n      Field Personnel under appointment (2/5/07) 5,153   n      Career/associates/apprentices 4,119   n      2-yr.  ISC/Journeymen/Masters 1,034   n      Field Personnel appointed 2005: 801   n      Student Volunteers 2005: 6,797   n      Overseas baptisms 2005*: 459,725   n      Overseas churches 2005*: 108,713   n      Overseas church mem’ship 2005*: 7.3 m   n      New churches 2005*: 17,676   n      People  groups engaged*: 1,193   n      People  groups of the Last Frontier*: 5,876   n      Population of the Last Frontier peoples: 1.7 billion   n      World Population 2005: 6.4  billion   n      LMCO  receipts for Christmas 2004: $133.9  m   n      LMCO receipts for Christmas 2005: $137.9 m   n      LMCO goal for Christmas 2006: $150 m   n      IMB budget for 2007: $288.9 million   n      The IMB receives about half its budget from the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering, and 35 percent from the Cooperative Program   *data from 2005 Annual Statistical Report   … [Read more...]

Even before he’s fully awake, “Joshua McFadden” knows he’s not in Louisville, Ky., anymore. Names changed for security reasons SOUTHEAST ASIA (BP) – Even before he’s fully awake, “Joshua McFadden” knows he’s not in Louisville, Ky., anymore. Roosters crowing, babies crying and his neighbors pumping water from the well outside his bedroom window remind the recent college grad that he’s in Cambodia. So do the thatched-roof homes on stilts he passes as he bikes down the red dirt road to a Cambodian-style outdoor diner. Yet, as he wolfs down breakfast and endures teasing by the older village women, he is thankful God brought him to Southeast Asia. “I love my job. I love these people. I love Cambodia. I love my life,” McFadden says. “I know it sounds sappy, but it’s true. When I’m riding my bike through a village and say ‘hi’ to all the kids, it’s a daily revival. How often do you go through a village and everyone speaks to you?” McFadden’s interest in sharing Christ internationally sharpened as a result of trips to Cambodia and China in college, but he can see how God started working on him in fourth grade. That year his Sunday School teacher, a journeyman just back from Kenya, brought carved rhinoceroses and tribal … [Read more...]

At the state level, churches that paid an extra amount last year on property insurance can get it back.   This article is in part a reminder of information David Cranford wrote about in the Jan. 18 issue of the Message. BATON ROUGE – At the state level, churches that paid an extra amount last year on property insurance can get it back. At the federal level, churches can receive federal telephone excise tax refunds. All that needs done for either is to ask for it – with proper documentation. The ‘declaration page’ of the property insurance outlines the amount of the extra charge of property insurance, according to a fact sheet written by Renee Robinson of Cochran, Clark & Robinson. “The form to use is R-620INS,” Robinson wrote. “This one-page form is only for exempt organizations, such as churches. A copy of the declaration page must be attached to the form.” The form is available on the Louisiana Department of Revenue’s website: www.revenue.Louisiana.gov. More information is available on the Revenue Information Bulletin (RIB) 07-006. Background: In December 2006, the Louisiana Legislature authorized a refundable income tax credit for the Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance … [Read more...]

Now more than ever before, New Orleans has become a tale of two cities. The city of contrasts – elegance and decadence, saints and demons, art and blight – has turned into a combat zone. I feel almost schizophrenic and sound downright contradictory when I am trying to describe my community to outsiders.   Now more than ever before, New Orleans has become a tale of two cities. The city of contrasts – elegance and decadence, saints and demons, art and blight – has turned into a combat zone. I feel almost schizophrenic and sound downright contradictory when I am trying to describe my community to outsiders. The great flood and its aftermath have accentuated both ends of the moral spectrum. The good has been even better and the bad has grown worse. Suffering has that effect. Pain amplifies both our virtues and our vices. No contrast in this city is starker than the two sides of Alvar Street in the Upper Ninth Ward. The upriver side is lined with flooded and blighted homes mostly still in limbo. The downriver side features 22 brightly-colored and brand new homes with homeowners hanging out the welcome signs and tending the flowerbeds. The energy and joy at the work site again this week must be … [Read more...]

You are walking across campus having just attended a Bible study on Jesus’ parable on ministry to “the least of these my brothers” (Mathew 25). You have learned that your response to “the least of these” is a response to Jesus himself.   You are walking across campus having just attended a Bible study on Jesus’ parable on ministry to “the least of these my brothers” (Mathew 25). You have learned that your response to “the least of these” is a response to Jesus himself. As you approach an intersection, you observe two scenes on opposite corners. On one corner is a panhandler asking for “spare change” from the passers-by. Some give him a few coins. Others, repelled by his dirty condition, move across the street. Still others mock him. On the other corner stands a man with a large Bible. He is fervently preaching the gospel. Some people have paused to listen. Most hurry past. Others are taunting him.  You sense a compulsion to do unto Christ by doing unto the least of these his brothers.  Which of the two men should you help? If you had been reading my mail since January 1, you would say the answer is easy: Help the needy panhandler! Numerous articles have come across my desk, from various sources, … [Read more...]

