NASHVILLE (BP) — The 2024 Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) Annual is now available online. The book is filled with key reports and information concerning the work of the SBC and its entities.
“The SBC Annual offers an open window into the work of our Convention entities as well as a helpful gauge of what the most engaged Southern Baptists care about any given year,” said SBC Recording Secretary Nathan Finn.
“If you want to understand who Southern Baptists are and where we hope we are headed, look at the three or four most recent SBC Annuals.”
The volume includes budget, audit and other financial information as well as reports from each SBC entity and the proceedings of the 2024 SBC annual meeting in Indianapolis that took place in June.
Jonathan Howe, SBC Executive Committee vice president for convention administration, said Southern Baptists should familiarize themselves with the Annual.
“One of the great benefits of the Annual is the financial data,” Howe said. “At a time when Southern Baptists are seeking more and more financial transparency, it’s important for us to remember that the full audit from each entity is included in the Annual. You can know exactly how your dollars are being stewarded — and stewarded well — by our entities.
“Also, the annual reports from each entity give very specific examples of the Gospel impact Southern Baptists are achieving through their entities across the country and around the world.
“It’s an integral part of SBC history and allows us to capture a snapshot in time of what was happening in the Convention,” he said.
Paper copies of the book will be mailed beginning in late September.
Annuals dating back to 1845 are available online through the Southern Baptist Historical Library and Archives.
“The SBC Annual becomes a historical artifact as soon as it is published,” said Finn, who has served as the SBC recording secretary since 2022. “It is a permanent record that contributes to the Southern Baptist story. If you want to know who the Convention has been, you can pick any year and look through the official records recorded in the SBC Annual.
“When I read through the SBC Annual, I’m so encouraged by how God is at work among Southern Baptists and through Southern Baptists. I want to encourage all Southern Baptists to read the SBC Annual, thank God for how He has been at work among us, pray that He will continue to use us for His glory and the advance of His kingdom until King Jesus comes back.”
(EDITOR’S NOTE — Brandon Porter serves as Associate Vice President for Convention News at the SBC Executive Committee.)
