The original issue can be found at: http://www.baptistpress.com/issue-08/27/2015 DISCLAIMER: Baptist Press should be credited for any reprinted stories that originate with BP. Suggested credit line: Reprinted from Baptist Press (www.baptistpress.com), news service of the Southern Baptist Convention. Please note that Baptist Press periodically carries stories from other sources by permission. Individuals interested in reprinting non-BP stories should contact the entity where the story originated to seek reprint permission. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Kendrick film 'War Room' lauded by Baptists by Diana Chandler Date: August 27, 2015 - Thursday EDITOR'S NOTE: Learn more about available "War Room" resources. NASHVILLE (BP) -- "War Room," the latest film by brothers Alex and Stephen Kendrick, is being applauded by Southern Baptist leaders and others as a picture of God's power and an effective tool for encouraging Christians in prayer. Starring noted Bible teachers Priscilla Shirer in a lead role and Beth Moore among supporting cast, the film opens in wide release Aug. 28 in the U.S., with advance showings a day earlier in limited cities. Endorsers include Southern Baptist Convention President Ronnie Floyd, senior pastor of Cross Church of northwest Arkansas, who has during his presidency focused heavily on prayer for spiritual awakening and revival. "I love the movie War Room because it personifies the power of God that has the opportunity to change a person's life," Floyd said in a statement on the film's official website, "and that is exactly what we need to be committed to." Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee President Frank S. Page called it "a powerful movie depicting an even greater power: the power of prayer. It will challenge you spiritually and touch you emotionally." The movie is the Kendrick brothers' first project independent of Sherwood Pictures, the filmmaking ministry of Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Ga., where both brothers are associate pastors. It is also their first offering since the successful "Courageous," which grossed $34.5 million at the box office four years ago and sold 5 million DVDs. The film features Shirer as a young wife and mother who heeds the advice of an older, wiser woman to establish a room in her home for prayer -- a war room -- and to pray earnestly for her husband, marriage, child and home. LifeWay Christian Resources President and CEO Thom Rainer called War Room one of the best and most impactful movies he has ever seen. "My prayer is that the Kendrick Brothers' new movie will encourage believers to develop meaningful prayer lives and inspire churches to enhance their prayer ministries," Rainer said. Ed Stetzer, executive director of LifeWay Research, noted. "Let me encourage pastors around the world to use this tool, the War Room movie and resources that surround it, to encourage God's people to be effective and fervent in prayer." Alex Kendrick, who directed the movie with his brother Stephen, told Baptist Press in an earlier interview that the movie is intended to be inspirational. See related story. "I'm hoping that the movie inspires everyone ... wives to fight for their husbands the right way, for husbands to fight for their wives the right way in prayer," he said, "and so we're excited about that." In the same interview, Stephen Kendrick called prayer the best tool for preempting spiritual attacks. "Fight your battles in prayer first," he said. "Fight your battles in your war room, in your prayer closet before you ever go confront this person about this issue, before you go look for the job, before you and your wife sit down and talk about the problems in your marriage, before you confront your rebellious teenager. You meet with the Lord first." Plugged In, a resource of Focus on the Family, gave its highest rating of five plugs to the PG-rated movie, offering only a "light" content caution for kids, teens and adults, pointing out the mention of wine and the contemplation of an extramarital affair. Film critic Phil Boatwright also finds merit in the movie's inspirational elements. "I once heard pastor Charles Stanley talk about his own prayer room. As I recall, it is some sort of closet where he can shut out the world's distractions and focus on spiritual matters. He understands that God isn't some celestial servant we call upon as if He were a trained English butler," Boatwright told Baptist Press. "True prayer is more about how we relate to our Heavenly Father than the bucket list we bring before Him -- or, should be. War Room is all about that simple, yet profound truism." The Southern Baptist North American Mission Board has linked its Evangelism Resource Center (ERC) prayer line to the War Room website, offering prayer at 888-537-8720, and through the FindItHere.com online chat. The ERC offers personalized prayer 24 hours a day, 365 days a year all over the U.S., offering callers the life-changing hope found only in Jesus, and pointing them to local churches for discipleship, according to the website. The Prayer and Crisis Referral Network, founded by husband and wife team Linda and David Morrison, is also linked to the War Room website, offering prayer around the clock at 844-577-2937. The movie's release coincides with the release of a novelization of the movie, written by Moody Radio host and award-winning author Chris Fabry and published by Tyndale House Publishers. Bible study resources on prayer also complement the film. The film is a TriStar Pictures release, as was Courageous. -------------------------------------------------------------------- KATRINA 2005-15: Still in our 'mind & heart by David E. Crosby Date: August 27, 2015 - Thursday EDITOR'S NOTE: David E. Crosby is pastor of First Baptist Church in New Orleans. This is part of a series of columns and articles this week in Baptist Press marking the 10-year recovery in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast from Hurricane Katrina. NEW ORLEANS (BP) -- A middle-aged woman attended worship at our church a few Sundays ago. She came in early and sat up front on the center aisle. I greeted her and introduced myself. She promptly told me her Katrina story. She lived for years in Lakeview. The flood destroyed her home. She permanently relocated to a small town in central Louisiana. A faith community there reached out to her, and she now attends every Sunday. She came to our church during a visit to New Orleans because she wanted to thank God for the journey of faith the flood had caused her to travel. A week earlier, a couple I had not seen before slipped into a pew. They had evacuated in Hurricane Katrina, they said, and were only now, nearly 10 years later, returning permanently to our city. Week by week -- almost day by day -- without prompting or questioning, I hear the Katrina stories. I told my own story the other day in response to the query of a stranger. The evacuation on the contraflow, the destruction of my daughters' homes, the church facility as a relief center, our deployment of 21,000 volunteers, building 91 homes in partnership with Habitat for Humanity, gutting more than a thousand flooded homes -- these are components of my own narrative. A Baptist denominational executive from Texas said he was surprised and delighted to see the diversity in the membership of First Baptist New Orleans after a visit to our church. We are black and white, Asian and Latino, and all over the economic scale as a church. This diversity is in part the legacy of Hurricane Katrina. The devastation of Hurricane Katrina forced an outward focus for our church. The flood washed us out of our building and into our community. Cleanup and rebuilding programs, educational ministries, feeding initiatives, medical missions and rehabilitation efforts involved hundreds of our members. I found myself working in Treme, Bywater, Mid-City, the Ninth Ward, Gentilly, East New Orleans, Chalmette, Lakeview and virtually all over the flooded footprint of our city. All the doors in the city were standing ajar after the flood. There was little point in locking up. Everything was ruined. Driving down the streets, one would see the debris line drawn by the floodwaters on every structure along with the gaping doors and windows on practically every house. Those open doors were to me a vivid symbol of the new openness we all experienced in the crisis. Post-Katrina outreach connected our congregation with the wide range of people outside the doors of our church. As trust and friendships developed, a greater diversity of people gathered inside the building. A permanent change occurred in the spirit and character of First Baptist New Orleans. Efforts