Tag Archive for: bam introduction

The Business Ocean: A 4×4 Framework for Diagnosing Where Your Business Sails

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by Dr. Eric Z.M. Ma

 

Most Christian entrepreneurs I have spoken with can readily define their business’s purpose, clearly expressing their values, culture, and mission statements. Nonetheless, a greater challenge—and ultimately more valuable—is accurately portraying the current state of the business—not just its vision but also its reality. This encompasses the moral climate shaped by market forces and the core principles that influence decisions, often made unconsciously.

I dedicated two years to researching this question through fieldwork with 33 Christian entrepreneurs across 14 sites in the US rural Midwest. I discovered that the gap between where leaders aspired for their businesses to be and their actual realities couldn’t be bridged by intention alone. Instead, it required an honest, specific, and theologically grounded diagnosis before meaningful formation could begin.

The framework I created to address this is the Business Ocean Matrix, a tool I wish I had been able to share with every entrepreneur I interviewed.

Every business operates in a vast ocean of challenges

The Business Ocean is depicted by a 4×4 matrix defined by two primary dimensions. The first is the philosophical weather—the moral and cultural climate that influences the market in which a business operates. The second is business model geology—the core logic that explains why and how a business creates and distributes value. Whether or not its leaders recognize it, every business exists at the crossroads of one weather and one geology, forming its unique sea.

The four philosophical weathers progress from scarcity to grace

Jungle — environments shaped by fear, competition, and survival instincts. Power asymmetry is normal. Trust is thin. The question is not “how do we flourish?” but “how do we survive?”

Exchange — environments governed by contracts, reciprocity, and efficiency. Fair dealing is expected. Relationships are transactional yet honest. The question is “What is a fair trade?”

Moral Concern — environments shaped by conscience, virtue, and regard for others’ flourishing. People matter beyond their utility. The question is “What is the right thing to do?”

Gratitude — environments animated by grace, generosity, and reconciliation. Gift logic guides decisions. The question is “What can we give?”

The four business model geologies progress from extraction to ministry

Shareholder Wealth Maximization (SWM) — profit for owners is the primary logic. Other goods are secondary.

Stakeholder Theory (ST) — value is created for a broader set of stakeholders, and relationships are managed strategically.

Common Good (CG) — the business exists to serve the flourishing of the community in which it operates.

Business as Ministry (BaM) — the business itself is a ministry, integrating theological vocation with organisational practice.

Sixteen seas, each presenting its own unique challenge

The combination of four weather types and four geological conditions creates sixteen distinct environments, each presenting its own unique pressures, temptations, and opportunities for faithfulness.

Figure 1. The Sixteen Seas

The Red Survival Sea (Jungle × SWM) represents the business environment where many small businesses operate: intense competition, slim profit margins, and survival instincts shaping their decisions. In contrast, the Spring-green Shalom Sea (Gratitude × BaM) serves as the ideal destination the framework envisions—a fully integrated business-as-ministry enterprise that manages all four capitals for the common good.

The journey from Red to Spring-green doesn’t happen in a single leap. Instead, it involves a series of one-step moves—moving from one sea to an adjacent one—guided by an honest assessment of the current business situation and a faithful next step appropriate to that specific context.

The compass functions reliably in all weather conditions. The real question is not whether God can work in the Red Survival Sea—He certainly can and does. Instead, we should consider what faithfulness entails in that context and identify the next faithful step forward.

The CGTA: Measuring the treasure

Understanding the sea a business navigates reveals its environment. The status of the business’s Common Good Treasure (CGT) reflects the vessel itself. The CGT framework identifies four interconnected capitals that every organisation possesses: Spiritual (the Rudder guiding direction), Social (the Adhesive holding the crew together), Intellectual (the Engine transforming knowledge into value), and Financial (the Fuel powering the journey).

Figure 2. The Common Good Treasure (CGT)

The Common Good Treasure Assessment (CGTA) is a 16-item tool—comprising four items for each capital—that evaluates the current health of each capital and creates a radar profile. When combined with the ocean matrix, the CGTA informs a leader not only of their current sea but also about how well-prepared their vessel is for the specific conditions of that sea.

A business with mature spiritual and social capital but emerging financial capital in the Mint Stewardship Sea faces a very different formation challenge than one with exemplary financial capital but developing spiritual capital in the Red Survival Sea. The CGTA highlights these distinctions, making them clear and actionable.

From diagnosis to formation

The Business Ocean Matrix and CGTA are tools, not ultimate aims—like a nautical chart and a compass that guide navigation. The objective is not to achieve a perfect score on the assessment but to move faithfully—step by step toward greater grace, generosity, and the integration of faith and business, aiming for shalom.

In my research, the entrepreneurs who experienced the greatest growth were not necessarily those with the highest initial scores. Rather, they were honest about their current position, willing to acknowledge the gap between their aspirations and reality, and committed to the slow, faithful work of formation.

This is the invitation Business Ocean extends to every Christian entrepreneur: not to pretend you are already in the vibrant Shalom Sea, but to recognise exactly which sea you are in—and take the next faithful step from there.

 

Eric Z.M. Ma, DIS, MBA, is the founder and principal researcher of CGT Research Institute, LLC, and the author of the four-volume Business as Ministry series. His doctoral research (Biola University, 2024) examined Business as Ministry in the US rural Midwest. The BaM Harbor, with five ships carrying the BaM framework, is available at www.cgt-ri.com.

 

 

 

 

Photo by John Bell on Unsplash

 

 

Reflections on Sacrifice, Faithfulness and Transformation

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by Mats Tunehag

 

I was asked recently to reflect on the idea of “transformational sacrifice”. What do sacrifice and transformation mean in a Jewish-Christian tradition; our roots and context? What follows are some reflections on the topic, linked to our roots and tradition, which of course includes Holy Scripture.

Sacrifice is intentional and voluntary, not an unintended or surprising consequence of action taken. That may be a price we pay for a decision made.

The meaning and practice of sacrifice have evolved before, during and after the temple in Jerusalem, and also before and after Christ. But some common denominators are:

Sacrifice is for God and the common good; it has a cost, and it can be transformational.

King David said: “I will not offer to the Lord that which costs me nothing.”

We use this kind of ‘cost language’ in phrases like:

She sacrificed her career for her family.

They sacrificed comfort for justice.

Soldiers sacrificed for their country.

Redemptive Action vs. Empty Ritual

Those examples indicate that some things are worth sacrificing and suffering for, love involves cost, a greater good may require giving up comfort, and costly sacrifice can be redemptive.

Sacrifice can thus mean giving up something valuable, enduring loss or cost, for the sake of someone else, for a higher purpose, based on justice, and mercy, for the common good.

However, sacrifice isn’t inherently good. Prophets like Isaiah, Jeremiah, Amos, and Micah criticized when sacrifice became an empty ritual, filled with hypocrisy, overlooking injustice and exploitation of the poor.

Instead, sacrifice should be covenantal, relating to God as well as to us, as individuals and communities. It should be connected with the things that God calls us to—that is, justice, mercy, love and service.

Transformational Sacrifice?

In both Jewish and Christian traditions, sacrifice is often understood as transformational, not merely as loss, but as something that can change things. It can be internal (we are transformed) and external (the circumstances are transformed). The transformation may be spiritual, moral, relational, social, political, economical, or cultural.

There are many kinds of sacrificial transformational agents: Parents sacrificing sleep, time, and comfort for children, entrepreneurs sacrificing security to build an impactful company, and missionaries leaving familiarity to make Christ known.

But there are no guarantees that a sacrifice, even with good and right motives, will bring about a good and lasting transformation. Or it may happen, many years or even generations down the road.

An Old Testament example of sacrifice is Abraham going to sacrifice his son Isaac, the embodiment of the fulfillment of the promise God gave to him. It certainly transformed them, especially in relationship to God, and in trusting God. It also had implications for generations to come.

There are also stories of sacrifices with fraudulent and evil intentions that bring about an encounter with God and positive transformations down the road.

The story of Joseph being sold by his brothers is an example of “bad sacrifice” which can transform lives and show how God can redeem the past for future blessings. Joseph’s brothers were willing to sacrifice their father’s favorite son, but God transformed that situation, one that caused Joseph and Jacob to suffer greatly, into a national rescue plan for Egypt, and eventually also a restoration of a dysfunctional family and the birth of the nation of Israel.

“As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present outcome, that many people would be kept alive [as they are this day].” (Genesis 50:20, AMP)

The Church has many saints who made significant sacrifices, which continues to have a transformational impact down the centuries. Dietrich Bonhoeffer resisted Nazism and was executed. He spoke of a “costly grace.” His sacrifice transformed later Christian thinking about: discipleship, resistance to evil, public faith, and ethics.

In the long struggle to abolish the slave trade, many abolitionists in William Wilberforce’s time sacrificed wealth, and status, drawing deeply from biblical ideas of human dignity and moral responsibility. Their tireless work over decades brought about transformation; the abolition of the slave trade and slavery in the British empire. Their transformational sacrifice reshaped societies and laws even beyond the empire and their generation.

