FORT WORTH—Messengers to the Baptist General Convention of Texas annual meeting approved a $45,755,295 budget—about 8 percent less than the one approved at the previous annual meeting and down slightly from the current adjusted budget.
Of the total, Texas Baptist Cooperative Program giving will need to provide more than $40.8 million, with the balance expected from investment earnings and other revenue sources.
One year ago, messengers to the annual meeting approved a $50.1 million budget for 2008. But after the first quarter of this year, the convention faced a serious budget shortfall. Staff implemented cutbacks, and the budget was adjusted to $46,186,665.
Messengers to the annual meeting also approved a recommendation that the adopted budget continue to be divided 79 percent for the BGCT and 21 percent to worldwide causes as directed by churches.
For churches that select the BGCT worldwide initiatives giving option, that area will include two additional global missions programs—intercultural international missions and Texas Baptist Men international ministries—along with continuing support for River Ministry/Mexico missions, the WorldconneX missions network, Texas Partnerships and the Baptist World Alliance.
The initiatives are expanded to include four Texas Baptist missions initiatives—the Texas Fellowship of Cowboy Churches, Baptist University of the Americas, the Hispanic Education Task Force and Texas Hope 2010.
Total projected revenue for BGCT worldwide initiatives is $1.6 million.
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