to reach out to our neighbors continue to this day. Authentic faith goes to the need and is not constrained by race or social standing. Most importantly, Hurricane Katrina presented us with the opportunity to partner with pastor Fred Luter and Franklin Avenue Baptist Church, a large and predominantly black congregation. Our two congregations shared education space, offices and the worship center for nearly three years. We joined forces to do men's ministry, women's ministry, health ministries, prayer groups, summer camps and fellowships of all kinds. Our congregations learned to love each other deeply, and that bond of love remains strong a decade later. I was delighted to nominate Pastor Luter to be the first black president of the Southern Baptist Convention. His candidacy was unopposed. The election occurred here in New Orleans on June 19, 2012. It was a moment of celebration for our churches and our convention that we will never forget. Talking about race is not easy. Listening is even more difficult. Hurricane Katrina has given our city an unusual opportunity to set aside any prejudice and listen to the stories of others. We discover, if we listen, that our stories are similar, that we have the same dreams and we hold in common many concerns and priorities. We rode the buses. We evacuated in helicopters. We got stuck on the contraflow. We were downtown in a vertical evacuation. We were at Baptist Hospital and the Superdome. We manned the boats and rescued the drowning and buried the dead. Simon was an old man when Hurricane Katrina thundered down upon us. He sat on the interstate for hours and scarcely moved. He called his nephew and said he had lived a good, long life, and he was going to return home. He drowned in Lakeview the next day. I miss him still. We did not drown or die. We are Katrina survivors. We know what it takes to put your life and community back together. Our memories are not all pleasant, but they are powerful. And they continue to shape the people that we are and will become. We have not gotten over the great flood. We are still going through it in mind and heart. We live today in the light of what we learned about the transitory nature of things and the supreme value of one another. -------------------------------------------------------------------- KATRINA 2005-15: NOBTS counts blessings, not losses by Gary D. Myers Date: August 27, 2015 - Thursday NEW ORLEANS (BP) -- On the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary is counting blessings rather than losses and leaning into the future with anticipation. "We are grateful that God was able to pull out of the rubble of Katrina a city of New Orleans that has more energy and has more vitality than it has had in a very long time," NOBTS President Chuck Kelley said. "And out of the rubble, the seminary is now strong, healthy and doing well." It underscores to Kelley that "we serve an amazing God who delights in doing awesome work to care for His children and to extend the work of His Kingdom. During the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting in June, Kelley put an exclamation point on the recovery story when he announced that NOBTS recorded the largest enrollment in the seminary's history last academic year. The future looked much bleaker after Katrina slammed ashore east of New Orleans on Aug. 29, 2005. Levee failures left 60 percent of the campus housing with significant damage. Students were scattered across 29 states; the faculty evacuated to nine states. The task of training ministers was put on hold. Three days after the storm, NOBTS administrators summoned key faculty and staff members to Atlanta to formulate a recovery plan. Courses were reformulated into an online discussion format and a goal was set to relaunch classes in October. Eighty-five percent of the students who were enrolled at the main campus before Katrina opted to continue their studies online or at one of the seminary's extension centers that semester. A call to return Less than a month after the storm, NOBTS trustees convened in Atlanta on Sept. 26-27 to discuss the seminary's future. Kelley reviewed the damage with the trustees and presented a plan to restore the campus. New Orleans-area contractor Mike Moskau assured trustees that a full restoration could be completed in time for the 2006 fall semester. In their discussions, many trustees expressed the desire to rebuild the New Orleans campus as a "call" from God. With awareness of the monumental task facing the seminary, the board unanimously approved a return New Orleans. "Our trustees looked into the unknown, but they looked at it with the lens of the grace and redeeming power of God and the needs of Southern Baptist churches and the opportunity to reach a broken city," Kelley said. "And they said, 'We want to be all in.'" Financial help poured in from SBC entities, state conventions and individual churches. Early on, the money helped address the human side of the storm, providing financial assistance to displaced members of the NOBTS community. Later, the gifts and volunteer labor helped the seminary offset rebuilding expenses not covered by insurance. NOBTS began teaching a limited number of classes on the main campus in January 2006, much earlier than expected. These commuter-only classes met in the Hardin Student Center, which was undamaged in the storm. The bulk of the reconstruction took eight months to complete, and the campus reopened in time for residential students to return for the fall 2006 semester. The cost of the rebuilding project swelled to $75 million. A new day for the Gospel The city of New Orleans, now on the cusp of its 300-year anniversary, experienced dramatic changes following Katrina. One of the most notable changes, a new openness to the Gospel, can be traced to the Southern Baptists and other evangelicals who poured into the city to help provide relief and recovery. "There is an openness to our witness that never existed before," Kelley said. "I don't know how long we will see this. … It's already waning some … but there has been an openness to the Gospel in the city of New Orleans that was not present before the storm." Responding to the relief needs in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast region in unprecedented numbers, Southern Baptists cleaned and restored homes, listened to heartrending stories of loss and lovingly shared the Gospel. That response, Kelley said, has forever changed the image of Baptists in the city. The city has experienced an economic and cultural renaissance since Katrina. The movie industry and tech startups have joined tourism as leading economic drivers. The food and music industries are flourishing. Creativity is in the air. The public school system, notoriously underperforming before the storm, is experiencing dramatic reform. This renaissance is bringing young people to the city in unprecedented numbers. "Millennials are flooding to the city. This is the largest influx of young adults in the history of New Orleans," Kelley said. "It just feels vibrant." The fresh energy in New Orleans has spilled over to the seminary community. In recent years, Kelley has seen students become more engaged in the life of city, looking for innovative ways to have a greater witness for Christ. "They just aren't threatened by the city anymore," Kelley said. "New Orleans is still a challenging place, but it's a place where a higher percentage of our students become excited about and embrace." That has not always been the case. When Kelley was a student 40 years ago, he said it was common for students only to leave the campus for church, to buy groceries and an occasional trip to get coffee and beignets. "Now there is a general sense of concern, care, respect and love for the city," Kelley said. "Southern Baptists have always been strong in small towns. We have to learn how to do life and to enjoy life in the urban context in order to reach cities for Christ," he said. "We are watching the students of NOBTS do exactly that" at a time when reaching the millennial generation is shaping up as one of the greatest challenges in the history of the Southern Baptist Convention. Challenges & opportunities at NOBTS While the students who come to the NOBTS main campus in New Orleans are more engaged in the city than ever, Kelley acknowledged that it has become more difficult to get students to move to New Orleans since the storm. Only part of that can be attributed to Katrina and the difficulties of the urban context. The changing landscape of higher education accounts for much of the shift, Kelley noted. Accessibility, a long-time buzzword at NOBTS, has become the norm in higher education. While NOBTS celebrated