NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)–Eleven state conventions and fellowships voted to increase the percentage forwarded in 1999 to the Southern Baptist Convention of the Cooperative Program funds they receive from churches, according to an analysis of the 41 state convention/fellowship annual meetings last fall.
The study, conducted by the Cooperative Program office of the SBC Executive Committee, revealed five of the 11 conventions/fellowships had increased their percentage forwarded to the SBC last year as well.
The 11 are: District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas/Nebraska, Kentucky, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania/South Jersey, West Virginia and Wyoming. The DC, Iowa, Kansas/Nebraska, Nevada and Penn/S.Jersey conventions also increased their percentage forwarded to the SBC in 1998.
“We thank the Lord for the continued strong relationships between the state conventions and the SBC,” said Morris H. Chapman, president and chief executive officer of the SBC Executive Committee. “These increases in the percentage of Cooperative Program going to national and international missions is an indicator of the churches’ and the state convention leaders’ passion for reaching beyond themselves so that all may hear the gospel.”
The Cooperative Program is Southern Baptists’ method of supporting missions and ministry efforts of state and regional conventions and the Southern Baptist Convention. State and regional conventions retain a percentage of Cooperative Program contributions they receive from the churches to support work in their areas and send the remaining funds to the Executive Committee for national and international ministries. The percentage of distribution is at the discretion of the 41 state or regional conventions.
David Hankins, Executive Committee vice president for Cooperative Program, commended the state conventions for “their aggressive promotion of worldwide missions.”
“Even with the demands of local ministries they have not lost perspective of the needs of the entire globe. The future of the state convention/SBC Cooperative Program partnership is bright,” Hankins said.
The percentage increases for the 11 states are: District of Columbia, 2; Illinois, .5; Indiana, .25; Iowa, 1; Kansas/Nebraska, .25; Kentucky, .244; Michigan, 3; Nevada, .25; West Virginia, .5; Wyoming, 1.
