The GCR Report: A Correction and Clarification

Let me preface this post with the admission that I studied math in public school . . .in South Carolina. :) That fact should explain the following correction:

In my last post, several large figures were thrown about, one of which was a side-reference to the amount our International Mission Board spends annually on trustee meetings. About four years ago, I was speaking with a trustee who shared with me that the average cost per meeting was around $500,000, and that the Board met 6 times per year. After four years, I assumed that if anything, that cost had gone up, and therefore, stated that the amount spent by the IMB for this purpose was $3 million annually, thinking that if anything, this was a conservative estimate.

This morning I had the opportunity to speak with Terry Sharp, the chief liason between the IMB and associational leaders such as myself. During our conversation he asked me to clarify that the actual cost of a single trustee meeting is actually closer to $100,000, which would bring the total annual cost of these meetings to about $600,000, not the $3 million I referred to earlier.

Additionally, the trustees have recently looked at ways of cutting costs, including cutting two of their meetings out, which would presumably cut another $200,000 from their expenses.

My apologies for the inaccuracy of that figure. I'm always happy to hear that our entities are spending "less" than assumed on administrative costs, and the IMB has certainly demonstrated through this its own commitment to stewardship of the dollars given her by the churches. My last post on this issue will deal with ways that even more monies can be sent in her direction.