About 1,100 Southern Baptist Staff Taking Voluntary Retirement from International Mission Board

Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is losing 1,132 personnel from its missions agency through voluntary retirement or to opt out of current financial support, according to an update from the International Mission Board (IMB).

Ronnie Floyd, SBC president, told the Baptist Press that the new development was "disappointing" to them.

"This reset is not regress or retreat. Southern Baptist churches must see this as a fresh calling to reaching the world for Christ. Now is the time to go forward with a clear vision and an aggressive strategy to make disciples of all the nations for Christ," he said.

Last year, the IMB had announced its decision to cut about 600 to 800 missionaries and staff to reset the finances to a sustainable budget for 2017. Even after the initial count of expected layoffs, the organization was in a $23 million deficit.

After almost double number of estimated retirements, IMB leader David Platt said that IMB was "now in a much healthier financial position."

"The stage is now set financially, organizationally and spiritually for IMB to work with Southern Baptist churches to create exponentially more opportunities for disciple making and church planting among unreached peoples around the world," said Platt.

Speaking at a recent press conference, Platt said: "When it comes down to it, we're hopeful and fairly confident that in the end, our budget projections are going to be fine, in light of all the variables at play."

About 702 missionaries and 109 staff opted to take Voluntary Retirement Incentive (VRI), while 281 frontline preachers and 40 other members of the SBC team took Hand Raising Opportunity (HRO) to opt out of the IMB.

The IMB said it plans to care for the needs of the missionaries so that they are not adversely affected by laying-off of the staff.

The board said on its website that the reins of the organization are under God, and that this might be an opportunity for the staff to be led to new avenues of mission.