Issue 1 : March 2010

In this issue

Called to Business?
Kayaking and the Kingdom
Interview with Neal Johnson
Lessons from the Edge
Featured Resource
Training Courses

Featured Resource

Business as Mission:
A Comprehensive Guide to Theory and Practice

C. Neal Johnson, IVP 2009

Being described as the most complete work on Business as Mission to date, this book is a must for those who are asking themselves the 'how-to' questions...

Read Interview with Author

Training Courses

iBAM USA Course

13 Jun - 26 Jun or 9 Jul 2010
Colorado Springs, USA

Take the next step!
2 and 4 week training courses giving you strong foundations for business as mission.

More about training

"Taking iBAM is the shortest most thorough way I can imagine to step into the Missional Business stream. I got a good understanding of how God is moving in these days through business and I feel equipped to be a part of it."

"iBAM was a great opportunity to see first hand what business as missions is doing around the world, it encouraged me to step out of the box."

"I have received both the spiritual tools and the practical tools to step out and do the business that God has put on my heart to do."

Participant Testimonies
iBAM 2010, Chiang Mai

Next Course Details

Called to Business?

Integrating Business and Mission

The notion of business as a 'vocation' through which we can benefit society is surely an idea for our generation. Even in the midst of the disillusionment surrounding the global economic crisis, the question rises, ‘How can Business do better?’.

For the Christian business person the question follows ‘What does it mean that business is my vocation?’ As Mike Baer so eloquently puts it “Once we have begun to operate in the full understanding that business is our calling from God, we are ready to begin exploring the next question: What is the specific purpose that God has in mind for my business?" He goes on to say “For kingdom professionals, discovering a sense of mission for our lives and work that flows from understanding God’s mission is essential”.

In this issue we meet Anne a young woman who realised that her desire to bring transformation to her community could be accomplished through life in business. We also highlight two great resources to help address the 'how-to' questions, the fresh new book on Business as Mission by Neal Johnson and the new iBAM USA Course - a one-of-a-kind foundational training program focused on business as mission. We also launch our new column ‘Lessons from the Edge’, as each quarter we will be bringing you insights from pioneering Business as Mission practitioners.

Kayaking and the Kingdom

At the top of the glacier there is a remarkable view, a breath-taking scape of mountains and ice. Anne regularly leads groups to this beautiful place... and she takes them kayaking, hiking, skiing and caving too! Anne is the owner of small business NorTrex based in Nordland, just inside the Artic Circle in nothern Norway. To Anne the view from the glacier has everything to do with building God’s Kingdom in this beautiful and rugged community.

Interview with Neal Johnson

Author of "Business as Mission"

We talk with Neal Johnson about what motivated him to write his new book 'Business as Mission: A Comprehensive Guide to Theory and Practice' and asked him how he sees it contributing to the business as mission movement today.

Neal - you have done all sorts of things in your life, including banking, business, diplomacy and practicing law internationally and in the US, but now you are Dean of the School of Business at Bakke Graduate University in Seattle - what motivates you?

Clearly the thing that motivates me now and has for the past 20 years is my passion for Christ in the marketplace, especially business as mission. Looking back on my earlier life, I would have given anything if someone had taken me aside and said ‘Neal, have you heard about business as mission? Do you know you can do both business and mission—you don’t have to choose between them—that God is actually calling you to do both?’ So many people of my generation didn’t find that out until they were already well into their careers or toward the end of them.

I have a passion for working with business students now because of the students who say ‘I love business, I love mission, but can I do both?’ I really want them to be able to understand at the start of their career that they can in fact do both and also to show them how they can do that.

Your new book “Business as Mission” has just been released, what made you feel this particular book was needed?

There are a lot of great books on business as mission and many more on faith at work. They are excellent books, but there are not many that really address ‘how to do it’. As I have presented the concept of business as mission at conferences, people get excited and ask ‘What do I do now? I love the concept, I want to do it, but how do I do it?’ This book attempts to address that.

Lessons from the Edge

Insights from a BAM Practitioner

Go as a servant
Don’t think of yourself as the ‘saviour’ assuming you’ve got all the answers; instead be a servant. It’s okay to want to use your talents and experience, but it’s all about going with the right attitude and mentality.

Keep a long term view
It takes time to see fruit in business as mission; one cannot have a short-term view. Therefore, a sense of God’s calling is foundational to everything else. We must also be willing to learn from the mistakes we make and move on.

It’s all about relationships
True integration of business and ministry is vital. The more we are able to do business in the context of the people and community, the more we can build into their lives and the less scattered we will be about our goals for business and mission.

Matt has been an entrepreneur in India for 11 years.