“The BBFI Mission Office exists to serve churches and their missionaries as they endeavor to fulfill the Great Commission.”

Where does the amount of $4.50 a month for every missionary supported come from? Is it an educated guess? Is it a number that was randomly chosen? I already send money for my missionaries, so why should I send money to the Mission Office too?

As your local church’s helping hand, we aid you in your mission work by coming alongside the missionary and the sending church. The impact of your financial support to the Mission Office directly affects your missionary. The services we provide, including keeping abreast of regulations governing missionary’s finances as well as providing on-field legitimacy, save both the missionary and the church countless hours. The time saved makes it possible for your missionary to be a missionary.

The care and concern of BBFI Mission Office does not stop there. We pray for our missionaries daily, read their letters, visit them on the field, and enjoy it when they visit our office. Events happening in world news draw our minds and hearts to our missionaries serving in the affected regions. We love their children and know how difficult it can be to raise a family on the foreign field. We experience a wide range of emotions when it comes to our missionaries and their children. Let it be said — missionaries are always on our hearts.

The Mission Office strives to serve the churches with efficiency as we come alongside them and working to provide solid leadership as it relates to missions. Every effort is made to maintain an open and ongoing relationship with pastors as we work with the National Leadership, Missions Committee, Field Representatives, as well as the supporting and sending pastors of each missionary.

We strive to be responsible stewards of the people and funds sent through our office. This has been our specialty for 67 years. Your missionaries are our greatest asset. The Mission Office operates just as your missionaries – by faith. Your faithful financial and prayer support enables us to help your missionaries. As you know, 100 percent of what comes in for a missionary goes to that missionary. This is unheard of in the world of missions and non-profits. One pastor stated it this way:

“There is not another mission agency that does more for your missionaries for less cost than the BBFI Mission Office.”

Your support of the Mission Office also impacts the Fellowship, as a whole, as we endeavor to serve all the churches with their missionaries. This issue of Global Partners will show many of the services the Mission Office provides for your missionaries and your church. As you read the articles about the services we provide, you will meet the people providing these services.

We hope this information is insightful into all the Mission Office does to help bring glory of God through your church and your missionaries. Now, for the explanation into how $4.50 per missionary, per month was derived – take the total monthly budgeted operating expenses divided by the number of transactions per missionary. When I came to the Mission Office as an Associate Director in 1998, the goal Dr. Bob Baird had set was $3.50. This amount was raised to $4.50 in 2012, where it still remains.

There are some clearinghouses and service centers that pass their operational expenses on to their missionaries, the churches and sometimes both. Some entities withhold a flat monthly fee from the missionary’s support. Others charge a per transaction fee or deduct anywhere from 5 up to 17 percent of the support processed through their organization. However, the founders of BBFI wanted every dollar given to a missionary to go to that missionary. This means, the Mission Office raises its own support, by faith, just as missionaries do. Churches are asked to support our services on a voluntary basis.

Since I became Mission Director in 2005, the number of supporting churches has decreased from 940 to 721. However, this past year we have seen churches begin to support us and others have increased their support. Statistically, only 30 percent of churches that use our office as part of their missionary endeavors support our office financially.

I pray, that in the years to come, we can truly partner together to help get your missionaries to the field and keep them there till the Lord comes.

-by Jon Konnerup, Mission Director