Texas Baptist volunteers help spur Baptist growth in Vermont_122203

Posted: 12/19/03

Texas Baptist volunteers help spur Baptist growth in Vermont

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

Working hand-in-hand with Texas Baptists, Vermont Baptists witnessed record membership and baptisms during the past year.

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Posted: 12/19/03

Texas Baptist volunteers help spur Baptist growth in Vermont

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

Working hand-in-hand with Texas Baptists, Vermont Baptists witnessed record membership and baptisms during the past year.

Resident membership numbers topped 1,000 people for the first time in the history of Green Mountain Baptist Association, which serves all Vermont. The 25 churches in the association baptized 104 people, another record.

The increase represents about one baptism for every 10 church members, well above the average for Southern Baptist Convention church, which typically record one baptism annually for every 42 members.

The statistics show a small portion of a year filled with growth. Sunday School enrollment totaled 884, an increase of 30 percent. Average Sunday School attendance jumped by 100 individuals to 574 people. A record 791 people went to Vacation Bible Schools.

The growth can be attributed to a strong emphasis on following up evangelistic efforts throughout Vermont Baptist churches, according to Terry Dorsett, associational missionary for Green Mountain Association.

Evangelistic efforts proved fruitful in the past, but churches often failed to disciple new converts, Dorsett found. During the last year, the association has trained church leaders in discipleship methods.

Along with the associational push came a record number of mission teams to the second least-churched state in the nation. The teams encouraged Vermont Baptists and helped residents share the gospel, Dorsett said.

The Baptist General Convention of Texas, Baptist State Convention of North Carolina, Mississippi Baptist Convention, Alabama Baptist Convention, Tennessee Baptist Convention and the Baptist General Association of Virginia are all involved in the Impact Northeast partnership to work in New England.

Additional workers came from South Carolina, Kentucky and Georgia.

Texas Baptists played a significant role in the work, according to Johnnie Loar, a mission mobilization coordinator for Green Mountain Association.

More than 200 Texas Baptists traveled to the state through the Northeast Impact Partnership, facilitated by the BGCT's Texas Partnerships Resource Center.

Texas Baptist volunteers from many cities, including Midland, Temple and Waco, helped with evangelism and Vacation Bible Schools throughout the state. Several groups of Texas Baptists prayerwalked the state, while three others served as summer missionaries.

“Everywhere they've been, they've been a blessing,” Loar said.

For more information about mission opportunities through the Texas Partnership Resource Center, visit www.bgct.org/ Texas_partnerships.

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