the largest enrollment in school history last year, a larger percentage of those students are studying at extension centers and online than ever before. "Our strategy for pushing seminary training off of the main campus is what prepared us to survive the Katrina experience," Kelley said. "Katrina was a time machine for the future of theological education. Our once avant-garde strategy is now the mainstream of theological education." Kelley doesn't see residential theological education going away anytime soon, but he believes fewer seminary graduates will earn their degree exclusively on a residential campus. With students tailoring their education to their calling and life circumstances, he said NOBTS will continue to innovate to meet the needs of students and churches. Funding has been and will continue to be a challenge for NOBTS, Kelley said. The accessibility initiatives are more expensive and receive less Cooperative Program funding within the SBC than traditional models. "We have to remember that God is the one doing the calling," Kelley said. "So when people are answering the call of God, we have to figure out a way to train them and prepare them that connects with their calling. God's call to them is a call to us. We are called to teach them." Looking back on the decade of recovery, Kelley remains amazed by God's "inexhaustible supply of redemption." His biggest takeaway from the Katrina experience is that no matter what the believer is facing, he or she can put aside fear and trust solely in God. "Katrina did not take God by surprise nor worry Him about how He would care for me and our seminary, our seminary family, all Baptist work in the city, all the people who stayed," Kelley said. "Our God is a redeemer, and He is able to take any circumstance we are in and, out of it, bring glory to His name and good to His people." -------------------------------------------------------------------- IMB leaders announce plan to balance budget by IMB Staff Date: August 27, 2015 - Thursday EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional information related to this story, see FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) released by the International Mission Board, which is included in full after this story. RICHMOND, Va.(BP) -- International Mission Board leaders have outlined a plan to address IMB's revenue shortfalls and complete a reset of the organization in order to move forward into the future with "innovative vision, wise stewardship and high accountability." The plan was presented by senior IMB leadership, including President David Platt, during an Aug. 27 town hall meeting including missionaries and staff, who collectively attended either in person or through digital communication. IMB trustees were informed of the plan during their Aug. 25-26 board meeting in downtown Richmond, Va. Platt said the urgency of the plan is based in the reality that while Southern Baptist giving through the Cooperative Program and the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering has increased in recent years, the IMB projects it will fall $21 million short of its current annual budget, marking several consecutive years of budget shortfalls for the 170-year-old organization. Over the past six years, the organization's expenditures have totaled $210 million more than has been given to it each year. To address revenue shortfalls, IMB enacted a plan to slowly reduce the number of missionaries through normal attrition and limited appointments, while using IMB's reserves -- including global property sales -- to keep as many missionaries on the field as possible. "We praise God for the reserves and property sales that made this possible and for leadership which chose to spend these resources for the spread of the Gospel," Platt said. "But we cannot continue to overspend. For the sake of short-term financial responsibility and long-term organizational stability we must act." Overcoming revenue shortfall Sebastian Traeger, IMB's executive vice president, explained that senior leadership considered several options to overcome the revenue shortfall. "The challenge is that we're looking at both large revenue shortfalls and low cash reserves -- so any action needs to include a plan to address both simultaneously," Traeger said. "We considered multiple options -- such as further reducing missionary appointments or liquidating additional property -- but none of them bring about a balanced budget fast enough, or they are not feasible to implement in the short term. Our goal is to align our cost structure with the amount of money given to us each year." Leadership determined the only option that is both feasible and has significant financial impact is to reduce the number of personnel it supports, since the vast majority of the IMB expenses are personnel related. "If we are going to balance our budget, we must reduce approximately 600 to 800 of our staff and field personnel," Platt said, indicating that number represents up to 15 percent of IMB's total employees. IMB leadership has decided the best way to reduce staff is to begin with a voluntary retirement incentive that will be offered to all eligible employees, including both missionaries and staff. While the parameters defining who is eligible are still being finalized, details of the incentive will be announced Sept. 10, 2015, and those eligible will be notified in the days following the announcement. "Whether to accept the incentive is a voluntary decision completely up to the discretion of eligible individuals," Platt said. "This offers personnel who may already be considering a transition in their lives an opportunity to make that transition. "We want to be as generous as possible, and we want to honor every brother or sister for his or her service. We know that taking a voluntary retirement incentive does not mean stepping onto the sidelines of mission, but moving into a new phase of involvement in mission." IMB is sending approximately 300 new missionaries in 2015 and expects to send a comparable number in 2016. As phase one of the plan (the voluntary retirement incentive) is being implemented, phase two of the plan will focus on concluding a reset of the organization. Platt said that phase would include consolidating support services, recalibrating mobilization, assessing global engagement and re-envisioning training. He noted the organization must humbly and openly ask God, "What are you leading us to do?" and individual employees must ask God, "What are you leading me to do?" "We must get to a healthy place in the present in order to be in a healthy position for the future," Platt said. "We want to move forward with innovative vision, wise stewardship, and high accountability to the churches we serve, the peoples we reach, and the God we worship." Frank S. Page, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Executive Committee, responded to the latest news of the budget shortfalls in a statement to Baptist Press, "I received this word from [IMB President] David [Platt] with deep sadness. Overseas missions is the heart of why the convention exists and receives more than 50 percent of our national CP Allocation Budget.  "This distressing news is the long-term consequence of reductions in Southern Baptist churches' percentage giving through the Cooperative Program during the 1990s and 2000s," Page said. "It is imperative that this generation of Southern Baptist pastors and leaders reenergize this time-honored plan of giving that sparked IMB being the premier missions-sending force it was throughout the 20th century. "The power of systematic, proportional giving from thousands of churches can turn this thing around for IMB and all our ministries," Page said. * * * * * * The International Mission Board has released a FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) with extended information about budget adjustments announced today (Aug. 27) by the mission board. The full text follows. FAQs related to IMB organizational reset Q: What is the status of IMB finances? A: Despite increased giving to the IMB over the last four years, the organization has consistently spent more money than it has received. For example, looking at the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering, a goal of $175 million was set for several years, but each year the amount received fell short. In 2014, IMB budgeted $21 million more than it received, so it drew from contingency reserves and global property sales to cover the shortfall. Not only did IMB fall $21 million short of budgeted revenue in 2014, but it also utilized global property sales to cover $18 million of budgeted expenses. In total in 2014, the organization spent $39 