More recently Martin Luther King Jr. framed nonviolent struggle in profoundly biblical terms during the American civil rights movement of the 1950s and 60s. He personally paid a heavy price over the years, and ultimately it cost him his life. But the sacrificial endurance became transformative for generations to come. MLK and others in the movement were willing to suffer to expose injustice, and it changed public attitudes and legislation.

Faithfulness as Our Motivator for Sacrifice

I don’t see “sacrifices” in terms of a cost-benefit analysis; it is about following God and being true to your mission and calling.

Yes, I have sacrificed financial stability and security for decades. Regrets? No! But I would never or hardly ever get on a plane again if there wasn’t a sense of calling and mission.

But life has to be lived forward and can only be understood (to some extent) in hindsight.

As the Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard wrote: “Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.”

We must act now, relying on faith and courage to navigate the future, without complete understanding the potential impact our sacrifices may have.

Consequently, we do not know what the future holds, nor the impact our choices will have. But we trust God (or at least try!) and keep walking forward.

It mustn’t be a “do ut des” approach. It is a Latin phrase meaning “I give so that you might give”. The phrase stems from ancient Roman law and religious practices, such as offering sacrifices for divine favor.

Today we may talk about an arrangement based on reciprocity, such as business deals, negotiations, or relationships, often used synonymously with a “quid pro quo”. Life with God is not transactional, but relational, a covenantal relationship.

Chronos and Kairos

There are two words in Greek for time.

Chronos is quantitative, sequential and of course is the root of the word chronological. We operate in the chronos, we plan and evaluate in the chronological time, also in business.

Kairos is qualitative, the supreme moment, the right time. This is for example used for God’s intervention, in the fullness of time. We cannot control this, but we can set the stage for it to some extent.

For a longer introduction, please read this blog post.

We are to be faithful in the chronos, serve God and the common good with professionalism, excellence and integrity, trusting God for impact, for the kairos moments, which may be very transformative.

Daniel and his three friends, doing “civil service as mission” were faithful in the chronos (Daniel 1-2), and God used them in kairos moments. We don’t see any “do ut des calculations” in their actions and attitudes, but God used their lives—and sacrifices—to transform King Nebuchadnezzar personally, and also make God known among the many peoples and languages within the empire.

We don’t know, nor can we control, the impact our sacrifices may have.

The Why and How of BAM Sacrifice

In business as mission, we talk about creating business solutions to the world’s pressing issues. Indeed, it is one of our BHAGs, or “Big Hairy Audacious Goals” for the BAM movement.

We do business for God’s glory, the gospel and the common good.

Should solving the world’s greatest problems be a motivator for our sacrifice!? Maybe. But if it is, how should we approach it?

I have observed an increased engagement in using business to address global issues like human trafficking, unreached peoples, environmental challenges, rampant youth unemployment, et cetera. This is honorable and often good.

But I also observe, especially from the West, a “Deus ex machina” approach. Deus ex machina, literally “God from the machine” in Latin, refers back to ancient Greek and Roman drama; when the plot thickened, and there was an unresolvable issue, a man-made mess, the gods and demigods appeared from above and fixed it, and disappeared again. It was a plot device, still used in books and movies today, used to resolve seemingly unresolvable issues.

Some of us have money, connections and solutions. These can be good things, but we must be careful. We are often blind to where we are steeped in post-colonial attitudes or a modernity paradigm. It is too easy to use triumphalist language and come with mechanical solutions to other peoples’ problems.

Instead, as we seek “shalom”, a wholeness for all relationships, we must recognize Shalom as Presence, the incarnational model of God.

Jesus came and dwelt among us, and He gives us His Shalom, the Holy Spirit, to live in and among us. As my good friend Michelle shared in her devotional at the BAM Global Leaders Forum in Manila in March 2026: Jesus offered his presence, and He didn’t fix all the problems.

We know as parents, or grandparents, that our kids or grandkids want, above all, our time and our presence. We cannot compensate for our absence with toys or things—they want us, our presence, a relationship. And then time and space to develop that relationship are essential. Such relationships are truly transformational and foundational for healthy human life, and they are in no way about speed or efficiency.

So, what should we possibly consider giving up—sacrificing—as we do BAM? Speed? Triumphalist language? Trusting our money, connections and solutions? Impersonal Deus ex machina strategies?

How can we, like Jesus, offer presence instead? We may have to sacrifice more time than we imagined. We may have to sacrifice some of our plans and strategies.

 

Mats Tunehag is the Chairman of BAM Global, and he is a global thought leader on Business as Mission, BAM. Since the 1990’s he has created numerous networks of leaders from business, church, missions and academia from all continents. He has served as an advisor to groups involved in business, investment, freedom businesses, research and partnership development. He is the chief architect of the ‘Business as Mission Manifesto’ and the ‘Wealth Creation Manifesto’, which is a conceptual framework for the global BAM movement. See: matstunehag.com/about/ for more about Mats.

 

Download Mats free e-book >> Business for All Seasons

 

 

 

Photo by Guillaume de Germain on Unsplash

 

Business as Mission and Innovation

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by Mats Tunehag

 

We create and innovate based on worldview and values. Worldview is the lens through which we interpret reality, and values guide our thoughts and actions. Thus, innovation from a Christian perspective must be seen through Judeo-Christian lenses, and be guided by values deeply rooted in Holy Scripture and the history of the church. We should innovate in line with our tradition, recognizing that we are to co-create, and innovate, with God and for the common good.

Biblical Foundation for Innovation

Only God creates ex nihilo, out of nothing, but he calls us to be good stewards of all things created. That includes both material and immaterial things, mind and matter.

The book of Genesis presents a created order that is good, but unfinished—inviting human participation, which includes innovation.

Innovation should serve something larger than itself. It mustn’t be innovation for the sake of innovation, nor should it be just about benefits for me, my family, my business, my tribe or my nation. It should be innovation as faithful creativity, serving people and honoring God, not novelty for its own sake. And there are ethical boundaries: Innovation is judged by fruit: does it serve life, justice, dignity, and love of neighbor?

Scripture provides instructive contrasts. Noah’s ark—a massive innovative engineering project—aligned with God’s purposes and brought salvation to humanity. The Tower of Babel, equally impressive in its innovation, was motivated by pride and led to societal breakdown. The difference lies not in technical achievement but in purpose and alignment with God’s will.

We acknowledge that business is God’s gift to transform the world. Business as Mission, BAM, is about harnessing that gift to serve people, align it with God’s purposes, be good stewards of the planet and make a profit—among all nations.

BAM innovation is problem-oriented, geared towards solving unmet needs and problems, like environmental degradation, poverty, human trafficking, unreached peoples, etc. Innovation is beyond efficiency for a firm, profitability and scalability. We see BAM enterprises as a space where God’s reconciling work becomes visible. In this framework, innovation becomes a missional discipline—a way of loving God and neighbor through economic activity.

Besides asking: “What is scalable and profitable?” BAM also asks: “What genuinely serves people and communities?” BAM resists the modern myth that innovation must be disruptive or extractive. BAM related innovations consider environmental, social, and generational impact. We are also mindful of that not all innovation is good business—and not all good business is innovative.

Core Values and Principles

Innovation occurs across all business dimensions—products, services, marketing, sales, management, and human resources. BAM companies innovate in these same areas, but emphasize innovations grounded in biblical values for God-honoring purposes. Key values include:

Stewardship: Innovation is an act of stewardship: developing goods, services, systems, and institutions that enable life to flourish.

Shalom: Innovation oriented toward the common good, shalom rather than shareholder primacy alone.

Avodah: The integration of work, worship, and service, recognizing that our innovations are acts of worship when aligned with God’s purposes.

The Great Commission: Making Christ known as we innovate and conduct business to the ends of the earth.

Human Dignity: Asking whether innovation promotes creativity, dignity, and freedom.

Beauty: The Church teaches that God is truth, goodness, and beauty. Bezalel’s calling and anointing by the Spirit in Exodus 31 demonstrates that beauty and excellence are not luxuries but expressions of God’s Spirit at work.

Tikkun Olam: This Jewish concept means “to repair and heal the world”. BAM innovation observes what is dysfunctional, unjust, oppressive, and polluting in a broken marketplace, then co-creates with God to bridge the gap from what is to what ought to be. The Lord’s Prayer itself is a tikkun olam prayer, bridging heaven and earth by bringing the King and his Kingdom into the marketplace toward holistic human flourishing.

Innovation & Change of Paradigm

Business as Mission is not a technique, but rather a worldview and a lifestyle. To that end BAM Global gives a priority to clarify and impart a Biblical worldview as it relates to business, people, societies and the Great Commission. Although the underpinning BAM concepts are old, there is still a need for a paradigm shift in many circles. In this sense, BAM innovation involves changing not just products or processes, but the framework itself.

