Clippard unveils MBC plan to expand summer missionaries
By Staff
April 19, 2005
JEFFERSON CITY – Student summer missionaries who partner for service through the Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) in 2006 will be treated just like the MBC’s overseas summer missionaries, according to MBC Executive Director David Clippard.
“A missionary to the lost is a missionary to the lost, regardless of what tongue they speak,” Clippard said.
The new twist to the Missouri Missions Offering (MMO) will feature a new strategy that has the ability to expand the number of student summer missionaries almost limitlessly, Clippard said.
Collegiate Summer Missions used to be a line item in the MMO budget at or near $120,000, which was sufficient to provide funds for about 50 students, Clippard said. That structure was too limiting, Clippard said.
It prompted the MBC Executive Team and the MMO steering committee to propose a new strategy that would remove the ceiling on participating, he said. The new strategy was adopted by the MBC Executive Board in April. It will be presented to messengers at the Missouri Baptist Convention for implementation in 2006, Clippard said.
“Here’s how it will work,” Clippard said. “The MBC staff will continue to receive applications, screen summer missionary candidates and equip them for service. The difference is the missionary’s personal funding source. Instead of the MBC providing the summer stipends, each summer missionary will raise their own support, in the same manner as they would if they were doing missions for the summer in Romania, China or any other mission ministry.
“The MBC will provide the tools for them and show them how to raise both prayer and financial support for their ministry. With each missionary raising their personal support, there is now virtually no limit to the number of young men and women who can be fielded for summer missions.”
The goal is to evangelize more effectively in Missouri.
“We are looking forward to the day when we will have 500 plus student missionaries serving all across Missouri, winning people to Christ,” Clippard said.