 Your CP giving helps people come to Christ A few decades ago a Southern Baptist church planter traveled to northeastern Ohio where he started a church. The Buchanans began attending and one Sunday, son Joe accepted Christ as his Savior. Today Joe is pastor of First Baptist Church in Metropolis, Ill.
"I kind of owe my salvation in part to the Cooperative Program," he said. "The church I grew up in wouldn't have existed if other churches hadn't given to the Cooperative Program so the church planter could start that church."
As a result, Buchanan stresses the importance of giving through the Cooperative Program to assist in missions efforts like starting churches. "Acts 1:8 lays out the Biblical pattern for missions. We're responsible for our communities, our state, our nation and the world," he said. "The Cooperative Program is a one-vehicle package. It lets us reach all of those areas. It is one of the main ways to support the work of our denomination and churches."
He encourages members of First Baptist to support CP through giving to and participating in missions. In the past few years, First Baptist's members have participated in seven international mission trips to places like Haiti, Romania and Africa. In Illinois, they support the new church plant, The Church at DeKalb.
"I think the Cooperative Program is a great tool that allows every church to commit what they can," said Buchanan. "By pooling our funds we can do more. Many churches would not have been started without Cooperative Program giving from other churches. It's the best tool we have to fund the advancement of the Gospel around the world. It's by no means perfect, but it gets money to the folks that need it to go share the Gospel." |
Pray for church planters in Illinois
Illinois Baptist church planters are active in all areas of our state starting churches in cities, suburbs and rural areas for people of many ethnicities, cultures and economic backgrounds. Please pray that:
- God will give them strength and wisdom.- Relationships they develop in their communities will bear fruit.
- God opens doors of opportunity for them. |
 Reaching Illinois for Christ
Right now, the population of Illinois is nearly 13 million, making it the fifth most populated state in the nation. An estimated 8.2 million or two-thirds of all Illinoisans do not know Christ as their Savior. There are nearly 221,000 Southern Baptists with one Southern Baptist church for every 13,684 Illinoisans.
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 How you can be involved in the Cooperative Program Pray. Pray regularly for your Southern Baptist
missionaries in Illinois and around the globe.
"Pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers." - Matthew 9:38 (HCSB)
Go. Be involved in some sort of missions
endeavor. You are God's missionary right where you live. "Go...and make disciples of all
nations." - Matthew 28:19 (HCSB)
Give. Out of love for the Lord, encourage your church to give regularly through the CP. "Bring all the tithes into the storehouse." - Malachi 3:10 (NKJV)
Learn more about CP |
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COOPERATIVE PROGRAM When I give to my church
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