When? Saturday, August 13

Where? Calvary Baptist Church, Greenfield, IN
                1450 W. Main Street

Time? 8:30 a.m. – 3:00

What is Missions Lifeline?

This missions event is for the entire family! It’ll be a day when you can meet our missionaries and learn how to engage your church in missions. You’ll experience a variety of breakouts that will help you discover ways to involve all ages in learning about and supporting missions efforts around the world.

Children (birth – 6^th grade) will journey to the Philippines and learn all about how God is at work through our IMB missionaries serving there. They’ll enjoy crafts, snacks, games, and stories about the Philippines.

Attendees will be able to enjoy missions exhibits that featuring ideas for missions for the entire year. This is a fun-packed day so don’t miss it! For more information contact Allison Kinion at the state convention office.

To Register: Go to SCBI website. Registration is $5.00 per person and includes on-site lunch.

August is a great month to participate in this annual project to support Southern Baptist missionaries in North America.

You can find more information along with missionaries’ names, mailing addresses, and lists of supplies you can provide to help their work.

Go to: www.wmu.com/chritmasinaugust

The annual January Board Meeting of Woman’s Missionary Union was held January 8 – 9. The following information comes from various reports on the previous year of missions-related activities initiated by associational, state, and national missions organizations to fulfill WMU’s purpose of proclaiming the good news of Jesus to all nations. 2021 was a great year for missions-related activities as WMU partnered with the following agencies and entities:

North American Mission Board

Kevin Ezell, President of NAMB, reported that an all-time giving record occurred last spring when $66.5 million was given to the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions. He stated that even during the pandemic, 36 new churches were planted. The theme for this year is “United” and the offering goal is $70 million Sadly, only ½ of Southern Baptist churches participate in this annual offering. 

International Mission Board

The president of IMB, Paul Chitwood, gave an encouraging report on what was accomplished with God’s grace during the past year. Here are some of the statistics he provided: 91% of IMB missionaries are engaging unreached people groups; 144,000 new believers were reported; 8,700 were baptized; 18,000 new churches were planted; and 12,000 pastors were trained. He said, “The nations are waiting and we must go.”

WMU Continues to Provide Quality Resources

Many age-level missions-related materials which can be viewed and ordered online at www.wmu.com Compassion Ministries offers a series of mini-online courses on refugees, poverty, human trafficking, and others. Online blogs and articles provide training tips, current information about missionaries, and project ideas. Training for Christian Job Corps is now offered online. WorldCrafts catalogs are available online also. Many resources can be downloaded and printed: Compassion Ministries Prayer Calendar, Starter Packs information and others. New “Missions in a Box” continue  to be produced. They are now available for Japan, China, and Nigeria. Especially written for families, these are excellent materials for families that home school or want to promote missions in their homes.

Many age-level missions-related materials which can be viewed and ordered online at www.wmu.com Compassion Ministries offers a series of mini-online courses on refugees, poverty, human trafficking, and others. Online blogs and articles provide training tips, current information about missionaries, and project ideas. Training for Christian Job Corps is now offered online. WorldCrafts catalogs are available online also. Many resources can be downloaded and printed: Compassion Ministries Prayer Calendar, Starter Packs information and others. New “Missions in a Box” continue  to be produced. They are now available for Japan, China, and Nigeria. Especially written for families, these are excellent materials for families that home school or want to promote missions in their homes.

It’s time to begin thinking about how your church will promote and participate in the annual Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions! Free materials can be ordered from the Indiana State Convention offices. A promotional packet will be sent to every church in Indiana that includes sample envelope, poster, and prayer guides for North American missionaries.  Videos for use in worship services can be found online at namb.net 

It’s time to order your free offering promotion items from the Indiana State Convention, WMU Office! Posters, prayer guides, and offering envelopes can be ordered to assist your church in setting and reaching a goal for this important season of missions giving.

Contact the State Convention at: 317.481.2400

For information about international missions:  www.imb.org

For information about North American missions: www.namb.net

For information about missions education/discipleship resources: www.wmu.com

Creating Awareness for Missions Education:

1. Displays – emphasize one part of missions education with a display. Go to www.wmu.or for current themes and information about WMU ministries. Gather display items to create a display that is not “flat” and distribute resource materials.
2. Be present – attend missions events in your area and tell others about it...
3. Promote state missions – Hand out information about upcoming missions events such as your state’s mission offering, annual meetings, and evangelistic events.

Creating Enthusiasm about Missions:

1. Share information about church planting efforts in your area, suggesting ways others can become involved in supporting the new ministries. Adopt a church planter!

2. Plan church wide missions activities and involve the entire family. Collect canned food r makeup food baskets for the holiday season.

3.  Help promote the special missions offerings: Lottie Moon Christmas Offering and Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions. Show videos from NAMB and IMB during worship services. Go to: www.imb.org or www.namb.net

Creating Mission Opportunities:

1. Focus on special projects such as Christmas in August (go online to www.wmu.com for information) to motivate churches to participate on at least a quarterly basis in some type of mission activity.
2. Search online for short-term mission trip projects and present them to the church missions team for consideration.
3. Contact community agencies to find out about their current needs and plan several activities in your local area during the upcoming holidays.

The evangelism team of SEIBA is providing an evangelism training event for all ages on Saturday,  September 11.  The event will be held at Eastern Heights Baptist Church, Jeffersonville beginning at 5:30  p.m.

The event is specifically  designed to help you, your family, and your church extend loving hands to people who  do not  know Christ as Savior. The first  part of the event will model a block party to show you resources that are available,  give  you and those with you a hot dog fresh from the grill and fellowship built around games and activities associated  with block parties.

There will be breakouts for children, students, adults, and church staff giving new ideas for reaching out into your communities with the good news of Jesus. There will  be a variety  of topics: being evangelistic in the workplace, working with students, how children can tell others about Jesus, how  to use hospitality to share your witness, how doing ordinary things intentionally will help you  be effective in personal evangelism, and how pastors can lead their churches in evangelism. There will also be a session to help you work through the details of hosting your own block party!

Here is the schedule  for the event:
5:30      -   Registration / Block Party model (food, games)
6:00 - 7:30   -   Breakout sessions (each session will  be 30 minutes long and will repeat 3 times)
7:30  - 8:00 - Wrap up, a word from our associational missions coordinator, and GIVE-AWAYS!

THIS EVENT IS ONE YOU WON’T WANT TO MISS! GRAB THE WHOLE FAMILY AND JOIN US FOR A TIME OF LEARNING HOW TO SHARE THE GOOD NEWS OF JESUS WITH OTHERS!

Pack a Box of Items for North American Missions

Are you looking for a missions project for the people in your church or small group? Christmas in August provides a simple way you can directly help a North American missionary.

Every year Woman’s Missionary Union partners with the Southern Baptist North American Mission Board to select missionaries who are featured in the national annual Christmas in August emphasis.  These missionaries provide a list of items they need for ministry and outreach.

Here’s how you and your church can participate:

1. Pray - pray that this project will help our missionaries tell others about Jesus.
2. Choose and Promote - select a missionary and tell others about the project giving them a list of items they can purchase. Use church newsletters, online information, social media and a display to inform your church/small groups.
3. Gather - provide an in-gathering location as people bring their Christmas in August items. Crate a Christmas display to catch their attention (wrap a large open box in Christmas paper) and to hold items..
4. Pack and Mail - organize donated items and mail following instructions found online at wmu.com/chirstmasinaugust