I recently led a group of Kentucky Baptists to the International Mission Board training center and offices in Richmond, Virginia, to gain a better understanding of the impact of our Cooperative Program. After this excellent three-day experience, I recognized six things I love about the IMB … and one thing I did not.
1. IMB missionaries are sent by churches.
While the IMB assesses, trains, and cares for missionaries, one thing is abundantly clear: Churches send missionaries. Very early in the application process, the sending church pastor is interviewed, and the church body must endorse the candidate before they can proceed past the first phase. Before being commissioned, their pastor is invited to attend the “Sending Together” seminar to solidify the church’s partnership in this task.
2. IMB missionaries know the mission.
The mission board recognizes that its chief goal is to send a physical missionary presence to the people and places of the world where God is not yet known or named. Through their six-step missionary task, the IMB seeks to fulfill the biblical description in Revelation 7:9 of a multitude in heaven representative of every people group in the world. President Paul Chitwood has done an exemplary job leading the organization to be laser focused on this calling.
3. IMB missionaries are accountable to Southern Baptists.
All 3,600 missionaries are endorsed by a Southern Baptist Church, fully agree with the Baptist Faith and Message, and are only appointed following a thorough review by a board of trustees elected by Southern Baptist messengers. Their work is monitored for maximum effectiveness, and each expense is scrutinized by a financial department to ensure every penny spent aligns with the missionary task.
4. IMB missionaries undergo a stringent assessment process.
After sending missionaries for 180 years, the IMB recognizes characteristics that lead to the greatest likelihood of assimilation on the mission field. The robust assessment process covers educational readiness, physical and mental wellness, consistency as a Gospel witness and more. Southern Baptists can be confident that the very best missionaries are being placed on the field. While lengthy, the assessment process enables IMB missionaries to have an incredibly low attrition rate.
5. IMB missionaries are strategically placed.
An entire department is tasked with researching people groups worldwide to determine where they are and if they have a Gospel witness. IMB missionaries are sent to unreached people groups where less than 2 percent of the population is Christian and to unreached, unengaged people groups who are not known to have any Gospel witness among them. This may mean there are some areas where missionaries are not sent because there is already a mass of believers sufficient to spread the Gospel among their people. The strategy utilized ensures our Southern Baptist missionaries are going to the spiritually darkest places in all of humanity.
6. IMB missionaries are supported.
As a result of the faithfulness of Southern Baptist churches, our missionaries are fully funded. In addition to a salary, housing and education, their children receive specialized education to prepare them for living cross-country, risk management personnel keep a close eye on their safety and a logistics department provides all needs, from visas to airfare.
And the one thing I do not like …
In a denomination that loves its acronyms … the IMB is king in this department.
I say this completely in jest, as even IMB personnel and trustees make light of it.
Suffice it to say, I hope one day you will visit the IMB’s ILC supported by CP and LMCO to send Ms to NAME and EAPR after they have completed FPO and CERC for the TCKs.
Southern Baptists have a treasure in the International Mission Board, and it is one of the great examples of why we are better together.
