DALLAS—Missouri Baptists soon will help Texas Baptists feed the hungry across the state and around the world by supporting the same hunger projects.
Churchnet, a ministry of the Baptist General Convention of Missouri, will encourage affiliated congregations to support the same hunger projects Texas Baptists do through the Texas Baptist Offering for World Hunger.
Engaging in the offering is part of Churchnet’s five-year emphasis called Share Hope, which encourages churches and their members to share their faith, minister in their communities and advocate on behalf of the poor, said Churchnet Executive Director Jim Hill.
“We want to help our churches make their members aware of hunger needs in their communities, our state and nation and around the world,” Hill said.
“We also want to help them understand the opportunities we have to address these needs as we partner with our Texas friends and Baptists from around the world through Baptist World Aid. We want to encourage Baptists to respond generously to the world hunger needs.”
The Texas Baptist Christian Life Commission, which facilitates and promotes the offering, recently voted to allow the Missouri convention to participate in the hunger offering. Although individuals outside Texas have given to the hunger offering, Churchnet is the first group outside Texas to participate in it.
“Missouri Baptists have decided to support the projects of the hunger offering, and the Christian Life Commission is excited to have this new partner in combating hunger,” said Ferrell Foster, associate director of Texas Baptists’ Advocacy/Care Center and coordinator of the offering. “Texas Baptists already were supporting some Missouri projects. Now Missourians will be supporting Texas projects.”
Hill prays that by partnering with Texas Baptists, hungry people will be fed, individuals who have yet to embrace the gospel will begin a relationship with Christ, and God’s kingdom will expand.
“Our partnership with Texas Baptists has been a great encouragement to Missouri Baptists,” Hill said. “Because Churchnet is a small, new network of Baptists, it is sometimes difficult for us to provide quality resources for our churches. Our partnership with Texas Baptists in the promotion of our world hunger offering has allowed us to provide our churches more resources as they promote the need in their congregations. The partnership has allowed us to be a part of a significant effort to make a real difference as we minister to the hungry in our world.
Sign up for our weekly edition and get all our headlines in your inbox on Thursdays
“We are grateful for our Texas Baptist brothers and sisters as we serve Christ together.”
In its last meeting, the CLC also made one other change to the offering. Historically, offering funds have been divided 25 percent to Texas projects, 15 percent to projects elsewhere in the United States and 60 percent to international projects. In February, the CLC changed those percentages to 25 percent Texas projects and 75 percent projects outside the state, without distinction between national and international recipients.
“As churches look to their own Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the far reaches of the globe, they are making more and more direct international connections,” Foster said. “As a result, we are having more requests to fund international anti-poverty efforts of our churches. The CLC wants to honor those requests by supporting them as much as possible through the offering.”
For more information about the Texas Baptist Offering for World Hunger, visit www.texasbaptists.org/ worldhunger.
We seek to connect God’s story and God’s people around the world. To learn more about God’s story, click here.
Send comments and feedback to Eric Black, our editor. For comments to be published, please specify “letter to the editor.” Maximum length for publication is 300 words.