Innovations often happen where people, institutions and ideas intersect and interact, and where there is an openness to innovate and explore initiatives that can enhance human flourishing. To that end BAM Global has convened dozens of forums and think tank groups, to reframe and catalyze business solutions to some of the world’s greatest problems. That has resulted in about 40 reports, dozens of BAM networks on all continents, operating in over 20 languages. These innovation forums and hubs have been instrumental to the exponential growth of the global business as mission movement in the last 25 years.

The incarnation shows God entering specific cultural, economic, and historical realities. BAM innovation must be contextual—responding to real local needs rather than importing foreign models, or be a pursuit of one-size fits all. This aligns with historical patterns: durable innovation grows from within cultures, not above them.

Innovation Metrics & Characteristics

We aim at redefining success metrics when needed. BAM innovation should  expands the scorecard and include financial sustainability, social and environmental impact, and spiritual and relational fruit. Innovation is evaluated by shalom, not just ROI, Return of Investment.

So, we pray that BAM innovation will be characterized by:

Rootedness – anchored in Scripture and tradition

Relationality – shaped by proximity to people and place

Redemptive intent – healing and transforming rather than exploiting

Long-term faithfulness – patience over speed

Questions for BAM Innovators

With these principles and values in mind, consider these essential questions:

  • Does this innovation serve needs?
  • Does it pay attention to the underserved peoples of the world?
  • Does it respect limits—ecological, social, moral?
  • Does it strengthen community?
  • Does it allow people to exercise agency and dignity?
  • Does it align with love of neighbor?
  • Does it honor God?


Mats Tunehag is the Chairman of BAM Global, and he is a global thought leader on Business as Mission, BAM. Since the 1990’s he has created numerous networks of leaders from business, church, missions and academia from all continents. He has served as an advisor to groups involved in business, investment, freedom businesses, research and partnership development. He is the chief architect of the ‘Business as Mission Manifesto’ and the ‘Wealth Creation Manifesto’, which is a conceptual framework for the global BAM movement. See: matstunehag.com/about/ for more about Mats.

 

Download Mats free e-book >> Business for All Seasons

 

 

 

 

Quadruple Bottom Line Impact: Doing Spiritual, Economic, Social and Environmental Good

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In BAM we often talk about four intentional areas of impact for companies to consider: spiritual, financial, social and environmental, an idea known as the ‘Quadruple Bottom Line’. This excerpt from a longer paper briefly introduces this idea.

Introduction to the ‘Quadruple Bottom Lines’ (QBL) of BAM

Business as mission is intentional about Kingdom of God purpose and impact on people and nations; focused on holistic transformation and the four bottom lines of economic, social, environmental and spiritual outcomes.

The idea of having multiple bottom lines for a business comes from the original ‘financial bottom line’—the number that indicates net profit (or loss) typically found at the bottom of a company’s income statement. A company that is solely focused on making money for its shareholders will only be concerned about this one ‘bottom line’, its financial earnings. The social enterprise movement introduced the idea of ‘triple bottom line’ impact that is also concerned with social and environmental outcomes. Business as mission extends this idea to ‘quadruple bottom line’ (or four bottom line) impact, including spiritual impact as well.

If intentional impact along these multiple bottom lines is a hallmark of BAM, [any entity engaged in BAM] will do well to build a solid understanding of each. While these four areas of impact are integrated together in terms of the business model, strategy and daily operations—all things working together for missional impact—there are times when the focus should be on each one separately. This is especially true when planning for positive outcomes in each. Then careful consideration is needed as to how success is defined in each area and, therefore, how progress is measured so that there can be accountability and ongoing evaluation.

For business as mission, the four bottom lines are:

1. Doing spiritual good

Acting on the belief that faith in Jesus and a reconciled relationship with God addresses sin and brokenness at an individual and societal level that are the root cause of all other social, environmental and economic problems. Lasting change (God’s Kingdom coming on earth) and salvation from death and sin can only occur when our relationship with God, self, each other, and creation are reconciled. It involves sharing the gospel in word and deed, living as a disciple of Christ as a witness to others, and making disciples. Read more

Easter and the Promise of Flourishing: A Good Friday Reflection

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by Jo Plummer

 

Today it is Good Friday, a day of stillness and reflection for Jesus-followers around the world.*

We are in the middle of the story that is at the centre of our Christian faith. We are not yet at the empty tomb. We stand and wait at the Cross.

But it is in this waiting, in this in-between place, that we remember the words that Jesus himself gave his disciples:

“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” – John 12:24

Jesus said this in the days before his crucifixion, words that must have felt counterintuitive and perhaps even jarring for the disciples in the immediate aftermath of the triumphal entry into Jerusalem.

Jesus was telling them, and us, in no uncertain terms, that His death was not going to be a defeat, it was a planting. And this is where we sit on Good Friday. The seed is in the ground. The tomb is sealed. And we wait.

The Promise of Flourishing

As we have been praying and preparing for the BAM Global Summit 2026, coming up on Thursday 7 May, the theme God has given us is Flourish.

It might seem, at first glance, an unusual theme to bring into a Good Friday reflection. But I believe it belongs here, precisely here, because flourishing is not something that comes without cost. Flourishing grows out of what has first been surrendered and buried. The seed that is planted and dies bears much fruit. Out of a small seed of faith, a great mustard tree can grow. Generous sowing will reap an abundant harvest.

Seeds and plants are used many times in the Bible as metaphors for growth and fruitfulness. Here is another one that the Lord has been impressing on us as a BAM Global team in this season:

“The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon; planted in the house of the Lord, they will flourish in the courts of our God. They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green, proclaiming, ‘The Lord is upright; He is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him.'” – Psalm 92:12–15

This is not the flourishing of the world—quick, shallow, dependent on favourable conditions. This is the flourishing of something deeply rooted.

If you have ever lived surrounded by palm trees you’ll know they can bend dramatically in a storm but do not break. The cedar of Lebanon grows slowly, almost imperceptibly, over decades and becomes something that endures for generations. Both trees flourish, not by the ease of their environment, but by the depth of their roots.

And in this Psalm 92 picture, the psalmist locates the source of that flourishing in one place: planted in the house of the Lord. The fruit and flourishing come from where we are rooted.

We hear the echoes of this picture in Jesus’ words, again in John:

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” – John 15: 5-8

God Loves Flourishing

As we anticipate the celebration coming on Sunday, this is the picture we have of Jesus’ people on Easter morning. Not the crushing weight of Good Friday, but the deep-rooted, fruit-bearing, ever-green life that the resurrection makes possible. The psalmist is not describing a fleeting or fragile flourishing—it is the flourishing of a deeply rooted tree. It is flourishing that is sourced not in our own strength or giftedness, but in being planted—deeply rooted in the Lord, grafted to the Vine.

The theme of the BAM Global Summit this year is Flourish. Not because everything in the world is easy, or because BAM is without its share of challenges and setbacks, but because we believe that God loves flourishing. It is only through the transformational power of His risen life in us that people, communities, and nations can fully flourish and bear good fruit.

Thriving companies grow from thriving people—and thriving people are those who have learned what it means to be planted. To stay fresh and green, not because everything is going well, but because they remain in the Vine, abiding in Jesus.

This is what we are gathering around at the BAM Global Summit 2026, online on 7 May. We want to ask together: How do flourishing businesses enable people, communities and nations to flourish? How do we as a BAM movement flourish in the coming decade, not through our own ingenuity or effort alone, but by remaining planted in the house of the Lord.

As God is the Rock of our lives, we will be able to bear good fruit that spills out—bearing witness to the transforming power of the Gospel of Jesus, and, through His life in us, able to have a transformational impact on the people and communities around us.

So this Easter, may you be reminded that you are planted, you are deeply rooted. That the same power that raised Jesus from the dead is at work in you and in your business.

He is risen. And we will flourish.

But we are not there yet. Today is Good Friday.

Today we sit with the Cross. We hold the grief and the weight of a broken world—the places where injustice continues, where underserved communities remain unreached with the Gospel, where employees are exploited, regions where soils are degraded and the air is dangerously polluted, where communities are fractured by poverty.

We do not look away from that darkness.

We wait with the seed in the ground.

Sunday is coming. New life is coming. And the seeds that have been buried in faithful, costly, prayerful obedience—in businesses and ventures and lives surrendered to the mission of God—will bear fruit.

More fruit than we can ask or imagine.

 

 

 

*We do recognise that many around the world celebrate Easter next week. Easter greetings to you whenever you celebrate!

 

BAM Global Summit 2026

Thursday 7 May

The BAM Global Summit 2026 theme Flourish reflects that God loves flourishing! 

Flourishing businesses help people, communities and nations to flourish. 

Join us at this annual gathering of the global BAM community, to hear from God and learn from each other. Come and be equipped to flourish in your own BAM journey—to help you build flourishing companies and communities.

