A decline in giving will force the Southern Baptist Convention to reduce its worldwide missionary force, leaving fewer men and women to share their faith and skills around the globe.
In 2008 Southern Baptists gave $141 million to the denomination's annual Lottie Moon Christmas Offering, which provides about half of the funding for Southern Baptist missions. That's a drop of $9 million from the previous year and $29 million below the International Mission Board's goal.
In Tennessee, Lottie Moon donations fell by about 8 percent, down from $10,038,656 last year to $9,174,973. The Lottie Moon offering is named for a Southern Baptist missionary who served in China during the 1800s....