Business as Mission
New opportunities for a new eraby Jimmy Quach and John Terrill, Co-Directors, Open for Business Conference
Global trade and communication is quickly changing the landscape of the world
we live in. A craftsman in Kenya can expect to sell his products in London.
A technology worker in India can troubleshoot computer problems in Chicago.
At the heart of this increasingly interconnected world is the rise of global
business, which has brought economic opportunity to some – but not all – of
the world’s poorest.
As commerce increasingly flows freely across national borders, a new era of
global missions is underway. The emerging business-as-mission movement is bringing
together global Christian business professionals who seek to bring economic
development, social vitality, and spiritual transformation to unevangelized
communities around the world. A North American Christian entrepreneur can now
start a software firm in India that both lifts employees out of poverty and
transforms their lives through the gospel. Countries considered as “closed-access” to
traditional missionary activity are often wide-open for business. Many consider
business to be the best missions strategy for the 21st century.
Furthermore, in his book God Is At Work, Ken Eldred estimates that the number of Christians graduating with business-related degrees in the United States each year is equivalent to the number of full-time Protestant missionaries total. If this community were fully equipped with a Christian vision, it could not only make an enormous global impact, but do so in a financially sustainable manner.
The business-as-mission vision is a holistic one, calling Christians not to abandon their gifts and talents in the marketplace, but to use them for service in God’s Kingdom. Business as mission seeks to influence all aspects of business: allowing Jesus to both transform internal business practices and direct the ultimate purposes and goals of commerce. Some expressions of business as mission include:
- Offering microfinance loans that bring hope and capital to the world’s poorest
- Modeling integrity and honest business in corrupt environments
- Witnessing Christ’s love to employees, suppliers, and customers
- Supporting the work of the local church by producing economic opportunity and social benefits in the community
The number of integrated Christian businesses is on the rise. Also called “Kingdom businesses” or “Great Commission Companies,” these businesses are making an eternal impact far greater than their financial bottom lines alone. God is on the move in business and there is an open invitation to join the movement.
You can learn more about business as mission and invest yourself in this expanding movement by attending the Open for Business Conference at Urbana 06. Key leaders of the business-as-mission movement will be sharing stories and equipping delegates. There’s also a $40,000 business plan competition for those interested in starting triple-bottom-line businesses that produce financial, social, and spiritual impact.
Unless otherwise noted, all materials on the urbana.org web site are Copyright InterVarsity Christian Fellowship / USA. All rights reserved.
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