More Summit Information

 

Jo Plummer is the Creative Director & Co-Founder of BAM Global and a Lausanne Movement Catalyst for Business as Mission. Jo is the co-editor of the Lausanne Occasional Paper on Business as Mission and the executive editor of the BAM Global Reports series. She has been developing resources for BAM since 2001 and currently serves as Editor of the Business as Mission Resource Centre website and The BAM Review Blog. Jo is married to Mark and they have three adult children, Jack, Edward and Evie.

 

 

 

 

Photo by Viviana Rishe on Unsplash

7 Things We Have Learned About Evaluating Kingdom Impact: Transformational SME

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by the TSME Team



Transformation SME (TSME) is a global community investing through an evergreen fund for holistic kingdom impact in the world’s toughest markets. Over the past two decades, the TSME has wrestled with the questions like, “What is kingdom impact and how is it evaluated?” and “How can company leaders faithfully maintain kingdom centeredness over the long-term.”  Read Part 1 for an introduction.

Through years of investing in kingdom companies in our target region, TSME has built a body of knowledge that we have turned into key principles. These principles have become a lens through which we evaluate companies, a criteria for partnership, and a tool for ongoing growth.

Learnings and Principles


1. Context matters

“Impact” is not homogeneous, it varies based on the Purpose (The Why) of a company in a particular local context. The resulting principle is that there is no prescriptive solution or ‘one-size-fits-all’ impact plan. What matters to us is the reasoning and the spiritual indicators that compel the owners to this purpose in their context.

2. Perspective matters

Kingdom impact is holistic. While categorizing impact across multiple bottom lines and their intended impacts can help add rigor in planning and assessment, the borders between the different bottom lines are frequently blurred. The best way we have come to understand this is that God’s redemptive work is holistic in nature as we partner with him to see his kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.

3. Leadership matters

Leadership defines the horizon of a company’s kingdom impact. The character, competence, perseverance and teachability of leadership teams shapes the dynamic growth of the kingdom impact within a company

4. Intentionality matters

Kingdom impact doesn’t happen by accident. Kingdom Impact plans should be approached with the same rigor applied to business operations, including the inclusion of measurable strategies & goals.

5. Faithfulness over long time horizons matters

“Faithfulness” over a long period of time yields “fruitfulness”. TSME operates in difficult, risky environments, and it is quite typical for a long time horizon to be necessary to realize the holistic impact our portfolio companies seek.

6. The seasons of a company life-cycle matter

The early-stage company may have a more limited sphere of influence for holistic kingdom impact, whereas the established company may have a well-earned trusted role in the community, providing a different degree of opportunity. The goal is not to create a ‘perfect’ kingdom impact approach that becomes a fixed document. Static is not realistic. Nor is it helpful. Rather, living documents that are regularly reviewed and prayerfully allow company leadership to be in sync with the dynamic work of God as the needs of the local church and the leading of the Spirit change over time.

7. Community matters

From founders working in leadership teams, to multitudes of advisors, and to Boards and engagement with local churches, community is an essential ingredient to perseverance over long time frames. God invites us to join His story through relationships of mutuality; TSME mentors from diverse backgrounds (professional, perspectives, ethnicities) help companies stay faithful and focused to their stated impact objectives through healthy accountability.

Kingdom Impact Approach

The learnings delineated above have helped shape the creation of our TSME assessment framework. This Kingdom Impact Approach (KIA) can be applied to the types of diverse companies described above because the framework focuses on kingdom purposes, strategy and plans articulated by each company. This means that the framework can be contextualized for each business but still able to highlight areas where a company can improve and grow in its impact.

This approach encourages a company to have a clearly articulated purpose and a deliberate strategy with observable outcomes (over time) that have economic, environmental, social and spiritual significance. TSME believes that this intentional approach is as crucial to success as developing a viable commercial business plan.  Our ‘secret sauce’ in all this is that TSME pairs companies with a dedicated mentor team to holistically support the company across business operations and kingdom impact.

The centerpiece of the Kingdom Impact Approach (KIA) process is an annual review call with the leadership of our portfolio companies and their mentors.  During the call we take the time to review and discuss all aspects of the company’s overall approach to understand how God is at work in the business. This includes understanding the multi-pronged strategies, discussing the effectiveness of these approaches, and listening to stories of God’s work in and through the communities represented in the companies.

Here are a few encouraging stories we have heard during recent KIA calls, from three different companies:

  • Daily Prayers: For one month, each morning the entire staff received a text including one of the company’s core values, a story of how it was lived out and an invitation to prayer. At the end of the month the majority of the nearly 200 staff requested that this practice continue regularly. What a tangible invitation to the entire staff to consider that the God of the universe hears our prayers and is actively at work.
  • The Persistent Applicant: This portfolio company prioritizes the hiring of marginalized women as part of their impact approach. A single mother living in a slum applied for a job at the company three separate times. The first two times, she was not hired because, despite her situation, other applicants were deemed to be in more urgent need. She graciously accepted the decision each time. On her third attempt, she was hired. The company taught her their manufacturing process, and she excelled, eventually becoming a team supervisor. Through her stable employment and access to company benefits like school scholarships and health allowances, her life and her ability to care for her daughter were transformed.
  • An Unexpected Healing: A volunteer team from a Christian organization was visiting a portfolio company and offered to pray for staff during their breaks. The company leadership team agreed, but perhaps didn’t expect much to come of it. A staff member came in with a bandaged leg wound and asked for prayer. The team prayed for her, and she said it felt a little better. And so they said, “Well, let’s… let’s pray again then.” So they prayed again, and she said, “Wow, that feels a lot better.” And then she took off her bandage and she was completely healed! The woman walked out of the room with the bandage in her hand, which prompted a flood of other employees to come for prayer. That day, three people made a decision for Christ.

These are just a few of numerous examples, perhaps small but powerful, that we have heard on recent calls of how God is at work through our portfolio companies. Our portfolio companies weave a rich tapestry of stories in far flung corners of the earth where the living God is actively at work.

 

TSME is a leading global community investing through an evergreen fund for wholistic kingdom impact in the world’s toughest markets of the Middle East, North Africa, and Asia. TSME deploys patient capital toward growth-stage companies intentionally pursuing Kingdom-impact across multiple bottom lines in our target region. All investments are accompanied by active mentorship and focused prayer from our global community. Since inception we have deployed nearly $20M in investments to kingdom-focused companies in 27 different countries.  

 

Learn more about our Platinum Sponsor TSME

 

Connect at: transformationalsme.org

 

 

Photo by Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash

 

The Underlying Principles that Shaped a Kingdom Impact Approach Framework

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by the TSME Team


Imagine…

The day of the big trip you’ve been planning for months is finally here. You nervously do one last scramble through the house and sift through your luggage to make sure it’s all there. Toothbrush? Yes. Breathable and sweat-absorbing shirts? Yes. An assortment of over-the-counter medicines for stomach ailments of any kind? Check. Passport? Check.  (Wait is that really my passport, double-check… yes!).

Today you and a small group from your church start a multi-week odyssey to visit BAM practitioners residing amongst least-reached peoples in North Africa, the Middle East and Asia. The group is comprised of a mix of aspiring BAM workers, investors and church leaders. And though your roles vary, you share a few common beliefs as a small group. You believe:

  • That God is on mission for the redemption of all things and all peoples for His glory
  • That God chose to partner with His Spirit-filled people to invite those from every tribe, tongue and language to his eternal kingdom
  • That business (and indeed all work) can be offered as worship to the Living God (no sacred/secular divide)
  • That business done well provides unique opportunities amongst least-reached peoples to see kingdom transformation.
  • That how we steward our lives and resources matters to God. God owns all the resources and we steward what we are given for His purposes.

The overarching goal of your trip is to evaluate the ‘impact’ of a handful of companies operated by kingdom practitioners. All these companies have advertised that they are doing Christian work, spiritual impact, advancing the kingdom, or some similar set of words. The questions your small group are intent to answer is what does this mean, is ‘impact’ taking place, and how can we evaluate this? As a global partner and investor, you find yourself asking questions of stewardship, “Are these resources of God I invested stewarded well? Is the risk worth the ‘impact’? Could I in good faith invite others to join as investors on the journey?’ And, on another level of importance, the BAM practitioners with whom you are partnering are asking similar questions of effectiveness and worth, “How are we doing?! Are we on the right track? Is all we’re “suffering” worth it?”

The team has a desire to get a proper understanding of the kingdom impact taking place in and through the businesses in these various contexts.

Alright, you start in Cairo and spend time with the founders of the now sizeable micro-finance company making loans to thousands of local residents. You re-pack and spend three days in Tashkent with a software company. The company has a small team of eight and there is concern about their product/market fit given recent worldwide disruptions, but they have already seen meaningful fruit from their discipleship efforts. Before you know it, you’re back in the departure lounge and about to fly to Pakistan. When you land in Karachi, you meet a Pakistani follower of Jesus who has recently built a manufacturing company. The company partnered with a South East Asia firm to utilize new technology for a replacement building material as a substitute for bricks. This eases the extreme physical and human cost in the historically abusive brick-making industry in the region.

