Kevin Ezell, president of the North American Mission Board, said he could share a lot of numbers.
“We have so much to be thankful for at the North American Mission Board and for what we have seen God do this past year,” he said.
But what he wanted messengers to the 2025 Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting to know and remember June 11 was that all those numbers represent people — people who have been reached, and the people God is using to reach them.
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“Over 6,000 missionaries and chaplains are on the front lines … and we are grateful for how they serve, sacrifice and faithfully share the gospel every day,” Ezell said during his report.
He noted that the people who keep the infrastructure of NAMB are vital to the mission too.
“At NAMB we are all here to serve you,” he said. “We want to produce as many valuable resources for you as we can. But our No. 1 resource is the incredible people that God has allowed us to assemble on the NAMB team.”
‘Arm in arm’
Ezell shared some of their faces and their ministry roles during the report, including Vance Pitman, who serves as president of Send Network.
“We have a phenomenal group of high-capacity church planters, but the enemy is doing everything he can to destroy these men and their families,” Ezell said. “That’s the reason Vance has gathered and surrounded himself with an incredible group of men who are leading out as they train, equip and sustain your church planters. … We will never stop searching for ways to make church plants healthier and stronger.”
He said it’s “humbling” to be able to join Pitman and the rest of the NAMB team “arm in arm and serve you.”
“We are here to serve you,” Ezell said. “Pastors, you are our No. 1 customer. You lead your church, and we want to come alongside and help in any way we can.”
He thanked Southern Baptists for the $74.7 million they gave to the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American missions in 2024, noting that it was the sixth straight year of all-time offering records.
“Thank you for your generous giving,” Ezell said. “It’s not just generosity — it’s conviction in action.”
He said he believes that God is stirring something.
“The harvest is still abundant, but we need more workers, more planters, more pastors, more college students willing to go, more churches willing to send,” Ezell said. “Let’s not coast on a century of faithfulness; let’s build on it. Let’s be bold, let’s be urgent and let’s be unified.”
