By Steve Crawley, Ph.D., Executive Director
It has been a tremendous blessing to visit over thirty different churches in our Association this past year. I am continually amazed at how God is using our relatively small network of churches to play a significant role in accomplishing His mission on earth. I am honored to serve our churches and to share the following updates and
highlights from the BMA Financial ministry sectors for the past fiscal year and our proposed operating plan for the forthcoming year.
• Retirement Services — The Baptist Missionary Association (BMA) Retirement Program, overseen by BMA Financial, is a registered 403(b)(9) denominational plan. This type of plan provides unique benefits to ministers and missionaries but also has viable investment options for employees of any BMA church or entity. Our retirement portfolio has experienced significant growth, reaching $21 million as of February 2025, an increase of $11 million since the implementation of our new plan in June of 2018. We are honored to now serve the employees of Central Baptist College in Conway, Arkansas, through the BMA America Retirement Plan. While the transition of additional assets from their previous provider remains in progress, we are grateful for this partnership and look forward to a long and productive relationship. If your church or institution is interested in partnering with BMA Financial, we would relish the opportunity to discuss how we might serve you. (See the full report with retirement plan metrics.)
This past calendar year was another exceptional year for the markets, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 13.25% and the Standard & Poor’s (S&P) 500 Index closed with an increase of 23.3%. This marked the second consecutive year with S&P 500 gains exceeding 20%, the first time this trend has occurred since the late 1990s.
• Insurance Services — BMA Financial Insurance Services provides free professional health care consultation for BMA churches and pastors. If, after assessing your needs, it is determined that there are potential cost savings, we can provide custom solutions for health, life, death and disability.
• BMA Foundation — BMA Foundation assets now total $2.4MM. The liquid assets, totaling $1.8MM, are under the management of Blue Trust Institutional. All BMA national departments, as well as one of our BMA state colleges, currently maintain an account with BMA Foundation.
• Other Services — In addition to retirement and insurance services, BMA Financial offers risk management insurance through our partnership with Brotherhood Mutual Insurance Company, as well as payroll services to churches through our partnership with MinistryWorks. Further, through a new partnership with Sparrow Team Financials, we now offer full-service bookkeeping and accounting services.
• Financial Plan — The Fiscal 2026 budget includes operating expenses of $222,794. Executive Director compensation in the proposed budget includes a base salary of $65,000, retirement, and an auto allowance.
Recommendations
• That we adopt the proposed operating budget for Fiscal 2026.
• That we express appreciation to Dennis Clark for his service as a board member over the past 10 years.
• That we classify $20,000 of the Executive Director’s compensation as housing allowance.
• That Steve Crawley stands as a nominee for Executive Director.