At this point of the journey, your heart is stirred afresh by seeing all that God is doing. You knew these types of companies existed and that men and women of faith were leading these companies, but you simply couldn’t have dreamed of the meaningful transformation taking place because these leaders chose to move into these specific ‘neighborhoods’ and build a kingdom-centered business….

You finally make it to Kuala Lumpur and your mind is reeling. What numbers shall we use to quantify kingdom impact?  How should we compare the company operating in a city of 20,000,000 with that of a company in the foothills of the Himalayas? How do we compare the small company of 12 in Amman utilizing AI-propelled medtech solutions with the group operating a business hotel in North India?

While on one hand, you’re thrilled at the opportunity to see the activity of the kingdom of God scattered through all these least-reached communities, you realize how difficult it is to answer, “What is kingdom impact and how is it evaluated? And how can company leaders faithfully maintain kingdom centeredness over long timeframes?”

Have you ever wrestled with such important topics?

Have you ever been on such a trip?

Did you know that there are indeed phenomenal kingdom-focused companies in North Africa, the Middle East and Asia? (There are!).

Transformational SME (TSME)

Over the past two decades, the TSME team has wrestled with the concepts presented in part one. TSME is a global community investing through an evergreen fund for holistic kingdom impact in the world’s toughest markets (the Middle East, North Africa and Asia).

As we deploy capital to growth-stage, kingdom-companies amongst least-reached peoples, we execute an intensive due diligence process. This multi-month process includes on-site visits for qualified companies to assess the company’s potential for commercial success while integrating with equal rigor our assessment of its kingdom impact potential. This process has emerged as the Kingdom Impact Approach Framework, or KIA.

 

Read Part 2  for a deeper introduction to the Kingdom Impact Approach Framework.

 

TSME is a leading global community investing through an evergreen fund for wholistic kingdom impact in the world’s toughest markets of the Middle East, North Africa, and Asia. TSME deploys patient capital toward growth-stage companies intentionally pursuing Kingdom-impact across multiple bottom lines in our target region. All investments are accompanied by active mentorship and focused prayer from our global community. Since inception we have deployed nearly $20M in investments to kingdom-focused companies in 27 different countries.  

 

Learn more about our Platinum Sponsor TSME

 

Connect at: transformationalsme.org

 

 

Photo by Alex Azabache on Unsplash

 

BAM Featured in an International Business Magazine: Mats Tunehag Interview

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An Interview with Mats Tunehag


Business as mission has been recently featured in an international business magazine; in three languages. Mats Tunehag was interviewed for the Destake News Business Magazine, you can read the full original version in English, French or Portuguese here or read an excerpt below.

 

Vision & Purpose

You often say that business can be a response to the world’s greatest challenges. What does Business as Mission, BAM mean in practice?

Business is God’s gift to transform the world, and we need to be good stewards of that gift. It means developing businesses so they honor God, and contribute to the total wellbeing of people and societies.

Drug and human trafficking are also businesses, and if business is primarily about making money why not do these things? Well, they are dehumanizing and against values we hold dear, and do not align with biblical principles.

Businesses run according to biblical values can become an impactful response to challenges such as poverty, unemployment, human trafficking, environmental degradation, and lack of hope.

 

At what point in your life did you realize that business could be an expression of faith and mission?

This realization emerged gradually in the early 1990s, when I was working in the Soviet Union and Central Asia, before and after the collapse of communism.

Societies were facing massive unemployment, social breakdown, and loss of dignity. Without meaningful work and economic opportunity, people and nations can not flourish.

At the same time, businesses were entering these regions rapidly, but often without ethical considerations. That contrast helped me see that business itself should be an expression of faith, by proposing a better way of doing business, grounded in biblical values,  service, and long-term value creation.

 

Where does your passion for connecting business with social and spiritual transformation come from?

It is deeply rooted in my faith and Judeo-Christian values. It comes from a conviction that human beings are holistic. We are economic, social, physical and spiritual beings. When we compartmentalize these dimensions too sharply, we misunderstand both people and markets.

 

Global Journey

Was there a particular encounter or project that changed your perspective on mission through business?

There are many. One example comes from the Middle East, where a manufacturing company intentionally employed women with disabilities—a group often marginalized twice over, both socially and economically.

One woman, who had little prospect of ever finding work, was treated with dignity, offered meaningful employment, and became part of a healthy workplace community. Her life changed—economically, socially, and personally. Families and the wider community were impacted as well.

She later asked herself why this workplace was so different. Knowing that the founder was a follower of Jesus, she concluded: If this is what following Jesus looks like, I want to follow him too. It was a costly and risky decision in her context.

What drew her was not a religious program, but a job with dignity, professional excellence, ethical leadership, and human resource management shaped by biblical values — underpinned by prayer. Ultimately, it was God’s work, not a mere business strategy. Lives were changed—holistically—through a God-inspired business.

 

What cultural differences most influence how purpose-driven business is practiced in different regions?

Cultural context matters greatly. In some regions, business is viewed with suspicion because of historical or contemporary exploitation. In others, entrepreneurship may be admired, but is disconnected from social responsibility and long term thinking.

Purpose-driven business must always listen carefully to local realities. While expressions differ across nations, cultures and industries, the core principles remain the same. Effective Business as Mission adapts without compromising biblical values. It is about serving people, aligning with God’s purposes, being good stewards of the planet, and making a profit. With a special focus of countries and regions with dire needs.

 

Challenges and Realities of BAM

What is the biggest misconception people have about Business as Mission?

One misconception is that it is about using business to merely push religious beliefs. It is not. Business as Mission is about offering a coherent value proposition that integrates economic excellence with ethical, social, environmental, and spiritual responsibility. It is about seeking the welfare – the shalom, the total wellbeing of people and societies as we do business.

A global study by McKinsey showed clearly that the vast majority of people around the world consider spiritual health as very important. That was regardless of age, gender, socio-economic status, culture and faith. So, we make God a part of our value proposition, not an imposition.

 

What challenges do Christian entrepreneurs face today in maintaining ethics and sustainability in business?

There are both external and internal issues. External, things we face running a business. Short-term pressure related to sales and cash flow can be a great challenge, and a temptation to compromise with values. Entrepreneurs also face complex environments when corruption is normalized.

But there are also internal issues, like support systems to help us manage business decisions, and maneuver in a tough marketplace. It can be a lack of understanding that business is a godly calling, and a God given gift to transform the world. Thus, we need to affirm Christian entrepreneurs in their calling, equip and deploy them to serve God and people in the marketplace.

 

The Future of the BAM Movement

What has the experience of the pandemic and recent global crises taught the BAM ecosystem?

The importance of staying mission true, and plan flexible. We all learned that during the Covid pandemic. So, we need to be clear about the purpose of our business. What is our mission and our timeless core values?

This needs to be translated into continuity planning, which is more than succession planning. Our mission and values need to continuously be imparted into the organization. Staff come and go, management may change, and we may move from a founder CEO to a second-generation company. But will the mission continue, and will the values survive changes?

 

What advice would you give to young professionals who want to integrate purpose and work?

Be intentional. Learn. Ask questions. Read. Watch videos. Find a mentor. Keep learning, and applying. BAM Global has developed pathways for those who want to integrate purpose, work and business.

Connect with others. Don’t journey alone. BAM Global is providing an interactive global ecosystem map where people can connect with others around the globe and in different spheres of the BAM ecosystem.

You can find the BAM Pathways and the BAM Ecosystem Map at businessasmission.com.

 

>> Read full interview here

English, French and Portuguese versions available.


Mats Tunehag is the Chairman of BAM Global, and he is a global thought leader on Business as Mission, BAM. Since the 1990’s he has created numerous networks of leaders from business, church, missions and academia from all continents. He has served as an advisor to groups involved in business, investment, freedom businesses, research and partnership development. He is the chief architect of the ‘Business as Mission Manifesto’ and the ‘Wealth Creation Manifesto’, which is a conceptual framework for the global BAM movement. See: matstunehag.com/about/ for more about Mats.

 

 

 

Photo by BETZY AROSEMENA on Unsplash

 

 

Business for All Seasons: On a Tikkun Olam Mission

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by Mats Tunehag


Mats Tunehag has just published a new free ebook “Business for All Seasons“, this is an excerpt.

 

What does it mean to be a Christian in the marketplace? There is a spectrum from just being a Christian in business and investing, to having a Christian impact through business and investments. The spectrum does not imply a judgmental attitude, but rather provokes a question on how we can learn and grow, and become more God-driven in the marketplace. It is a journey. I can be a Christian in business, just trying to survive and make money. My Christian faith has little to no influence on how I do business or make decisions about investments. Others may try to apply some Biblical values in business practices and avoid investing in unethical companies. Further down the spectrum one may explore how business and investments can have a Christian impact on multiple bottom-lines for multiple stakeholders. And how do we reflect God’s global thrust, to be a blessing and a witness to all peoples and nations, including through our work in business?

At this end of the spectrum, we are doing business and investing with a tikkun olam mission. What is that? Tikkun olam is a Jewish concept of repairing the world, bringing healing to the world, by co-creating with God, also through business and investing.

