JEFFERSON CITY – Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) executive board members meeting here, March 3-4, approved 2026 goals for statewide offerings, recommended an amendment to the MBC Nominating Committee’s rules and procedures, and created a Credentials Committee Guidelines Task Force.
2026 offering goals
The board once again set the 2026 Cooperative Program goal at $15 million, and it set an $825,000 goal for the 2026 Missouri Missions Offering (MMO), to be distributed in 2027. The board also approved a budget for MMO funds collected this year, which will be distributed in 2026.
JEFFERSON CITY – Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) President Wesley Vance speaks with fellow board member John Birchett during the MBC executive board meeting, March 3-4.
Additionally, the board recommended goals for Southern Baptist mission offerings: $4 million for the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions and $2.2 million for the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions.
Nominating Committee rules, procedures
The executive board also recommended an amendment to item 16 in the MBC Nominating Committee’s Rules and Procedures. The amendment is intended to help the Nominating Committee find more trustee nominees qualified to serve the needs of the MBC’s entities.
The restated rule reads as follows:
“16. Follows the policy that each MBC church is limited concerning the number of persons serving on the boards of the MBC. Churches with a total membership of 500 or less may be represented by a maximum of two (2) persons serving on MBC boards and commissions simultaneously. Churches with a total membership of more than 500 and less than 1,000 may be represented by a maximum of three (3) persons serving on MBC boards and commissions simultaneously. Churches with a total membership of more than 1,000 may be represented by a maximum of four (4) persons serving on MBC boards and commissions. No more than two (2) persons from the same church may serve on the same board or commission.”
Credentials Committee Guidelines Task Force
The MBC executive board created a new Credentials Committee Guidelines Task Force. Members appointed to the task force include: Brian Jump, Chairman; Craig Tanner; Jeremy Sells; Michael Byrd; Gina Jordan; Eddie Bumpers; Rustin Umstattd; Gary Mathes, Ex-Officio, Credentials Committee Chairman; Wes Fowler, Ex-Officio, Executive-Director/Treasurer; Eric Turner, Alternate; Jeremy Muniz, Alternate.
This task force originated at the 2024 MBC annual meeting from a motion proposed by Jeremy Sells, a messenger from First Baptist Church, Scott City. His motion proposed the creation of a task force to provide guidelines to the MBC Credentials Committee for “evaluating a church’s position on issues, including the office and function of pastor/elder/overseer being limited to men as qualified by Scripture, and report a recommended process to the messengers of the 2025 Annual Meeting for approval for immediate implementation.”
Other business
In other business, the MBC executive board:
• approved a list of exhibitors for the 2025 MBC annual meeting;
• approved the distribution of MBC underspend from 2024;
• authorized the MBC executive director to “execute necessary documents” needed to maintain the Whitehead Law Firm as MBC legal counsel until August 2025.
• approved the sale of “certain real estate” owned by Southwest Baptist University (SBU), at the request of the SBU board of trustees.