by David Washburn, BGAV Treasurer

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Every pastor knows the feeling. The offering report comes in, the numbers don’t quite match the needs, and a decision has to be made. Do we cut? Do we stretch? Do we trust? Those conversations happen in deacons’ meetings and finance committees across Virginia every month. I want you to know they are happening at BGAV too.

This November 9–11, Virginia Baptists will gather at the Virginia Beach Convention Center for our Annual Meeting. The theme, “Heart for the Not Yet,” comes from Acts 17:6, where the early believers were described as people turning the world upside down. That is a fitting word for this season, because the work ahead of us requires both courage and clear thinking.

Messengers will be asked to consider a proposed 2027 budget that reflects an overall reduction of $800,000. I won’t pretend that is easy news. Behind every line item are ministries, partners, and people we love. But this budget was not built out of fear or retreat. It was built out of honesty.

The truth is that BGAV is facing the same financial pressures your church is facing. Giving patterns are shifting. Costs continue to rise. Faithful congregations are doing more with less, and many are asking hard questions about what God is calling them to sustain and what he may be calling them to release. We are asking those same questions, and we are asking them alongside you.

The proposed budget seeks to hold three commitments together. First, we must be realistic about our financial situation. Spending money we do not have is not faith; it is presumption. Second, we must be faithful stewards of every dollar Virginia Baptist churches entrust to us. Your Cooperative Missions gifts are sacred, and we intend to treat them that way. Third, we must never lose sight of our Kingdom calling. A smaller budget does not mean a smaller vision. It means a sharper one.

That is why your presence in Virginia Beach matters. Budgets are not simply adopted; they are owned. When messengers gather, ask questions, pray, and vote together, we are reminding one another that this is our shared work. No single church carries it alone, and no single office does either.

Beyond the business sessions, you’ll find worship, learning, and the kind of fellowship that reminds weary leaders they are not walking this road by themselves.

So come. Bring your questions and your hope. Bring your church’s story. The “not yet” God has in store for Virginia Baptists is worth gathering around, and I would love to see you while we are here.

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Rev. David Washburn is BGAV’s treasurer.

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