WOODWORTH – With little discussion and no dissension, a new way of dealing with the state convention’s annual budget passed unanimously at the spring Executive Board meeting.
By Karen L. Willoughby
Managing Editor
WOODWORTH – With little discussion and no
dissension, a new way of dealing with the state convention’s annual
budget passed unanimously at the spring Executive Board meeting.
A related action designed to send additional dollars
to national Cooperative Program causes without hurting LBC coffers also
passed unanimously. The Cooperative Program maximizes the Southern
Baptist Convention’s missions thrust throughout the world.
“It’s a very conservative budget plan, very similar
to the national denomination’s,” said David Hankins, executive director
of the Louisiana Baptist Convention, in explaining the Conservative
Budget Policy Motion to board members. “The rationale is that it keeps
you from planning budgets you later have to cut” when income doesn’t
meet projections.
In the past, the budget planning subcommittee was
charged with the responsibility of setting the next year’s budget. They
did so based on needs presented by LBC team leaders and a guesstimate
of projected income from churches. The board action eliminates the
guesswork. Under the newly-enacted policy, the budget presented to LBC
messengers at the annual meeting each November cannot exceed the income
received the previous fiscal year.
“This also allows us to implement the second motion,” Hankins continued.
With the CP Advance Plan policy, all money received
in excess of the budget would be split 50/50 between the LBC and SBC’s
Cooperative Program for global missions causes, as well for additional
missions and ministry investment in Louisiana.
LBC, like most of the state/regional conventions in
the SBC, is working toward a 50/50 split of the Cooperative Program
dollars it receives from churches. At the present time, 64.50 percent
is retained in Louisiana for evangelism, church starting and
strengthening, and the other Cooperative Program ministries of the
state convention.
With the CP Advance Plan policy, the CP/LBC
allocation figures would include the budget CP giving as well as the
overage. The percentage of the total giving to SBC CP – regular budget
and the 50 percent of funds over budget requirements – would become the
next year’s base CP percentage.
Over time, with these two policies, LBC will reach
that 50/50 split in which half the money given by Louisiana churches
would go outside the state, and half would be used for Louisiana
missions and ministry needs, Hankins said.
“This plan does not cut anything we’re doing,”
Hankins said. “It depends on growth. If we don’t grow, nothing changes.
“We’re committing to live on 50 percent of our
growth,” the executive director clarified. “The faster we grow, the
more we give; the more we give, the more we can give to Southern
Baptist work that impacts people to the ends of the earth. I think this
will bring the blessing of the Lord and excitement to our
churches.”
The closing 2005 financial report of LBC’s $22
million budget showed that $20,109,027 was received, a $1,890,973
shortfall. Sent on to the SBC as Cooperative Program giving:
$7,138,704, a $671,295 shortfall.
First quarter 2006 figures, also given to the
Executive Board members, indicate that Cooperative Program giving is
7.18 percent above last year’s giving from Louisiana churches.
The 83 members of the Louisiana Baptist Convention’s
Executive Board also set in place an annual review of the executive
director’s performance, and voted to hire four new staff members –
music and collegiate ministries for LBC, plus two Baptist Collegiate
Ministries campus directors:
• Randall B. “Randy” Turner (wife Connie) as LBC
Music Strategist, from Longview, Texas. Born in Oakdale, La., Turner is
a Louisiana College graduate, and from 1978-83 minister of music at
Horseshoe Drive Baptist in Alexandria.
• T. Mark Robinson as LBC director of the Baptist
Collegiate Ministry team, from BCM campus director at the University of
Louisiana at Monroe. In BCM ministry since 1990, he’s been at UL-M
since 2002.
• John Paul Schaffner Jr. as BCM campus director at
Southeastern Louisiana University, in the Hammond area. A graduate of
Louisiana Tech, he was state BCM president for Louisiana in 1997; most
recently serving in Calgary, Alberta.
• Reginald J. Alford as BCM campus director at
Grambling State University. A NOBTS student since 2001 and BCM campus
director at Southern University at New Orleans and at Dillard
University from 2001-05; since then at Alabama State University, where
he started a BCM.
David Brooks, pastor of Calvary Baptist in
Alexandria, spoke in a Tuesday morning message about confidence: “The
promises we share with others are the same promises given to us as
well,” Brooks preached; and Bill Robertson, LBC president and pastor of
Temple Baptist in Winnsboro talked about the growing unity – and the
need for unity – in the state convention.