Tikkun Olam is observing how things are, realizing it is not as it should be. Things are broken, and need repair, people are hurting and need healing. A transformation is desired. Tikkun olam means co-creating with God, and bridging the gap between the world which is, and to a world as it ought to be. A few mundane examples: the kid’s room is messy, and it should be tidied up. A road is full of potholes and needs to be fixed. A smart phone has only 1% battery left, and needs to be recharged. What is versus what it ought to be, and action should be taken by someone.We know from history that businesses can be strong agents of change and transformation. And financial capital is an essential part of that. Peter Drucker says: “Every single social and global issue of our day is a business opportunity in disguise.” But tikkun olam is beyond being a secular or individualistic ‘do-gooder’. It is about co-creating with God, which implies submitting to his will. The Lord’s prayer is a tikkun olam prayer: May your Kingdom come; may your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. On earth—as it is. God’s kingdom—as it ought to be.

Tikkun olam is a Jewish concept of repairing the world, bringing healing to the world, by co-creating with God, also through business and investing.

The American Jesuit theologian Roger Haight writes in ‘Spirituality Seeking Theology’ (2014): “God has entrusted creation to human beings not merely as caretakers of a past condition but as co-creators with God of the future.” Thus, we are not just Christian business people or investors in the marketplace. No, we are on a tikkun olam mission, with our time, talents and treasures, that His Kingdom may be preached, demonstrated and extended as we do business and investing. As God calls and equips us to do business and to invest, we should ask tikkun olam questions. What are some needs and challenges that can be addressed through my business? How can my investments make a difference to social and global issues?

The list can obviously be made long and diverse, and no-one can address all challenges we face locally or globally. But together we can invest and build businesses and eco-systems which can tackle many needs.

God wants people and nations to flourish socially, economically, culturally, spiritually, environmentally, intellectually, et cetera. It is about restoring human dignity, also through business. The antitheses to human dignity and flourishing is poverty, unemployment, wars, lack of clean water, human trafficking, labor exploitation, food insecurity, and no gospel access. That is what often is, but it is not how it ought to be. That is why we do business and investing with a tikkun olam mission. To repair the world, with God and for the common good—for God’s glory.

More about Business for All Seasons

Business for All Seasons is a small book with a large ambition: to help Christians think more clearly and act more courageously in the marketplace. It gathers twenty short chapters* all circling the same conviction: business and investing are not side activities to “real” ministry, but central avenues through which God restores people, and transform communities and nations.

The title nods to A Man for All Seasons, the story of Sir Thomas More, who chose faithfulness to conscience over comfort, reputation, and even his life. In a different arena, men and women in business face their own pressures: to separate faith from work, to chase profit without purpose, or to accept broken systems as inevitable. This book is written for those who want to follow God in boardrooms, shop floors, farms, and investment committees, even when that is costly.

It also echoes Vivaldi’s Four Seasons and the hymn Great Is Thy Faithfulness. Business, like nature, moves through springtimes of vision and start-up energy, summers of growth, autumns of transition and harvest, and winters of pruning, disappointment, or waiting. Yet the seasons are not neatly separated; they overlap and interact. Through them all, God’s faithfulness does not change. “Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest… join with all nature in manifold witness to Thy great faithfulness.” These pages invite you to see your work and investments in that larger, steady light.

You will not find a technical manual on portfolio construction or a step-by-step guide to starting a company. Instead, each chapter offers a theological lens, a story, or a set of questions that can reshape how you view capital, risk, success, and calling. We will look at themes like tikkun olam—repairing a broken world with God; wealth creation as a holy calling; investing for generations rather than quarters; how business can confront human trafficking instead of profiting from exploitation; and why there is no biblical “pyramid” that makes pastors more spiritual than entrepreneurs or investors.

Throughout the book runs the language of four bottom lines. Business as Mission seeks holistic impact—financial, social, environmental, and spiritual—because the Kingdom of God touches every dimension of life. Like the four seasons, these bottom lines are distinct yet inseparable. Sound investments can create dignifying jobs, protect creation, strengthen families, and open space for the good news of Jesus to be both seen and heard.

Whether you are an investor, entrepreneur, pastor, student, or simply someone wondering how your work fits into God’s purposes, my hope is that this book will do three things: affirm that your place in the marketplace truly matters to God; stretch your imagination for what faithful business can do in the world; and encourage you to keep going—through all the seasons—with integrity, courage, and joy.

These are not final answers but invitations into ongoing conversations and practice. My prayer is that as you read and reflect, you will hear God’s call afresh to steward your time, talents, and treasures for the good of people and the glory of God—becoming, in your own sphere, a “business person for all seasons.”

Download pdf here >> Free e-book: Business for All Seasons


Mats Tunehag is the Chairman of BAM Global, and he is a global thought leader on Business as Mission, BAM. Since the 1990’s he has created numerous networks of leaders from business, church, missions and academia from all continents. He has served as an advisor to groups involved in business, investment, freedom businesses, research and partnership development. He is the chief architect of the ‘Business as Mission Manifesto’ and the ‘Wealth Creation Manifesto’, which is a conceptual framework for the global BAM movement. See: matstunehag.com/about/ for more about Mats.

 

 

 

 

 

Transformational SME: Sponsors Spotlight

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A BAM Story: Witness, Generosity and Transformation in Puerto Rico [Video]

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by Merari Peña


Merari Peña shared some of her story at the Fourth Lausanne Congress Workplace Track in September 2024.

 

 

Transcript:

Good afternoon, everyone.

My name is Merari Pena, and I am the founder of Forever Crystals, a business that started on the small island of Puerto Rico in the Caribbean. It’s such an honor to stand before you today and share a bit about my journey.

When I was 23, I had a life-changing encounter with Jesus. This profound experience allowed me to forgive my father, who had left our family when I was just 3 years old. That forgiveness filled me with a new love for my father and a desire to serve him. At that time, what he needed most was financial support to pursue his missionary work in Cuba.

That same year, in 2007, I started a business in my garage with a simple desire—to support my father’s missionary work. Little did I know how much it would grow and how God would use it to touch so many lives and build His Kingdom.

From the beginning, our main goal was to fund missions. But everything changed in 2010 when I had the incredible opportunity to attend the Lausanne Congress in South Africa. There, I learned about the concept of business as mission, and it completely transformed the way I saw our work. This new understanding of the theology of work reshaped everything we did.

One of the biggest changes in our business was understanding our divine design and realizing that we are missionaries in the marketplace. We already had influence, a voice, and the attention of everyday people. The question then became: how are we going to use it? Our business is a fashion jewelry retail store, and we have focused on designs that inspire others and reflect stories and principles of the Bible. Our most popular pieces are a birthstone collection that celebrates the life of each woman and reflects a fruit of the Spirit. The pieces we create tell a story of biblical virtues and the strength of people in the Bible who overcame difficult times. This approach not only beautifies our customers but also spreads the message of hope and faith through creative designs that add sparkle to their everyday lives.

God’s Faithfulness in our Business Journey

God has been our guide and strength through every challenge we’ve faced. During Hurricane Maria, where our island was without electricity and water for months, our first focus was to be the hands of God, providing for our employees by distributing water and first aid kits to those in need. Our business philosophy is grounded in serving others, reflecting Jesus’ love in practical ways. When the pandemic hit, our priority remained the same—to maintain their jobs. We pivoted our business knowledge to create new ventures, ensuring our team had food on the table.

Through it all, we’ve poured into the lives of our employees, making them our first line of ministry. Our business isn’t just about products or profits; it’s about people and purpose. For 17 years, we’ve walked alongside our employees in their personal journeys, providing not just jobs, but a supportive family. We employ over 50 dedicated young women who share our vision and values, and some of them have been with us the entire 17 years we have been in business. We’ve shared life’s highs and lows together—welcoming new babies, facing cancer diagnoses, supporting through life’s losses, and celebrating marriages. We’re a community grounded in Bible principles, always there for one another.

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. – Colossians 3:23-24

What we have gained we have surrendered it to God. We’ve used the influence gained through our business to start a non-profit movement called Oasis Empresarial, uniting local businesswomen to learn biblical principles for healthy, purpose-driven entrepreneurship. Through Oasis, we preach Christ to non-believers, support missionary marketplace endeavors, and minister to entrepreneurial women about Christian values, fostering spiritually and emotionally healthy entrepreneurs.

In closing, I want to leave you with this thought: In business, as in life, our “why” is the most powerful driving force. For us, our “why” has always been to serve God and others, to create a business that is a beacon of hope and love. As it says in Colossians 3:23-24, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”

As workplace Christians, we are God’s provision to the church for Kingdom building. The resources we generate through our daily work have enabled us to go out into the world or send others to do God’s work. We’ve seen firsthand how planting, supporting, and maintaining local churches in Cuba has furthered our resilience in business and the Kingdom of God, and it’s been an incredible blessing to be a part of that journey.