million more than it received. Since 2010, the organization has spent $210 million more than it has received. Fortunately, with contingency reserves and global property sales, the organization has been able to cover these shortfalls each year. Q: Hasn't Southern Baptists' giving through the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering and Cooperative Program increased in recent years? A: Yes. Over the last four years, Southern Baptists have seen increases in both the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering as well as Cooperative Program giving to the IMB. Q: What has the IMB been doing to cover budgetary shortfalls? Could the same solution work for the 2016 budget? A: IMB has been able to cover costs through reserves and property sales in the past. But this is not a long-term solution because IMB does not have an endless supply of properties, and there are many complexities involved with selling overseas property and repatriating the funds. Moreover, IMB is now close to depleting its reserves and must work to restore them to a more responsible level. Q: Has the recent decline in missionary numbers helped cover the shortfall? A: Yes. In 2009 the IMB hit a high mark of 5,600 missionaries on the field. Since then, missionary numbers have decreased to about 4,800. To address budgetary shortfalls, previous IMB leadership enacted a plan to slowly reduce the number of missionaries to 4,200 through normal attrition and limited appointments, while using IMB's reserves -- including global property sales -- to keep as many missionaries on the field as possible.  Q: Why didn't previous IMB leadership address these issues? A: Previous leaders put in place a plan to slowly reduce the number of missionaries (through normal attrition and reduced appointments) while using reserves and global property sales to keep as many missionaries as possible on the field. This plan, however, is no longer sufficient to address IMB's immediate needs. Simply put, IMB cannot continue to overspend as we have. Furthermore, IMB cannot continue to deplete its reserves. Q: What is a financially sound level of contingency reserves for an organization like the IMB? A: IMB leaders believe the organization needs to restore its contingency reserves to six months of its annual operating budget. By the end of 2015, the IMB will only have approximately four months of contingency reserves. Q: What options have IMB leadership considered to resolve this financial crisis? What was decided? A: IMB leaders have explored: * Increased revenue * Further reductions in missionary appointments * Various modifications to IMB's support structure * Additional liquidation of global properties * Significant reduction in IMB's number of both missionaries and staff The cost of personnel is approximately 80 percent of IMB's budget. IMB leadership believes the organization cannot arrive at short-term financial responsibility or long-term organizational sustainability without making a major adjustment in its number of missionaries and staff now. The other options may still be considered in the future. Q: Will IMB continue to send new missionaries? A: Yes. In 2015, approximately 300 will be sent, and in 2016, we anticipate sending a comparable number. Q: What does a "major adjustment" to missionary and staff numbers mean? A: The IMB plans to reduce the total number of missionaries and staff by 600-800 people -- or approximately 15 percent of its total personnel. Currently, approximately 4,800 personnel serve as missionaries and 450 as staff. Q: There's a big difference between 600 and 800 people. Which is it? A: The "600" number represents the change IMB leadership has known the organization needs to make to reduce missionaries from 4,800 to 4,200. The "600" number is most likely a minimum, with the larger "800" number representing a more realistic picture of the reduction of missionaries and staff necessary to put IMB in a responsible and sustainable financial position. Q: How is IMB leadership considering the spiritual foundations of this practical issue? A: IMB leadership stated that while the issue at hand is obviously financial, it is ultimately spiritual. God is not surprised by these financial realities. He has reigned sovereign over the IMB for 170 years, and He will continue to reign sovereign over the IMB for years to come. God has reigned sovereign over the direction of each personnel's life to this point, and He will reign sovereign over these lives in the days to come. Because He is sovereign, IMB leadership encourages all of its personnel to seek Him, and ask Him how and where He is guiding each of them for the sake of His name. IMB leadership believes that, without question, God will continue to lead every one of its personnel on mission. It is expected that the 600-800 people who step aside from the IMB in the next six months will not be stepping "onto the sidelines of mission," but instead will be moving into a new phase of involvement in mission. Q: What is IMB's plan for reducing the number of missionaries and staff to balance the budget while concluding the organizational reset leadership begun over the last year? A: The next six months will involve two primary phases: 1) offering a Voluntary Retirement Incentive (VRI), and 2) concluding the reset of the organization, which involves a strategic review of how the IMB is organized and how it conducts both day-to-day operations and long-range planning. The second phase includes consolidating support services, recalibrating mobilization, assessing global engagement and re-envisioning training. Q: What is a Voluntary Retirement Incentive (VRI)? A: A VRI is an official program by which any personnel who meet certain eligibility requirements may choose to retire from the IMB and receive a particular financial benefit in their retirement. Q: Is giving some of IMB's most experienced and seasoned personnel the opportunity to retire a wise first step in addressing the organization's budget needs? A: IMB leadership acknowledges this is not an ideal step -- but also that there are no "ideal" steps at this point. The reason VRIs are established is to provide personnel who may be considering retirement at some point in the near future an opportunity with incentive to take that step in the present. Q: Is the VRI really voluntary? A: Yes. This VRI is indeed voluntary. IMB leadership will not in any way encourage or influence any personnel to elect or reject the VRI. It is totally up to the discretion of an individual (or missionary family) who is eligible for the VRI to decide whether or not to elect or reject it. To help ensure that this decision is truly voluntary, supervisors across the organization will not even discuss with any individual personnel whether he or she should take the incentive. IMB leadership has designated people available to talk with personnel to help them understand what the VRI entails, but beyond this, the IMB will not point personnel toward a particular decision. IMB leadership's aim is to eliminate any possibility of pressure or coercion in a certain direction, but to ensure that this program is indeed voluntary in every way. Q: What will the VRI include? A: IMB leadership wants to make this VRI as generous as possible, so they are working to use every possible means available to provide for the men and women who take this incentive. The details of eligibility and the incentive are still being finalized. Those details will be disclosed to personnel on September 10 in a Town Hall meeting. In the few days following that meeting, all eligible personnel will receive a packet of information that includes the specific details of how this incentive would affect them. The IMB's tight financial position creates more urgency for this program now, because the longer the organization waits, the less generous it can be. This VRI will be the best option that can be offered. Q: How quickly will the VRI take place? A: Once individual details have been sent to eligible personnel in September, those personnel will have at least 45 days to decide whether or not to accept the VRI. Beyond the date IMB sets as a decision deadline, all personnel who take the VRI will continue on payroll through December, providing additional time to work through potential transition plans. For mission-field personnel with remaining stateside assignment, IMB leadership will work with those individuals through the ramifications of what that means for their retirement. Q: What is the timeframe for Phase 2 ("concluding the reset")? A: While the VRI is taking place in fall 2015, IMB leadership will simultaneously be working toward Phase 2, "concluding the reset" of the organization that has begun