About GOTM

The Golden Offering for Tennessee Missions exists because we realize that Tennessee is a mission field. This offering stays in Tennessee and provides funding for critical mission strategy.

The offering is named after W.C. & Mildred Golden, who suggested the week of prayer for state missions and a state missions offering in 1902.

Tennessee Baptists contributing through the Golden Offering for Tennessee Missions provide support for Tennessee ministries; sustaining state ministries not funded through the Cooperative Program.

The Golden Offering for Tennessee Missions is meeting human needs through Compassion Ministries. It’s Disaster Relief helping restore a community after a storm. It’s Baptist Collegiate Ministries sharing the hope of Jesus on Tennessee college campuses. It’s reaching the spiritually lost in Tennessee through evangelism. And so much more.

The Golden Offering is collected all year, from September 1st thru August 31st, with special emphasis during the month of September. Over the past few years, Tennessee Baptists have exceeded the historic giving of the previous year. This reflects the faithfulness and collaboration of Tennessee Baptists and Tennessee Baptist Churches who desire to share the Good News with every person in Tennessee.

The Week of Prayer for Tennessee Missions is a concentrated time of prayer for Tennessee Baptists which coincides with the Golden Offering for Tennessee Missions. While traditionally observed during the second week in September, churches can choose any week of the year that is convenient to them.

In the “Type of Donation” section use the dropdown menu to select “Golden Offering for Tennessee Missions.”

Rev W.C and Mildred Golden. 1902

1902 – Recognizing the urgency of the needs in Tennessee and feeling all Baptists should know about them, Mildred Golden (Mrs. W. C.) suggested a special season of prayer with an offering for state missions just as churches prayed for and gave to foreign missions and home missions. Dr. W. C. Golden was State Missions Secretary at the time; together they prepared and distributed the materials from their home. The first offering received was $800.

1943 – Tennessee Woman’s Missionary Union officially named the state missions offering in honor of the Goldens; it became the Golden State Missions Offering (GSMO).

1952 – The offering goal was $35,000. Allocations included camps, rural work, women missionaries, and preachers’ schools.

1962 – The goal of $75,000 included allocations for an international student retreat, student aid at Harrison-Chilhowee Academy, and a church lot fund.

1972 – More than doubling in a decade, the goal of $170,000 included gifts to native Tennessee missionaries, ministry to the deaf, student summer missions, mission center ministries, and special rural and mountain ministries.

1982 – The offering goal was $550,000. Student scholarships were identified for church-related vocations, medical and Acteens. Disaster relief, language missions ministries, ministry to the handicapped, resort missions, scripture distribution, and world witness through the World’s Fair in Knoxville were some of the allocations.

1992 – The offering topped a million with a goal of $1,050,000. Tennessee had a population of 4.9 million. Allocations included homes for the developmentally disabled, mega-focus cities, a site fund for new churches, and seminary extension.

2002 – In the centennial year the offering name was changed to the Golden Offering for Tennessee Missions to clarify its purpose and still honor the legacy of Dr. and Mrs. Golden. One-half of the offering of $1.6 million focused on starting new churches.

2008 – A total of $1,730,525 was received for the 2007-08 offering, exceeding the state-wide goal for the first time in 13 years.

2017 – A total of $1,843,511 was received for the 2016-17 offering.

2020 – A total of $1,948,485 was received for the 2019-20 offering, the third highest amount ever given in the offering history.

2022 – A total of $2,227,364 was given to the 2021-22 offering, surpassing the state goal for the first time since 2007-08; the 2021-22 Golden Offering was the second highest amount given in offering history.

2023 – A total of $2,262,188 was given to the 2022-23 offering, the highest amount given in the offering history.

The 2024-25 offering goal is $2,700,000 with a challenge goal of $3 million. Allocations include collegiate ministries, disaster relief, compassion ministries, church planting, adoption ministries, missions discipleship ministries, associational ministries, and the BlueOval City Initiative.