Thank you for allowing me to share our story. May God bless you all in your endeavors and may you find joy and purpose in serving others through what God has placed in your hands.

Thank you.

 

Read a longer story about Forever Crystals published 10 years ago on The BAM Review.

Access more videos, transcripts and study materials from the Lausanne Congress Workplace Track here.



Merari Pena, founder of Forever Crystals, holds a Bachelor’s in Business Administration and studied jewelry design at Alchimia in Florence. With over 25 years of retail experience, she launched her fashion jewelry business in her garage at 23. Forever Crystals has grown into a thriving enterprise with an online shop and stores in the Caribbean. Merari also leads Oasis Empresarial, a non-profit empowering businesswoman with biblical principles. Committed to Servant Leadership, she integrates faith and business to support communities and missionaries, spreading hope and purpose.

 

 

Photo by Forever Crystals

 

 

 

 

AI Answers: What is Business as Mission?

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The BAM Global team is taking a break during early August, so we had AI do some work for us to produce this lighter summer post (or winter post, if you are in the Southern hemisphere!)

Here’s how AI summarized “What is Business as Mission?”:

Business as Mission (BAM) is the integration of business and Christian mission, where businesses are intentionally used to address spiritual, social, environmental, and economic needs, while also pursuing financial sustainability.

It’s a movement where entrepreneurs and business professionals use their skills and resources to create profitable and sustainable businesses that contribute to the holistic transformation of individuals and communities, with a focus on the poor and unreached.

Key aspects of Business as Mission:

Integration of Business and Mission:
BAM businesses are not simply businesses with a “religious” component; rather, the business itself is the mission, intentionally designed to achieve both business and spiritual objectives.

Holistic Transformation:
BAM seeks to address the multifaceted needs of individuals and communities, encompassing spiritual, economic, social, and environmental aspects.

Focus on the Marginalized:
BAM often targets vulnerable populations and those who have not yet heard the Gospel, aiming to bring positive change to their lives.

Sustainability and Profitability:
BAM businesses are designed to be financially viable and sustainable, ensuring long-term impact and reducing dependence on external funding.

Kingdom of God Values:
BAM businesses are guided by Kingdom values, seeking to reflect God’s purposes in their operations and interactions.

Multiple Bottom Lines:
BAM businesses consider not just financial profit, but also social, environmental, and spiritual outcomes as measures of success.

Why is Business as Mission important?

Addressing Global Needs:
BAM offers a unique approach to tackling critical global issues like poverty, human trafficking, and lack of access to the Gospel through business solutions.

Reaching Unreached People:
BAM provides a way to engage with people and communities where traditional missionary work may be restricted or challenging.

Empowering Business Professionals:
BAM recognizes and affirms the potential of business leaders and professionals to be agents of transformation in the world.

Fulfilling the Great Commission:
BAM aligns with the Great Commission of making disciples by integrating evangelism and discipleship into the context of business.

Since AI pulls from existing internet content, we’re encouraged by the accuracy of what it’s finding and regurgitating back at us. It spurs us on to keep producing useful and inspiring original content for AI platforms to draw from.

 

What about you? What would you add to this? Do you think this AI summary could be improved? Email us at info@bamglobal.org with your ideas!

The BAM Global Team

 

 

Photo by Hitesh Choudhary on Unsplash

BAM Explorers: How Three People Got Engaged in Business as Mission [Video]

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by Jo Plummer

 

We need all kinds of gifts and skills in the BAM movement, people from all kinds of background, in all kinds of roles. This is the ‘BAM ecosystem‘, and it is an ecosystem that is broad and diverse—consisting of many individuals, companies, networks, constituencies, and organisations.

Our BAM Pathways resources are designed to help you find your role in BAM: Are you doing BAM? Or, wanting to? Are you already helping others do BAM? Or, wanting to get involved supporting BAM companies and networks? Or, are you simply exploring the idea of BAM? See the BAM Pathways Infographic below for more introduction to all the BAM Pathways.

 

BAM Explorers come from all sorts of backgrounds. In this video, we hear from individuals who got engaged in business as mission from three different backgrounds: student, business, and campus ministry:

 

Introduction to the BAM Explorers Pathway

Explorers are those fairly early on in their BAM journey who are learning more and discovering their next steps to get involved. Those exploring BAM can come from any background, but to cover some of the main ones, we’ve developed toolboxes in the Explorers Pathway for those completely new to BAM, plus those for Students, Business Seekers, and Missionary Seekers :

  • New to BAM – You’re new to the idea of businesses serving Kingdom purposes, or have never heard of BAM.
  • Students – You’re a student interested in BAM or looking to connect your field of study or future professional life with holistic mission.
  • Business Seekers – You’re an entrepreneur or business leader exploring how your business may align with God’s purposes.
  • Missionary Seekers – You’re a missionary exploring the idea that business could be a way to fulfil your ministry goals

These BAM Pathways are not exhaustive, but our hope is that they will provide a handle for people that are exploring the BAM Resource Centre to quickly identify where they might fit into the BAM community and discover the best resources and ideas for them

Ready to discover your path? Get started here.

 

 Jo Plummer is the Creative Director & Co-Founder of BAM Global and the co-editor of the Lausanne Occasional Paper on Business as Mission. She directs BAM Global initiatives such as BAM Global Events, BAM Global Think Tank consultations, and the BGlobal Community. Jo has been developing resources for BAM since 2001 and serves as Editor of the Business as Mission website and The BAM Review Blog. 

 

 

Discover Your BAM Pathway

 

Click to Open PDF & Download

 

Here is a quick introduction to each main Pathway:

Do-ers

Do-ers are the heart and soul of the Business as Mission (BAM) movement. Whether you’re a seasoned owner of a BAM company, part of the business team, or someone preparing to launch a new enterprise, you’re a do-er. Do-ers turn ideas into action, creating a ripple effect of positive change. Explore Do-ers Pathway

Helpers

Helpers are the architects and scaffolding of the BAM ecosystem. Whether you’re a passionate intercessor, a supportive church or mission leader, a dedicated academic, or a seasoned professional, your unique skills build the foundation for success. By connecting, sharing knowledge, and offering guidance, you empower do-ers to make an even greater impact. Discover Helpers Pathway

Explorers

Explorers are those fairly early on in their BAM journey who are learning more and discovering their next steps to get involved. Whether you are a student or young professional, have years of business experience, or years of mission experience, there is a place for you in the business as mission ecosystem. Begin Explorers Pathway

Just want to stay in touch?

Perhaps you are not looking for an active role in the BAM community, but are interested in the concept or are in a related area of work and you just want to stay connected with business as mission? If that’s the case, welcome—we invite you to keep in touch via our social media and by subscribing to BAM Global News and Resources.

 

Photo by Lê Tân on Unsplash

 

 

Leveraging the God-given Power of Business [Video]

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by João Mordomo


João Mordomo introduces the concept of business as mission at the Fourth Lausanne Congress Workplace Track in September 2024.

 

 

Transcript:

Good afternoon to everybody or good morning or good evening depending on what your body clock is telling you. I’m glad to be here with you this afternoon. That’s what my body clock is almost telling me now.

I’m João Mordomo and I’m the [Lausanne] Catalyst for Business as Mission together with my colleague Jo Plummer who’s around here somewhere. And I’ve been asked to talk to you about business as mission.

Dallas Willard once said that, “Business is a primary moving force for the love of God in human history.” Business when it’s done well is glorifying to God and has enormous potential to do good in society.

Business has an innate God-given power to create dignified jobs, to multiply resources, to provide for families and communities, to spur innovation and development, and to solve pressing human problems. In the global marketplace today, we have a huge opportunity to leverage this God-given power of business to address some of the world’s most pressing spiritual and social and economic and environmental issues.

We call this BAM. It’s business as mission.

It’s a movement of business professionals called to use their gifts, their expertise in entrepreneurship and good management to bring creative long-term sustainable solutions to challenges such as the evils of human trafficking or the task of reaching the world’s remaining unreached people groups with the gospel or the problems of societal injustice, environmental degradation, dire poverty, just to name a few.

When we’re thinking about the mission of the church, we need to remember what Michael Oh said on the opening night [of this Congress] that even if we equip every believer in the workplace to be an effective witness for Christ, we still won’t reach the world with the holistic gospel. Because 86% of the world’s Muslims and Buddhists and Hindus, not to mention atheists, do not have access to the gospel—they don’t know a Christian.

And, we still won’t have the solutions to the world’s most pressing problems. Business provides these solutions.

Business as mission is a distinct category different from tent making, different from workplace ministry. Business as mission is the strategic use of authentic business activities that create authentic ministry opportunities that bring spiritual and social and economic and environmental transformation to marginalized people and unreached peoples.

In other words, BAM simultaneously fulfills the great mandate to steward creation well, the great commandment to love God and love our neighbors, and the great commission to make disciples of all nations.

