For generations, South Carolina Baptists have generously supported international missions through the Cooperative Program and the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering. Unfortunately, however, some churches have tended to point to their giving as the best evidence of their commitment to reaching the nations. Of course, giving is a biblical no-brainer: We must give, just as we must also pray. But, beyond giving and praying, we must also go. I want to encourage every South Carolina Baptist church to pursue active engagement in reaching the nations — praying, giving, and going. A church that prays and gives is certainly impactful — but a praying, giving, and going church can have an even greater impact on lostness.
Like many churches in our convention, the church I serve contributes faithfully and joyfully to CP and to Lottie Moon. But CP and Lottie Moon offerings, as important as they are, offer indirect support — in that they fund the sending of other people, usually folks whom we don’t know. So, if CP and Lottie Moon represent the extent of a church’s engagement in international missions, the problematic thinking that the call to go overseas is always for someone else, from some other church, is reinforced.
In addition to a local church’s crucial, yet indirect, funding of others — who, through the International Mission Board, go to the nations from other SCBC and SBC churches — I believe every South Carolina Baptist church can and should also help to fund directly one or more of their own members to go on international mission projects. At First Baptist, Newberry, we call this FBNDirect.
In fact, FBNDirect represents our church’s direct mission efforts in South Carolina, the United States and internationally. So, in addition to our Cooperative Program and associational allocations, and our Lottie Moon, Annie Armstrong, and Janie Chapman offerings, we set aside 2 percent of our undesignated giving to partially fund our own members who go on First Baptist Newberry-sponsored mission projects. This helps to cultivate a “going” culture and a personal stake in the overall missions effort.
When members of your congregation go on short-term mission projects, your church has skin in the game, literally. Your church members are on the field, engaged in incarnational witness. This captures the attention and the imagination of the church for the Great Commission like nothing else can. Missional giving should increase, as going is normalized. And going is contagious!
Having members of your church go on short-term mission projects personalizes IMB missionaries. Such relationships demystify the “otherness” of missionaries and help church members to see them as the normal Christians that they are. This enables church members to think and to dream: “Hey, maybe God could use me on the field!”
As relationships between churches and field personnel develop, concern and conviction do, too, and prayers for the nations and for missionaries become more intensely focused. Such partnerships encourage field personnel who are often lonely and isolated. It helps them to actually know some of the Southern Baptists who are holding the rope over here while they are over there. The healthier they are, the more effective they will be, and the sooner the nations will be reached with the gospel of Jesus Christ.