CP was $23.65 in churches without WMU- or NAMB-supported missions education programs as compared to $43.28 per capita giving in churches that have these programs. Among total congregations, per capita giving to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering was $3.29 from churches without missions education as compared to $9.05 from those with missions education; per capita giving to the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering was $1.54 per capita compared to $5.34.
“Southern Baptists have a rich missions legacy, and the foundation of that has been missions education,” said Jim Burton, NAMB’s missions education team leader. “We believe that missions learning is the foundation for missions sending, and this data supports that conviction.
“When Southern Baptist churches drift away from missions education, they directly put future missions support from their church at risk,” Burton continued. “Having no missions education, particularly in lieu of parachurch options that will not reinforce our missions priorities, cuts short the shared vision of cooperative missions that has defined our denomination’s missions efforts.”
Geoff Hammond, NAMB president, said these insights are particularly important in light of the increasingly challenging missions field NAMB missionaries face.
“The urgent need to reach North America with the gospel is apparent every day, and Southern Baptists who have a missions education foundation are better equipped to meet the challenges of fulfilling the Great Commission,” Hammond said. “The work of our missions education team and the Woman’s Missionary Union, along with other partners, is making a difference.” (BP)
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