Even though political campaign ads on television have yet to outnumber the ads for prescription drugs, the 2008 presidential race sometimes seems to be in full swing.   Even though political campaign ads on television have yet to outnumber the ads for prescription drugs, the 2008 presidential race sometimes seems to be in full swing. The past has shown us that now is the time for citizens who are concerned about the direction the country is heading to communicate their value-driven convictions to those who would like to occupy the White House. As illustrated by their shifting positions, politicians are not immovable objects; they can be enlightened. And one of the greatest opportunities to impact a politician is while he or she is still a candidate. They are especially open to perspectives other than their own during the primary campaign season, when viewpoints are still being formed and positions staked out. Some have been known to switch positions completely. In a piece he wrote for the Weekly Standard (Feb. 26, 2007), Fred Barnes observes that when politicians switch positions they “usually stay switched.” He notes that when Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush became pro-life, they stayed … [Read more...]

By unanimous vote, trustees of the North American Mission Board elected church planting missionary Geoff Hammond as president of the North American Mission Board today (March 21).   ALPHARETTA, Ga. (BP) – By unanimous vote, trustees of the North American Mission Board elected church planting missionary Geoff Hammond as president of the North American Mission Board today (March 21). The vote came after trustees met in executive session Tuesday, March 20, to review Hammond’s nomination and interact with the candidate and his wife Debbie. “It’s a long way from Ogbomosho, Nigeria, to Atlanta, Ga.,” Hammond said, referring to his birth to missionaries in the African nation. “And I am not here today because of anything I have done, but because of who He is.” In brief remarks to the trustees after the vote, Hammond outlined his vision for NAMB and the need for the Gospel in North America. “I grew up as a kid looking at North America as a place that already had the Gospel,” Hammond said. “That was until I came here. The longer I am here, the more I am convinced that we need to see North America as a mission field.” Hammond is the son and grandson of missionaries and currently serves as a NAMB … [Read more...]

It’s clear from media reports that religion is in the spotlight more today than in previous decades, but it seems that a majority of Americans are unprepared to discuss the topic with adequate knowledge.   NASHVILLE, Tenn. – It’s clear from media reports that religion is in the spotlight more today than in previous decades, but it seems that a majority of Americans are unprepared to discuss the topic with adequate knowledge. According to a report in USA Today March 7, Americans would receive an “F” in religion if they were graded on their ability to answer questions correctly. In fact, the newspaper said 60 percent of Americans can’t name five of the Ten Commandments and half of high school seniors think Sodom and Gomorrah were married. “More and more of our national and international questions are religiously inflected,” Stephen Prothero, chairman of the religion department at Boston University and author of the book “Religious Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know – and Doesn’t,” told USA Today. “If you think Sunni and Shia are the same because they’re both Muslim, and you’ve been told Islam is about peace, you won’t understand what’s happening in Iraq. “If you get into an argument about … [Read more...]

Little Anatoliy Odnoralov often came home after school with a bloody nose – the result of just another day as a Christian at his school in the North Caucasus region of the old Soviet Union.   DENVER, COLO. – Little Anatoliy Odnoralov often came home after school with a bloody nose – the result of just another day as a Christian at his school in the North Caucasus region of the old Soviet Union. “Since early childhood, I knew the price for my convictions,” he says. Anatoliy was the third-born son of an ordinary shoemaker, who, along with his wife, were faithful believers in Jesus Christ. Unfortunately, they were believers living in a godless, atheistic nation dedicated to the persecution of Christians. As the family grew to 13, the senior Odnoralov continued to draw his family together, reading them stories from the Bible and urging them to pray.   With his meager cobbler’s pay, he would later purchase some musical instruments – a guitar, an accordion – and taught himself and his children to play.  He even formed a family band – pretty easy with 13 children in the house. “The school where we were studying mocked us for our convictions and belief in God,” recalls Anatoliy, today 43 and a North … [Read more...]

DiscipleNow is an at-home retreat that combines big events at the church with small group studies in host homes.   STATEWIDE – DiscipleNow is an at-home retreat that combines big events at the church with small group studies in host homes. Many youth leaders have found that a DiscipleNow weekend helps “reach students for Christ, encourage them in their faith, and get them excited about continuing discipleship,” according to LifeWay’s website In general, students are divided into groups of no more than about 10 and assigned a host home. Many churches prefer the groups to be organized by gender first and then by age, though the actual organization can depend on many factors. Some youth leaders say constructing the small groups is one of the most time-consuming parts of the planning process, as “chemistry” among students is vital for the small group sessions to work. In addition, finding the right time of the year to conduct the weekend can also be a challenge. Many churches choose January, February or March, while others choose early summer for their weekends. In any case, knowledge of community events is helpful in making that decision. Last year, First Blanchard’s D-Now weekend ended up being … [Read more...]