Called to Business

By Debbie Legg

Question: A fellow Christian tells you, “I believe the Lord is calling me to ministry. How can I best serve him with my life?”

For your answers, choose one of the following:

(a) Go to Bible college and become a full-time minister.

(b) Become a missionary in a foreign land.

(c) Go into business.

I doubt your answer would be “Go into business.”

When we typically think of ministry, and missions in particular, business is not the first thing that comes to mind. But according to the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelism, in regions where 90 percent of the world”s unreached peoples live, you also find 80 percent of the world”s poorest populations. Unemployment in these countries ranges from 30 percent to 80 percent. Over the next 20 years, more than 2 billion people will enter societies where there are few churches and very few jobs.

The poor of these countries need the gospel, but they also need a way to feed their families. But they don”t want aid””they want jobs. They want to be able to support themselves and their families with dignity. Those areas open to the gospel want missionaries to teach them, but they also want godly businessmen to help them start businesses and create jobs.

The paradigm of missions is shifting to meet these needs. A movement is underway that incorporates business formation and business growth into the mission plan along with the gospel. This movement is known as Business As Mission.

Business As Mission (BAM) meets not only spiritual needs but practical, physical needs as well. It is a holistic approach to missions that offers aid programs such as medical clinics, food and clothing distribution, and building programs. But BAM is more than meeting the needs of the poor; it”s helping them meet their own needs, through business.

Jesus is a model of this multifaceted approach. He did not focus his energy solely on spiritual teaching. He dealt with spiritual issues (sermons and parables) and physical issues (healing), socioeconomic issues (“Sell your possessions and give to the poor”), and even political issues (“Give to Caesar what is Caesar”s”).

Jesus took a holistic approach in his ministry, teaching us to help ourselves. We are to teach what he has taught us.

Business As Mission?

Business, as explained by the Lausanne Committee, is “a mission, a calling, a ministry in its own right. Human activity reflects our divine origin, having been created to be creative, to create good things by good processes, for us to enjoy””with others.” Work is creation of goods and services that meet needs, which is good stewardship of the gifts and talents he has given us.

Many Christians see the “spiritual” and the “physical” as separate. Missionaries and full-time ministers have “spiritual vocations,” while the rest of us have “jobs.” But is this hierarchical thinking scriptural?

God calls people to work just as he calls them to other forms of ministry. Therefore, is any vocation less spiritual than any other? The patriarchs were shepherds. Joseph worked for Pharaoh. Paul continued crafting tents after his calling. It is true that some were called to full-time ministry, such as the prophets and apostles, but most Christians, even slaves, continued in their employment.

Remember the old adage, “If you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. If you teach a man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime.” BAM takes it even further.

According to Wayne McGee, founder of Ethnic International and a missionary with ACM International, this movement not only teaches men to fish, but also helps them buy boats and fishing gear, and hire employees. It mentors them to manage and grow their business. In turn, both the fishermen and their employees can feed their families, support the local church, and build their communities.

What Business As Mission Is and Is Not

Business As Mission is not business for mission. The intent is not to grow a business simply to fund ministry. BAM is not tent-making. It is not the intent for Christian professionals to support themselves financially so they can use their spare time to minister, although tent-making may be a part of an overall BAM plan. Neither is it workplace ministry, taking God”s Word to fellow employees, although, again, this may be a part of a larger plan.

The BAM movement is focused on creating “kingdom businesses” of all shapes and sizes, but especially larger-scale businesses. The enormous challenges of widespread poverty call for big plans and even bigger dreams.

BAM is not interested in replacing traditional mission agencies, but in partnering with them to minister together in new ways. Businesses and “bizzionaries” work in conjunction with the local churches, aid organizations, and even local and national governments to meet the many differing needs of the poor and unchurched around the globe.

The Kuzuko Game Reserve in South Africa is an example of BAM in action. The Eastern Cape Province is one of the poorest in the country, with certain areas experiencing 87 percent unemployment. The game reserve is projected to create more than 100 sustainable jobs. To increase this impact, residents are encouraged to start their own businesses complimentary to the game reserve. A fencing company that employs 70 people is one example. And, by inviting other agencies to evangelize, almost 50 percent of their employees have come to Christ.

Jared Odle, CEO of Ethnic US, says BAM can be a bridge. “We have an opportunity to create significant partnerships between many Christian organizations creating Business As Missions operations in countries embracing or tolerating Christian-ity. Additionally, we have an opportunity to work in countries hostile to Christianity to present a Christian witness.”

This is a key point. Countries that are closed to missionaries sometimes welcome businessmen with open arms. John, a bizzionary in Singapore, says, “For world evangelization, the best tool may often be business. I soon discovered that carrying a business card is a conversation starter, whereas saying, “˜I am a missionary” is a conversation-ender!”

Many in these countries are suspicious of “professional Christians,” whom they feel are there only to proselytize. But business people contribute to society, and in doing so, gain credibility.

BAM at Home

It may surprise business people to learn they already use BAM principles. Ken Eitel, a leader in the Greencastle (Indiana) Christian Church, has run his family-owned flower shop for 26 years. He cites Matthew 20:25-28 as a principle he tries to apply daily: “[He] did not come to be served, but to serve.”

Ken strives to do all he can to reflect Christ in his business, which includes treating his employees and customers fairly while providing quality products at fair prices. “The BAM principles to me are to operate a business in a manner that provides encouragement and hope to people who have neither, through the operation of a profitable business.”

So how can nonbusiness people incorporate BAM in their communities? One way is to better utilize business people. Unfortunately, many in business have found themselves valued not for their business gifts, but for their cash. Many are thrilled to be able to give from their abundance, but feel their business skills can be useful in many other ways. While physicians and those skilled in construction are often called to short-term mission trips, business people now may have the ability to minister in foreign fields as well, through business-building seminars, networking, mentoring, and encouraging local entrepreneurs.

Those of us not in business can prayerfully support and affirm the business people in our midst. Then we can all work together, and watch as God transforms his creation through business.

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For more information, visit www.ethnic-us.org.

 

 

Debbie Legg is a speaker and writer who lives in Fairfield, Illinois. She is a member of First Christian Church there.