over the last year. In the next six months, leadership aims to bring this reset to a conclusion by making necessary announcements regarding the structure of Support Services and Mobilization, as well as any updates concerning Global Engagement and Training. At that time, IMB leadership will work through any further personnel adjustments that may need to be made based on the number of personnel who respond to the VRI; any structural changes emerging out of the reset; and any additional information available concerning IMB's budget and reserves. Q: How does the financial situation affect the structure of IMB Support Services? A: Rodney Freeman, IMB vice president for Support Services -- which includes global logistics, personnel and finances -- will begin the process of consolidating these three areas into one team. Q: How does the financial situation affect the structure of IMB Mobilization? A: Until a vice president for Mobilization is named, Sebastian Traeger, IMB executive vice president, will lead in recalibrating this area. Q: How does the financial situation affect the structure of IMB Global Engagement? A: While IMB leadership does not foresee major structural changes in the area of Global Engagement, Vice President John Brady and his team, including each of IMB's affinity leaders around the world, will assess the effects of 600-800 fewer personnel in the IMB, including IMB's ability to place personnel in particular places or among particular people groups. Q: How does the financial situation affect the structure of IMB Training? A: Zane Pratt, vice president for Training, and his newly forming Training team will continue to re-envision the training of churches, Christians, missionaries and nationals in the 21st century. Q: How will IMB handle additional personnel changes after the VRI? A: IMB leadership desires to first provide personnel an opportunity to voluntarily transition into work outside of the IMB. In addition, IMB leadership will evaluate the effects of the consolidation of Support Services and the recalibration of Mobilization, as well as any additional adjustments in Global Engagement and Training, to discern the different roles and responsibilities all IMB personnel will have in the future. Many personnel will continue with the exact same roles and responsibilities they have now. Other personnel could potentially redeploy and/or relocate, either within the IMB or beyond the IMB. Q: How will IMB measure if this two-phase plan is successful? A: Ultimately, the goal is to put the IMB in a position to thrive in the future. With constant dependence on God's Word and continual desperation for God's Spirit, IMB leadership wants the organization to move forward with innovative vision, aggressively exploring how to best mobilize, train and support limitless missionary teams from churches in North America and the nations to reach the unreached with the Gospel. IMB must be a wise steward of its resources, represented most clearly by a balanced budget with responsible reserves. And IMB must operate with a high sense of accountability to the churches we serve, the peoples we reach, and the God we worship. Q: In summary, what is the goal of these actions? A: "We must get to a healthy place in the present in order to move forward into the future with innovative vision, wise stewardship and high accountability," Platt said. Conclusion of Platt's message to IMB family: "I realize that all I have shared is a lot to process. And I am sure that the ramifications of all these things will sink in over the days to come in a variety of challenging, painful and difficult ways. But amidst inevitable heaviness, I want you to know that I have great hope for every member of the IMB family in the days ahead. As we know, God is going to make His glory known among all the peoples of the earth, and I am confident that He wants each of us to play a pivotal part in making that happen. Over the months to come, He will give many of us new parts to play, including new places of service and new paths for mission, both within and beyond the IMB. Regardless of where we find ourselves six months from now, of this I am sure: it will be good, and God will be glorified. In my time with the Lord this week, I was reading Psalm 31, where the psalmist cries, 'You are my rock and my fortress, and for your name's sake you lead and guide me' (verse 3). Amidst difficult days in our IMB family, I am clinging to the fact that our Father is a rock and a fortress who always leads and guides us. In Psalm 32:8, He says, 'I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go. He will counsel you with His eye upon You.' Please hear that promise from the Lord. Particularly amidst limitations on who we can counsel with about voluntary retirement, know that the Lord stands ready to be your Counselor. His eye is upon you. And as we seek Him, He will instruct and teach each of us individually and all of us collectively in the way we should go. For in the end, 'our times are in His hands' (Psalm 31:15)." -------------------------------------------------------------------- 'A long journey': Josh Duggar enters rehab by Diana Chandler Date: August 27, 2015 - Thursday NASHVILLE (BP) -- Former family values advocate and reality television star Josh Duggar entered a long-term treatment center days after he confessed marital infidelity as a customer of the Ashley Madison adultery service. Duggar checked himself into an undisclosed treatment center Aug. 25 for an unspecified amount of time, his mother Michelle Duggar blogged Aug. 26 at duggarfamily.com. "For him it will be a long journey toward wholeness and recovery," she wrote. "We pray that in this he comes to complete repentance and sincere change. In the meantime, we will be offering our love, care and devoted support to [Josh's wife] Anna and our grandchildren as she also receives counsel and help for her own heart and future." Josh Duggar has insulted Christianity, his mother wrote. "As parents we are so deeply grieved by our son's decisions and actions. His wrong choices have deeply hurt his precious wife and children and have negatively affected so many others. He has also brought great insult to the values and faith we hold dear." It is the 27-year-old Duggar's second time entering a treatment center for sex-related failures. In 2003, His parents checked him into a private home operated as an unlicensed, Christian treatment facility after he admitted to improperly touching five underage girls as a teenager. Four of his sisters were among those molested, it was revealed in May. Josh Duggar's actions have led to the cancellation of the once-popular "19 Kids and Counting" reality show on TLC and his resignation as a lobbyist for the Family Research Council family values group. His parents continue to voice their faith and their gratitude for public support. "During this time we continue to look to God. He is our rock and comfort. We ask for your continued prayers for our entire family," his mother said in the latest blogpost. "We are so thankful for the outpouring of love, care and prayers for our family during this most difficult situation with Josh." Josh Duggar admitted to marital infidelity in an Aug. 20 post on the family website after a massive Internet hack revealed he was among some 37 million Ashley Madison subscribers. The original blogpost perhaps hours earlier also included a confession to a pornography addiction, it was widely reported, but the mention of porn was removed from the admission the same day. "I have been the biggest hypocrite ever," the revised post reads. "While espousing faith and family values, I have been unfaithful to my wife. I am so ashamed of the double life that I have been living and am grieved for the hurt, pain and disgrace my sin has caused my wife and family, and most of all Jesus and all those who profess faith in Him." In May, he admitted to news reports he molested five girls when he was 14 and 15 years old. "Twelve years ago, as a young teenager, I acted inexcusably, for which I am extremely sorry and deeply regret. I hurt others, including my family and close friends," he said. "I confessed this to my parents, who took several steps to help me address the situation. We spoke with the authorities, where I confessed my wrongdoing, and my parents arranged for me and those affected by my actions to receive counseling. I understood that if I continued down this wrong road that I would end up ruining my life." Anna Duggar, his wife of seven years and the mother of their four children, the youngest only five weeks old, supported her husband in her last public statement about the ordeal. Concurrent with Duggar's May confession, his wife said on the family blog that she knows "who Josh really is -- someone who had gone down a wrong path and had humbled himself before God and those whom he had offended. [He is] someone who had received the help needed to change the direction of his life and do what is right." In June, his sisters Jill (Duggar) Dillard and Jessa (Duggar) Seewald identified themselves publicly as two of the girls their brother molested. His parents are slated to participate in an upcoming TLC documentary on child sexual abuse produced in partnership with RAINN, the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network. "Breaking the Silence" is set to air Aug. 30 at 9 p.m. Central on TLC. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 'War Room' resources now available by Aaron Earls Date: August 27, 2015 - Thursday NASHVILLE (BP) -- LifeWay Christian Resources has partnered with filmmakers Stephen and Alex Kendrick to provide churches with resources to accompany their latest film, "War Room," which spotlights prayer, its power and purpose. The movie, releasing in theaters Aug. 28, tells the story of a prayer warrior grandmother (played by Karen Abercrombie) who mentors a young mom (Priscilla Shirer) facing a troubled relationship with her husband (T.C. Stallings). The impetus for the movie goes back to 2012, when Alex Kendrick, director and co-writer, said he and his brother felt led by God to "make a movie where we call the body of believers to pray" and to "fight in prayer." "If there ever was a time God's people needed to plead with God for direction and intervention, it's now," Alex said. "We must make sure we are right with Him and seeking His involvement in our culture, government, churches and families. We're eroding to fast on too many levels." The film is accompanied by several resources from B&H Publishing Group and LifeWay including a book by the Kendrick brothers titled "The Battle Plan for Prayer," and a book titled "Fervent" by Shirer, a New York Times best-selling author who plays the lead character in the film. "Prayer Works: Prayer Training and Strategy for Kids" and "Peter's Perfect Prayer Place" are two children's books written by the Kendricks. For churches that want to go deeper in their understanding of prayer, LifeWay is releasing a "War Room Bible Study" and Church Campaign Kit, which includes the 5-week small group study, sermon outlines and promotional items. "When I talk to other believers, almost all of them have something of a strategy for their finances, for their health, for their children's education, for their retirement," Alex said. "But if you ask them 'What's your strategy for prayer?' they look at you funny. What's your strategy for praying for your spouse, for your children, for your children's future spouse, for your church, for the leaders of our country? The Lord, in Scripture, tells us to pray for these things." "The Battle Plan for Prayer" will give readers "applications of biblical prayer with a focus on praying strategically in various areas of life," Alex said. "You can't hit what you're not aiming at," Stephen, producer and co-writer, added. "When we pray biblically, strategically and specifically, we position ourselves to maximize the impact of our praying and to more readily see God glorified through the answers. Writing "The Battle Plan for Prayer" has caused me to pray with greater freedom and confidence in the Lord." For the Kendricks, prayer is a lifeline to the Father in their spiritual lives. "Both Stephen and myself have increased our time with the Lord in prayer," Alex said. "We're also helping our families to do the same thing. We want to be warriors ready for His orders, not lukewarm believers that spend most of our time on the bench." "War Room" is the fifth film for the brother team, who have released a string of box office hits beginning with "Facing the Giants" in 2006. Their last two movies opened in the Top 5, with "Courageous" hitting No. 1 on the first weekend in per-theater average. While the Kendricks say they would love for "War Room" to be successful at the box office like their other films, that's not their most important goal. "Our hope and desire," Stephen said, "is God will call our generation back to prayer for our marriages, families, nation, and our world." Alex said next up for him and his brother are "a little rest and a lot of prayer. God has another tour of duty for us soon, so we want to be ready." For more information about "War Room" resources, visit Lifeway.com/WarRoom. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Increases proposed for SBC, Fla. ministry by Barbara Denman/Florida Baptist Convention Date: August 27, 2015 - Thursday JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (BP) -- Saying "we can impact the world" by sending 51 percent of Florida's Cooperative Program receipts to the Southern Baptist Convention while simultaneously increasing funds to reach Florida, Executive Director-Treasurer Tommy Green presented a $29 million budget for 2016 to the State Board of Missions' Budget-Allocations Committee. The committee unanimously approved the proposed 2016 Cooperative Program budget Aug. 13 to send $14,790,000 -- or 51 percent -- to the SBC and retain $14,210,000 -- or 49 percent -- for ministry within the state. The 2016 budget goal reflects a $200,000 increase over the previous year. It eliminates shared receipts and negotiated ministry funds that previously were set aside from the allocations to national and state causes. The proposed budget must be approved by the State Board of Missions during its Sept. 18 meeting and by messengers to the Florida Baptist State Convention when they meet Nov. 8-10 in Panama City. The money earmarked for the SBC and specifically for the International Mission Board -- which increases the $5.9 million allocated in the 2015 budget to $7.4 million in 2016 -- will provide funds for 20 additional missionary families, Green reported. "If every state convention would do this, we could increase the number of missionaries on the field times twenty," Green said. "This would have global implications. It's not just about Florida, it's about Kingdom work." All SBC entities will receive a similar bump, with a 25.25 percent increase in income with the 2016 proposed budget. Green, who began as Florida Baptists' executive director-treasurer in June, emphasized that even with the reduced amount earmarked for Florida, ministry dollars in the state will increase by a million dollars. That additional ministry money -- as well as the percentage increases for SBC funding -- was accomplished through reprioritization of programs and personnel reductions. The restructuring and downsizing of staff will "decentralize, regionalize and personalize" the work of the convention for church planting, revitalization and ministry within the state, Green explained. He reiterated the convention's new mission statement, "The focus of the Florida Baptist Convention is to support and strengthen the local churches through partnership for Kingdom ministry." He added, "The church does not exist for the convention, the convention exists for the churches." The new exec will bring his proposed reorganization and personnel reduction to the State Board in September for approval. The proposed $14 million budget allocated to Florida Baptist Convention mission and ministries will distribute $11,121,000 to the convention's program budget and $3,089,000 to the cooperating ministry budget (previously known as agencies and institutions). The cooperating ministry budget will be divided between: The Baptist College of Florida, $1,625,000; Florida Baptist Children's Homes, $1,120,000; Florida Baptist Witness $279,000; and Florida Baptist Financial Services for the Florida Baptist Retirement Center, $65,000. All of the ministries received a slight increase in budgeted funding from the previous year. "This is the first time in eight years we have not had a decrease," said Jerry Haag, FBCH president. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Rainer: LifeWay, at 'hinge moments,' moving forward by Carol Pipes Date: August 27, 2015 - Thursday RIDGECREST, N.C. (BP) -- LifeWay Christian Resources is facing "hinge moments" and decisions that will propel the organization in one direction or another, President Thom S. Rainer told trustees during the board's Aug. 24-25 meeting. "We are about to walk through some open doors as these hinge moments are now before us," Rainer said. "And I think we are about to see some incredible days at LifeWay." The hinge moments, Rainer explained, revolve around the sale and relocation of its downtown Nashville headquarters. Executive Vice President Brad Waggoner gave trustees a comprehensive report on the sale of LifeWay's current campus and the move to a new location. "The decisions we are making will impact LifeWay for decades to come," Waggoner said. "Good stewardship is driving these decisions." The sale of the 14-acre campus in downtown Nashville will be the largest real estate transaction in the history of downtown Nashville, Jerry Rhyne, LifeWay's CFO and vice president of finance, said. Rhyne expects to close the sale in September. After sale of the building, LifeWay employees will lease back two of the current buildings from the buyer and move all employees into those facilities while a new building is under construction, Waggoner said. The trustee executive committee, in its June 15 meeting, approved purchase of 1.5 acres at the southwest corner of 1st Avenue South and Korean Veteran's Boulevard in downtown Nashville for the new headquarters building. At the August meeting, the full board voted to approve the basic concept design and construction of the new office and parking facility. LifeWay expects to close on the new property this fall and move into the new facility in the fall of 2017. Rainer asked trustees to pray for the Southern Baptist entity during this time of transition. He told trustees he is proud of LifeWay employees and how they are responding to change. "I'm amazed at the breadth and depth of the work of those who are associated with LifeWay," Rainer said. "It's amazing to realize we all have a part in sharing the Gospel around the world." Rhyne also presented a proposed 2016 LifeWay budget for $482.5 million. Trustees approved the budget, which will begin in October. Trustees also heard reports from the vice presidents of resources, technology, finance, insights and organizational development divisions during their two-day sessions at the LifeWay Ridgecrest Conference Center in North Carolina. In other business, the board elected Madeline Harris and José L. Ruiz to fill two trustee vacancies created by the resignations of Sandra Peoples from the Baptist Convention of Pennsylvania/South Jersey and Jay Swope from the Missouri Baptist Convention. Harris is a member of Ezekial Baptist Church in Philadelphia; Ruiz is a member of Fellowship Church in Greenwood, Mo. Rainer introduced and welcomed eight new trustees to the board: Marie Clark, Overland Park, Kan.; Cheri Dempsay, Peoria, Ariz.; Bill Langley, Elizabethtown, Ky.; Tony McAlexander, Las Vegas; Rebecca McCoy, Hersey, Mich.; Amy Mielock, Cary, N.C.; Katherine Pope, Martinsburg, W.Va.; and Terenda Wyant, Belleville, Ill. "This is an historic moment," Rainer said, concluding the meeting. "Let's not let this moment pass without understanding the magnitude of what has taken place. You have set LifeWay on a path to a great future. "In this hinge moment, it seems God has given us an open door and it's time to move through with courage, faith and fortitude." -------------------------------------------------------------------- USCIRF crucial to religious freedom, Moore says by Tom Strode Date: August 27, 2015 - Thursday WASHINGTON (BP) -- Southern Baptist ethicist Russell Moore has joined a diverse collection of religious liberty advocates to urge members of Congress to reauthorize an important federal panel on global religious freedom as the deadline for doing so nears. Moore, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, and 85 others signed onto a letter calling for reauthorization of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) by Sept. 30. The current authority for the panel expires on that date. USCIRF -- a nine-member, bipartisan panel -- researches conditions for religious freedom overseas and makes policy recommendations to Congress, the White House and State Department. In their Aug. 24 letter, Moore and his allies with the International Religious Freedom (IRF) Roundtable said USCIRF "has been vital to elevating the promotion of religious freedom in U.S. foreign policy." The commission "can be counted upon to give an unvarnished view of the state of religious freedom in any given country regardless of the complexities of the bilateral relationship between our respective governments," according to the letter. The ERLC's Moore told Baptist Press, "Religious liberty isn't an American privilege. It's a fundamental human right shared by every single being that has a conscience." USCIRF "plays a crucial role in standing up for soul freedom against tyranny around the world," he said. "My prayer is that Congress would recognize this and stand on the side of liberty by passing this bill." Robert George, USCIRF's chairman, told Baptist Press the "dire circumstances of religious freedom across the globe" make the commission's work "more important -- and urgent -- than ever." "It is critical that the commission be reauthorized, and reauthorized on terms that do not weaken its ability to fulfill its mission," George said in comments emailed to BP.  "I am personally deeply grateful to the member groups of the IRF Roundtable for their strong support for USCIRF's reauthorization," said George, professor of jurisprudence at Princeton University. "The Roundtable and its member groups are among our greatest allies in the fight to protect religious freedom and defend victims of persecution on the basis of religion or belief." If Congress does not reauthorize USCIRF by Sept. 30, the commission must shut down its operations. Apart from approval of a bill reauthorizing the panel, Congress could extend USCIRF's ability to function by including it in a continuing resolution, which is a short-term funding measure. In their letter, the members of the IRF Roundtable called on the leaders of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to extend the commission's authority by working for passage of the USCIRF Reauthorization Act, S. 1798. The legislation will not only reauthorize USCIRF for six years but strengthen the commission's "mandate and the tools at its disposal," according to the IRF Roundtable letter to Sen. Bob Corker, R.-Tenn., and Sen. Ben Cardin, D.-Md. Corker is the Foreign Relations Committee chairman, while Cardin is the lead Democrat on the panel. The signers encouraged adoption of S. 1798 rather than another reauthorization bill, the Further Independence of Religion for Security and Tolerance Freedom Act, S. 1860. They said S. 1798 "is better suited to advance freedom of religion or belief" because S. 1860 includes refugee-related provisions that are part of a debate that is unlikely to be settled in time for USCIRF's reauthorization. The signers also said S. 1860 includes measures that "could potentially undermine" USCIRF's work. Like the Senate, the House of Representatives has yet to pass reauthorization legislation for the commission. USCIRF came into existence in 1998 upon the enactment of the International Religious Freedom Act by Congress and President Clinton. Evangelicals helped lead the effort to gain passage of the legislation after the widespread persecution of Christians and other religious adherents overseas gained attention in the mid-1990s. The commission makes an annual report on global religious freedom, as well as periodic reports on particular countries. In its yearly report, USCIRF includes recommendations of governments it believes the State Department should designate as "countries of particular concern," a label reserved for the world's most severe violators of religious freedom. While conditions have improved in some countries through the efforts of USCIRF and the federal government, religious repression or persecution of Christians and others has continued or mounted in recent years in such countries as Iraq, Syria, Nigeria, Iran, Pakistan, Egypt and North Korea. About 77 percent of the world's population lives in countries with high levels of religious restriction, according to the Pew Research Center. The IRF Roundtable -- a loosely organized group of non-governmental organizations that meets regularly for conversations about religious liberty overseas -- acknowledges its participants do not agree on many theological or political issues. They agree, however, on the significance of religious liberty, including its role as "the ultimate counter-terrorism weapon, pre-emptively undermining religious extremism," according to the Aug. 24 letter. In addition to Moore, other individuals who signed onto the letter were Nina Shea, director of the Hudson Institute's Center for Religious Freedom and a former USCIRF member; Chris Seiple, president of the Institute for Global Engagement; Ann Buwalda, executive director of the Jubilee Campaign USA; Mark Tooley, president of the Institute on Religion and Democracy; Lauren Homer, head of Law and Liberty Trust; and Jeff King, president of International Christian Concern. Among the organizations that endorsed the letter were Open Doors USA, Family Research Council, Home School Legal Defense Association, Christian Solidarity International, Coptic Solidarity, 21st Century Wilberforce Initiative, Church of Scientology National Affairs Office, Union of Councils for Jews in the Former Soviet Union, Uyghur American Association, Baha'is of the United States and American Humanist Association. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Bible Study: Aug. 30, 2015 by Staff/LifeWay Christian Resources Date: August 27, 2015 - Thursday NASHVILLE (BP) -- This weekly Bible study appears in Baptist Press in a partnership with LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention. Through its Leadership and Adult Publishing team, LifeWay publishes Sunday School curricula and additional resources for all age groups. This week's Bible study is adapted from the MasterWork curriculum. Bible Passages: Jonah 3:1–4:2; Romans 9:3, 15:20 Discussion Questions: Why do you think Jonah ran in the opposite direction from which God sent him? Have you ever been guilty of running the opposite direction when God called you to witness to a lost person? If so, why did you flee? What does it take for God to convince you to follow through obediently on His call? On a scale of 1 (absolutely like Jonah) to 10 (nothing like Jonah), how reluctant are you as a missionary? Food for Thought: It would make a great comedy if it weren’t so serious -- a man running from an unwanted assignment, finding himself in greater trouble than had he undertaken the task head on, receiving more compassion from those who were the enemies of his God than he was willing to show to enemies. You know the story -- swallowed by a huge fish, three days cramped in the confines of the fish and his rebellion, then unceremoniously vomited onto the shore. He was free of the restraints of the fish’s belly, but not of his own hatred. His stay in the underwater accommodations did persuade him to obey, however; Jonah became a reluctant missionary and much to his displeasure, an effective one. We find it easy to fault Jonah for thinking he could run away from God and hide. We marvel at how he could take more interest in a vine than in the salvation of thousands of people. We cringe as he justifies his anger to the omniscient God of the universe. But before we begin casting the mental stones we have picked up, let’s ask ourselves a question: When was the last time I hurried on my way rather than witness to the person God put in my path? God took a reluctant witness and made a remarkable difference in a major city as people believed the message and repented. Reluctant or not, Jonah at least heeded God’s call to proclaim His word. Can we say the same? MasterWork MasterWork is an ongoing Bible study curriculum based on works from a variety of renowned authors and offers pertinent, practical messages that adults will find uplifting and enriching. The list of authors and their books to be studied in upcoming months can be found at www.lifeway.com/masterwork. Other ongoing Bible study options for all ages offered by LifeWay can be found at LifeWay.com/SundaySchool. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Platt: No Gospel drawdown despite personnel cuts by David Roach Date: August 27, 2015 - Thursday RICHMOND, Va. (BP) -- A reduction of 600-800 International Mission Board staff and field personnel should not decrease the board's Gospel impact worldwide, IMB President David Platt told members of the media during an Aug. 27 conference call. "Even if our income from churches were to double over the next year ... we would still have a cap on our ability to send a certain number of full-time, fully supported church planters," Platt said. IMB leaders "want to take that cap off" and "consider all of the different avenues that God created in His sovereign grace for multitudes more people to go" -- including business professionals funded by their secular employers, students funded by scholarships to international universities and retirees funded by their savings. Platt's press conference, which also included the IMB’s executive vice president, Sebastian Traeger, occurred following a town hall meeting with missionaries and staff at which IMB leaders announced a plan to balance the organization’s budget by the end of 2017. Phase one of the plan will involve offering a voluntary retirement incentive to eligible employees. Phase two will include an opportunity for other employees to "voluntarily transition into work outside the IMB," Platt said. The issue of potential layoffs will be addressed "when necessary." IMB leaders will consider the ramifications of full-time missionary reduction for work among specific people groups around the globe based on the outcome of voluntary retirements and resignations, Platt said. Personnel reduction is a "difficult" issue "to communicate with our IMB family," Platt said. "These aren't just figures. These are faces. These are brothers and sisters who have spent and are spending their lives in various capacities to spread the Gospel among those who have never heard it." Traeger said no option other than personnel reduction represented a viable method to bring expenses in line with revenue. Suspending or reducing missionary appointments as well as employing alternative funding models are not "feasible" courses of action, he said. Platt noted that personnel expenses account for about 80 percent of the IMB's budget. For some departing employees, Platt mentioned the possibility of transitioning to work with the North American Mission Board, but he said leaders of the two mission entities have not discussed it. "It is encouraging to us as leadership as we think through the difficulties with a step like this, but also the opportunities that are going to open up [for] work among unreached peoples in North America and work in churches in North America," Platt said. "I trust in all kinds of ways that God will creatively and sovereignly lead and direct 600-800 people in the days to come. "And because of our ongoing and growing partnership with NAMB, I'm certain there are possibilities that may unfold along those lines, [but] we don't have a formal plan for integrating certain people into certain positions with NAMB," Platt said. Though IMB expenditures have exceeded revenue by $210 million over the past six years, according to reports from IMB leadership, the anticipated spending adjustment "is not in any way a reflection of a lack of accountability or responsibility" among past IMB leaders, Platt said. "Previous leadership put in place a plan to draw down the number of missionaries on the field over time in a way that we have now realized is not getting us to where we need to be as quickly as maybe once thought." Traeger said budget shortfalls have been the result of revenue projections that exceeded actual income, including projections related to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering. Data reported in Baptist Press and Southern Baptist Convention Annuals indicates IMB budgets projected Lottie Moon revenue equivalent to the goal even when the previous year's Lottie Moon revenue was millions less. For example, the projected 2015 Lottie Moon income is $180 million despite a 2014 Lottie Moon offering of $153 million. The projected 2014 Lottie Moon revenue was $175 million despite a 2013 offering of $154 million. Since 2007, projected Lottie Moon revenue in IMB budgets has exceeded Lottie Moon receipts by more than $170 million. Traeger said Lottie Moon receipts have increased by an average of 0.6 percent annually over the past four years. Until now, the shortfall has been overcome by using reserve funds and selling property, but that plan is no longer feasible, Platt said. The IMB's unrestricted net assets, which include contingency reserve funds, went from more than $256 million in 2007 to $98 million in 2014, with a low of $56 million in 2011, according to audited IMB financial statements as reported in SBC Annuals. Platt said he wants to keep disclosure of IMB financial data "as simple as possible but also as transparent as possible." In related news, NAMB President Kevin Ezell applauded the IMB's leadership team in a statement to BP. "David [Platt] and his leadership team are taking steps that will put IMB and Southern Baptists on a strong footing for our missions efforts," Ezell said. "The right decisions are not always the easy ones but the next generations of missionaries and those they reach will be grateful. It's time to look forward and move into the future which I believe, with David's leadership, will be bright and full of God's blessings."