The current total of gifts to the 2022–23 Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions is $196.1 million — besting the $190 million goal.

“Thank you, Southern Baptists, for your growing commitment to get the gospel to the nations!” International Mission Board President Paul Chitwood said. “Your generous giving through the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering, along with your ongoing commitment to the Cooperative Program, has the IMB positioned to overcome the staggering impact of global inflation and meet the needs of your missionaries.”

These gifts empower IMB missionaries to tackle the greatest problem — lostness.

Trey Fleming serves with his family in Osaka, Japan. He said he recently shared the gospel with a woman who had never heard it.

“That’s the greatest problem in the world today, lostness,” Fleming said. “We’re diving into that, trying our best to share the gospel with people who are all around us here in Osaka, Japan, who have just never heard the story before,” Fleming said.

He expressed his gratitude, saying, “Thank you so much for sending us and supporting us.”

Moses Mivedor serves with his family in Senegal, and this year, he taught a new church how to sing worship songs to God. In the past, the people sang to worship idols, and now they praise Jesus. The generous gifts to the LMCO make it possible for Mivedor to lead these believers in song.

Southern Baptists have not forgotten Ukrainians in their era of need. Pastor Vitaly Sorokun of the Baptist Union of Ukraine thanked Southern Baptists for their history of sending missionaries to Ukraine and their ongoing support in the country’s great hour of need.

“I came to know Jesus Christ because of a Southern Baptist missionary. I began to grow as a Christian because of a Southern Baptist missionary. And we have served with the missionaries from the IMB over all these years,” Sorokun said.

An IMB missionary ordained Sorokun, and he planted a church. When the war in Ukraine began, his wife crossed the border to Romania.

“The first people who met her on that other side were our dear friends from the IMB. They were able to welcome her, to give her a hug, to give her a hot cup of tea and to send her further,” Sorokun said. “Thank you for your support. Thank you for your generosity. Thank you for your prayers. And thank you for your presence with us around the world. God bless you abundantly.”

The $190 million goal for 2022–23 was set in partnership with Woman’s Missionary Union. The $196.1 million total includes gifts to specific projects, often referred to as Lottie Moon challenges or Lottie giving projects.

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