Simplifying NMI—The Latest on What a Simpler NMI Will Look LikeIn recent years, a growing number of pastors and local and district NMI leaders have suggested that we simplify NMI emphases, offerings, and the Handbook. Some of their reasons follow below. Your Global Council and office team want to simplify, not to nullify, marginalize, or weaken NMI.  
 

1. Cultures and personal schedules are overloaded with family, personal, church, economic, career, and social responsibilities. We live in a busy, demanding world.
2. When recruiting or nominating NMI leaders, many candidates decline, saying that to lead NMI would require more time or skill than they have.
3. Many churches offer less time for NMI presentations or lessons than in the past and less willingness to receive as many offerings as NMI has proposed.
1. Many churches include one or more NMI offerings in annual budget planning, rather than asking members to give multiple offerings. World Evangelism Fund and Alabaster are exceptions. 

 
In recent years, Global NMI Council members have discussed ways to respond to these challenges. We desire to retain the core and essence of NMI while offering a simpler approach to local churches and districts that desire simplicity.
 
Progress toward simplifying NMI:  
 

1. We will simplify adult mission education (Living Mission) to premier in late March 2010 (see exciting detail above). Thanks to an amazing collaborative and creative team!
2. We will simplify the NMI Handbook and Constitution (ready for purchase in print or online in late March 2010). Thanks to an amazing committee who worked with us to simplify! 
3. We will simplify local and district annual report forms around the four NMI objectives (praying, discipling, giving, and educating). The updated, simplified report forms are included in the downloadable resources section in this issue of HeartLine. 
4. We encourage local and district councils to consider simplifying council composition around the four NMI objectives, possibly needing fewer council members. Note: this is optional only. If present local and district council composition is working, please do not feel pressure to simplify. To simplify is merely an alternative for many who have voiced challenges to recruit enough passionate leaders to fill multiple council positions.
5. Approximately 60 leaders responded to the survey regarding simplifying NMI (sent to district presidents in October 2009). Their responses helped us to make informed decisions and to offer options to simplify NMI.
6. A development committee composed of Global Council members and office team members recommended to the Global NMI Council several ways to simplify NMI. The Global Council approved the following:
   1. Offer an option to simplify several NMI emphases that are closely related: Missionary Health Care, LINKS, Missionary Christmas Fund, Distinguished Service Award, Memorial Roll, and Gifts from the Heart. A church may prefer to continue to promote each of the emphases individually; that is perfectly fine. If a local church prefers, these can now be clustered as “Missionary Care” (see the diagram below). If a church sends one offering for Missionary Care, the unified offering will be distributed as follows: 60% to Missionary Health Care, 30% to LINKS, and 10% to Missionary Christmas Fund.
   2. Offer an option to simplify offerings by reducing the number of offerings and prioritizing a few for some churches that feel they cannot receive all of the NMI offerings. A church may prefer to continue to promote each of the offerings individually; that is perfectly fine. If a local church prefers to simplify, we recommend the following offerings as priorities: World Evangelism Fund, Alabaster, Missionary Care, and World Mission Broadcast.
       
      
      
       

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Downloadable Resouces
  District Secretary's Report
  District Secretary's Worksheet
  District Request to Seat Alternate
  District NMI Council Address Sheet
  Delegates for District NMI Convention