Missions involvement drives new Missions U training

Jeff Ginn, vice president of mobilization for the International Mission Board (Photo by Alex Blankenship)

A total of 130 Arkansas Baptists from across the state came together to take part in a new missions intensive training called Missions U. The one-day missions workshop was offered in two different locations on back-to-back days. Eighty Arkansas Baptists met together at Park Hill Baptist Church in North Little Rock on Monday, April 29 and another fifty met for training on Tuesday, April 30 at First Baptist Church in Fayetteville.  

Participants were able to choose from one of three lanes in which to focus their missions efforts: international missions, community missions or missions discipleship.  Each person was provided with a working roadmap that could be used for their own personal journey or for their church’s journey towards missions involvement.  During large group sessions and these individual breakouts, they were challenged to write down up to three specific action plans that they would take and put into practice in the future.  

The day began with an opening session including worship and a message from key-note speaker Jeff Ginn, vice president of mobilization for the International Mission Board (IMB). After the opening session, there were three 50-minute breakout sessions where participants could pick from a variety of topics in each of their “lanes.”  Breakout session included such topics as “what missionaries really want you to know,” “50 steps with Jesus,” “missional living in your neighborhood,” “engaging your community with the Gospel,” and “involving kids, students and men in the mission.” The day concluded with a challenge to live on mission from Sandy Wisdom-Martin, executive director at national Woman’s Missionary Union (WMU).  

Breakout leaders included, in addition to Ginn and Wisdom-Martin, IMB missionaries Adam and Millie Johnson, Jon Jeffries with national WMU and ABSC Missions Team Leader Sam Roberts and team members Clint Ritchie, Steve Lasiter and Travis McCormick.  

Thomas Little, youth pastor and minister of education at First Baptist Church in Royal said the following after attending Missions U, “We are in the process of developing a missions team and ministry at our church that will reach our community in new fresh ways. Missions U was so helpful and informative. The information gleaned from the breakout sessions will help us create that missions ministry. Missions U was refreshing and encouraging. It was definitely worth attending. I only wish I could have taken more breakout sessions. I’m looking forward to the next Missions U. 

Travis McCormick, men and boys missions strategist for the Missions Team of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention (ABSC) said, “The Missions Team is always looking for new ways to assist our churches in equipping God’s people to be involved in God’s mission of making disciples who make disciples.  We wanted to offer training in something that we know Arkansas Baptists care about. We know without a doubt that they care about reaching the lost and ministering to those in need. They care about the Gospel.” 

Missions U will be offered every other year with plans already in the works for April of 2026. Be sure to watch for more information and make plans to attend.