Building resources through partnerships and accountability

The first Barnabas award was presented by the mission volunteers ministries at the Georgia Baptist Convention annual meeting to First Baptist Church Duluth.

The Barnabas award is named for the New Testament character, which means "son of encouragement." Barnabas was named by the apostles due to his selfless acts and his spirit of encouragement.

"Barnabas lived an exemplary life of mission commitment and involvement. Our hope is that the church receiving this award will stand as the epitome of an Acts 1:8 church," said Mike Gravette, GBC Mission Volunteers specialist.

Georgia associational missionaries and area missionaries nominated churches in their areas that they considered to be "on mission" churches according to Acts 1:8. GBC Mission Volunteers staff selected the Barnabas award winning church.

Churches were recognized for their missions commitment, with greater emphasis on participation with Georgia partnership areas.

"If every Georgia Baptist decided to be an Acts 1:8 Christian, it would take less than a week to reach Georgia. If all 17 million Southern Baptists in the United States decided to be Acts 1:8 Christians, it would take less than a month to reach everyone in the U.S. and it would take those same people less than a year to reach the world," Gravette said.

First Baptist Church Duluth, which averages about 950 in attendance each week, had 785 people participate in mission projects in 2003. They also give 15.5 percent of their budget to the Cooperative Program.

"We use Acts 1:8 as our strategy for both our volunteer missions team and our new work team. We not only send people on missions trips, we start churches all over the world as well," said Keith Murdock, minister of adults at the church. Murdock also oversees the mission work at the church.

The church has found that working with Georgia Baptist Mission Volunteers ministry helps them spend the most amount of time and resources on missions.

Mission Volunteers works with Georgia Baptist Convention partnerships in the following areas of the world: France, Moldova, California, Utah-Idaho, and New York.

"We don't see any need to reinvent the wheel. We started working with Mission Volunteers about three years ago. That way we don't have to go out and find the work and do the interviews and make sure everything is done right. There is built-in accountability in the partnerships," Murdock said.

Some of the local mission projects the church was involved in last year include: Pregnancy Resource Center in Gwinnett County, World Changers host church and refugee ministries. The church also sent people to eight states, including California, a partnership state, and around the world including France, Moldova, Russia and Romania.

The church also sponsors new work in Moldova and Utah. Teams are currently looking over missions needs to determine where they will send teams next summer.

"You're not a church unless you're on mission. Working with GBC partnerships lets us choose places to go that you already know are good," Murdock said.

Church nominees that received "On Mission Church of the Year" awards from mission volunteers were: Bealwood Church, Columbus; Haywood Church, Waycross; Mt. Pleasant Church, Carrollton; Midway Macedonia Church, Villa Rica; Rockdale Church, Conyers; Rosemont Church, LaGrange; Warren Church, Augusta and Western Heights Church, LaGrange.

For further information on missions opportunities, go to www.actsone8.com.

GBC partnership areas are:

• France
• Moldova
• California
• Utah-Idaho
• New York

Mission Volunteer Ministries develops ministry opportunities for Georgia Baptists to become mission partners in Georgia, the United States and around the world. For more information email cboltin@gabaptist.org or call 1 (800) RING-GBC or (770) 936.5346. Mission Volunteer Ministries is supported through your gifts to the Cooperative Program.

You and your church may send Cooperative Program gifts to:

Dr. J. Robert White
Executive Director
Georgia Baptist Convention
2930 Flowers Road, South
Atlanta, GA 30341-5562

Sherri Brown

Keith Murdock, right, of First Baptist Duluth, accepts the first Barnabas Award from Mike Gravette, GBC specialist for mission volunteers. The award was given to the "On Mission" church of the year that best lived out the Acts 1:8 challenge.

Charles Shepard

Georgia Baptists minister in France in this file photo. The partnership between the Georgia Baptist Convention and French Baptists is just one of many which provide missions opportunities.

Sherri Brown

Contrary to the fierce secularism found in France and throughout Europe today, these countries have deep Christian roots.

Sherri Brown

The Barnabas award is given to the "On Mission" church of the year from Mission Volunteers of the GBC which best lived out the Acts 1:8 challenge.