VALLEY FORGE, PA (ABNS 7/2/12)—New contributions have come in and more are expected for the Challenge Fund which will make it possible to continue the MISSION3 Matching Gift Opportunity until the end of July as originally hoped. This is made possible by gifts from faithful supporters.
As of June 30, donations toward the Matching Gift Opportunity have reached $270,920 from 963 individual donors. To be eligible for the match, individual donors must be giving for the first time ever, or be current individual donors who are giving over and above their regular giving, Gifts must be received by July 31, 2012.
Eligible donors may give online at http://www.internationalministries.org/drives/6/, or by mailing a check to International Ministries, P.O. Box 851, Valley Forge, PA 19482. Gifts to IM may be directed to:
• Recruit, train and care for NEW missionaries
• Support all missionaries already in the field
• Support an individual missionary or missionary family
• Wherever they are most needed
In addition, it is still possible for major donors to give to increase the Challenge fund. To do so, contact Dave Worth, IM development director, at dave.worth@abc-usa.org. Your generosity will encourage others to give even more.
As IM enters its Third Century of Mission, two significant trends are emerging. Within the next decade a growing portion of IM’s long-term missionaries will approach retirement. At the same time, requests for IM to send new missionaries are increasing. IM’s partners are in need of missionaries to help people come to faith in Jesus, grow in their relationship with God and change their worlds through the power of the Spirit.
“Unless we are very proactive in helping people to discern their call to international cross-cultural work, we will face a significant shortfall in global missionaries,” comments Reid Trulson, IM executive director. “The Mission3 Matching Gift Opportunity will help us send new personnel into service on location and strengthen the support for our 100+ current missionaries, development workers and global consultants.”
Today, more than 4.8 billion people have yet to experience God’s love through Jesus. “Our global partners are asking for help,” adds Trulson. “As missionaries and local believers partner together, their capacity grows to make disciples for Jesus while meeting pressing human needs, such as poverty, hunger, sickness, education, conflict and slavery.”
American Baptist International Ministries (IM) was organized in 1814 as the first Baptist international mission agency in America. It began its pioneer mission work in Burma and today works in Asia, Africa, Europe, the Middle East and the Americas serving more than 1,800 long-term and short-term missionaries. Its central mission is to help people come to faith in Jesus, grow in their relationship with God and change their worlds through the power of the Spirit. It works with respected partners in over 70 countries in ministries that proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ while meeting human need.
American Baptist Churches USA is one of the most diverse Christian denominations today, with 5,500 local congregations comprised of 1.3 million members, across the United States and Puerto Rico, all engaged in God’s mission around the world.