Christmas is our reminder from Luke 2 that, through the birth of Christ, the peace that only Christ can give is now available to the entire world. What a wonderful reminder the month of December gives us through the celebration of Christmas!
December is also an important reminder about the urgency to share the message of the good news of Jesus Christ to the entire world. As I write this article, I have just received my prayer guide from the International Missions Board for the Week of Prayer for International Missions. I always love reading about our Southern Baptist missionaries who have surrendered their lives to take the gospel to the nations. Southern Baptists are literally taking the good news of Jesus Christ to the ends of the earth.
One of the reasons I am so proud to be a part of the Kentucky Baptist Convention and the Southern Baptist Convention is the fact that we emphasize the importance of giving cooperatively. I am proud of the fact that our missionaries in the Southern Baptist Convention do not have to be concerned about raising their own financial resources to have the funds needed to fulfill the calling that God has placed on their lives. They can focus on their ministry of sharing the gospel and not have to be concerned with that aspect of their ministry.
At Clear Creek Baptist Bible College, we are constantly reminding our students about the importance of giving cooperatively. We always look for ways to share information with them about how they are on the receiving end of the cooperative spirit among Kentucky Baptists through gifts to the Cooperative Program and what that means for them here at Clear Creek. Our desire is for them to learn the importance of cooperative giving while they are students and then take that mindset with them as they leave here to serve in the local church wherever God plants them. For some of them, that is right here in Kentucky. For others, it is to the ends of the earth as missionaries. Clear Creek has alumni who, like those featured in our IMB prayer guide, are literally serving all over the world to share the good news of Jesus Christ.
During this season of the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering, we take another opportunity to present to our students how they can start their cooperative giving right now. Each week in our chapel services, our students see a video of different missionaries and ministries that the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering supports. The videos encourage them to give what they can now to help our Southern Baptist Convention missionaries who live and work among those around the world who have little to no access to the gospel. What an encouragement it is to know that 100 percent of our gifts to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering go toward providing our missionaries with the services they need to live among the unreached peoples they serve.
I have personally been on the international mission field serving with some of our missionaries. I have observed how a lack of financial resources can be an obstacle for our missionaries to fulfill their ministry calling to the best of their ability.
Please, give to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering during this Christmas season.
Donnie Fox is president of Clear Creek Baptist Bible College.
Donnie Fox