Enter the Lausanne Business as Mission Issue Network. Together with an organization called BAM Global, we exist to invigorate the global BAM movement by building intellectual and social capital for the global BAM ecosystem. We produce global BAM reports. We facilitate global BAM consultations and events. And we nurture regional, activity-based, and industry-based partner networks. There are over 45 networks all around the world and growing.

Business as mission is the strategic use of authentic business activities that create authentic ministry opportunities that bring spiritual and social and economic and environmental transformation to marginalized people and unreached peoples.

We got our start—Joseph mentioned this earlier and I will say something about it—we got our start in the lead up to the 2004 Lausanne Forum that took place in Thailand exactly 20 years ago to this week. Over 70 of us from all around the world worked together for over a year addressing issues related to God’s purposes for work and business and the role of business people in church and missions and the needs of the world and the potential response from business. Most of us came from business backgrounds but there were also people from church and mission. There were educators, theologians, economists, lawyers, researchers. The collaboration process included 60 papers, 25 case studies, several national and regional BAM consultations and email-based discussions culminating in a week of face-to-face dialogue and a whole lot of work. Somebody asked me when I got back, “What was Thailand like?” I said, “I have no idea. I never left the hotel. We worked non-stop for a week.” The result was the groundbreaking 85 page Lausanne Occasional paper on Business as Mission and the accompanying one-page BAM Manifesto.

That Manifesto includes affirmations and recommendations and here are several of them:

  • We believe that God has created all men and women in his image with the ability to create good things for themselves and others and that includes business.
  • We believe in emulating Jesus who constantly met the needs of people he encountered daily, including in their workplaces.
  • We believe that the Holy Spirit empowers all members of the body of Christ to meet the spiritual and physical needs of others, including through business.
  • We believe that God has called and equipped business people and entrepreneurs to cause holistic gospel transformation of individuals and communities and societies and nations and peoples in and through their businesses.
  • We recognize the fact that poverty and unemployment are often rampant in areas where the name of Jesus is rarely or never heard or understood.
  • We recognize that there is a need for job creation and for multiplication of businesses all over the world focused on the four-fold bottom line of spiritual, economic, social, and environmental transformation.
  • We recognize the fact that the church has a huge and largely untapped resource in the Christian business community to bring global glory to God by way of business.

Therefore, number one:

We call upon the church worldwide to identify, affirm, pray for, commission, and release business people and entrepreneurs to exercise their gifts and callings as business people in the world among our peoples to the ends of the earth.

And number two:

We call upon business people globally to receive this affirmation and to prayerfully consider how their gifts and expertise and experience might be used to help create solutions for the world’s most pressing spiritual and physical needs through business as mission.

Is God calling you to join us? Is God calling you to join in this movement of business people and entrepreneurs who are serving God in and through the workplace and intentionally shaping their business for God’s glory, the work of the gospel, and the global common good?

I hope so. And if so, check out lausanne.org, bamglobal.org, and businessmission.com to start the journey with us.

Thank you.

 

Access more videos, transcripts and study materials from the Lausanne Congress Workplace Track here.

 

Dr. João Mordomo loves to help start and lead anything — mission agencies, churches, businesses, networks — that helps fulfill the Great Commission. He is a founding board member and Executive Director of BAM Global, and Catalyst for Business as Mission at the Lausanne Movement. João serves variously as owner, managing director and board member of several BAM companies, and designs and teaches BAM and other courses at several universities.

 

 

Photo by Josh Olalde on Unsplash

 

 

 

 

7 Points of Controversy and Clarity for Business as Mission

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by Larry Sharp

 

According to Mats Tunehag, perhaps the premier worldwide BAM spokesperson, “By God’s grace we have seen an exponential growth of the global business as mission movement in the last 25 years” (The BAM Review, April 2025). It has been my privilege to have been a part of the movement for almost twenty years and it is abundantly clear—God is definitely at work accomplishing His mission in the world through marketplace servants.

However, I continue to be perplexed with one question, “Why is there still so much controversy and lack of understanding in North America (where I am from) surrounding the theology, missiology, and praxis of “business as mission”?

The Meaning of Terms

The phrase combines two familiar yet distinct words: “business” and “mission.”

Business drives the economy, encompassing activities that meet needs or solve problems through value exchange. Christian author Albert Erisman asserts that business is the only institution that creates economic growth and funds all others. Tunehag adds that business should serve people, align with God’s purposes, steward creation well, and make a profit. He emphasizes that business can be a platform for expressing Christ’s love.

“Missions,” as defined in Wikipedia, is “an organized effort for the propagation of the Christian faith,” often involving missionaries seeking conversions. However, contemporary theology emphasizes missio Dei—God’s mission in the world as an extension of His nature and love. This broader view sees God acting to glorify Himself through redeeming people across all nations (I Kings 8:60, I Tim. 1:17). According to the Westminster Catechism, our purpose is to glorify God, and John Piper reminds us, “Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is.” (Let the Nations Be Glad).

Missiology has evolved, now framing mission not merely as an activity of the church but something initiated by God. The Trinity sends the church to embody God’s saving love through both word and deed—more than just conversions or church planting, it includes bringing God’s peace (shalom) into every area of life. Jesus modeled this by connecting evangelism with social needs.

Business as mission (BAM) gained traction in the late 1990s alongside the “Faith and Work” movement. Yet, its roots trace back to the early church. BAM involves believers in the marketplace living with kingdom purpose and impact—transforming individuals and societies spiritually, economically, and socially for God’s glory (Tunehag, 2008).

Controversy and Misunderstanding

Among North American clergy, BAM is often dismissed as a trend or distraction from priorities like church planting. Many pastors and mission leaders show limited interest in understanding how BAM aligns with God’s mission and the church.

Although change theorists advocate a “trickle-down” model—where seminaries adopt new strategies first—experience suggests that BAM is not a curricular priority in most Christian colleges.

Mission agencies have also shown reluctance, with some resisting BAM-related theology. Though a few initiatives do exist, most are micro-enterprise in nature and most leadership prefers traditional approaches.

Meanwhile, Christian professionals often experience a divide between faith and work. Few pastors preach messages that help believers live out their faith in the marketplace.

Despite progress over the past 25 years, misunderstandings persist. For those who dismiss BAM, several key points deserve consideration.

Controversy #1: The Theology of Work

What is the controversy? Until recently, most seminaries and theologians gave little attention to a Theology of Work. The prevailing belief held that spiritually significant work was confined to roles like pastors, missionaries, and Bible teachers. In contrast, the BAM movement challenges this notion, affirming the sacredness of all vocations.

In the past two decades, scholars such as Os Guinness, David Miller, Tom Nelson, Mark Russell, Jeff Van Duzer, and Tim Keller have critiqued historical misconceptions about work. These include the ideas that work is a necessary evil, a path to wealth and power, or a vehicle for self-actualization. Such assumptions limit believers’ ability to view their work as ministry or mission.

The heart of the controversy is summarized in Martin Luther’s reminder that all Christians are primarily called to holiness through Christ. He rejected the idea of a “higher” religious vocation, asserting, “There is no special religious vocation since the call of God comes to each at the common tasks.” This foundational idea supports BAM’s emphasis on the dignity and spiritual value of everyday work.

Gene Veith argues that the priesthood of all believers turns all work—not just church work—into a sacred calling. Similarly, R. Paul Stevens notes that the Hebrew words abad (work) and shamar (care) in Genesis also mean worship and obedience. He emphasizes “vocational holiness,” where the profession itself matters less than faithfulness within it.

Work in the Biblical Narrative

Genesis 1–2 presents God as a worker and humans as His image-bearers, entrusted with the Creation Mandate. Work was declared good (Gen. 1:31) and dignifying. Keller asserts that through work, humans reflect God’s creative nature. Van Duzer states, “When humans engage in creative, meaningful work that grows out of relationships and gives back to the community, they become more deeply human.” (Van Duzer, 2010)

Deuteronomy 8:18 affirms that God gives the ability to produce wealth. This idea is championed by missional entrepreneurs like Bill Job and business leaders such as Bonnie Wurzbacher, former VP at Coca-Cola. Wurzbacher noted that “as the sole source of wealth creation in the world, business enables every other social, civic and even spiritual situation to exist.” For BAM practitioners, business is a tool for glorifying God, cultivating relationships, and contributing to human flourishing.

Work as Worship

Wong and Rae assert that when Christians go to work, they offer themselves to God in service. This “work as worship” theology has emerged strongly in recent years. Work is not a result of the fall; Adam and Eve were given purposeful tasks before sin entered the world (Gen. 1:27–28; 2:15). Scripture affirms work’s divine design over 850 times. A frequently cited verse is Colossians 3:23: “Whatever your task, put yourselves into it, as done for the Lord…”

Mats Tunehag puts it boldly: “If God has called you to be a businessperson, do not stoop to be a preacher.” Likewise, businessman Michael Cardone remarked, “God did not call me to be a minister or a missionary; He called me to be a businessman—and I see no difference.” Michael Greene affirms, “Work is significant to God; our work is just as valuable as that of a pastor or missionary.” Though widely doubted, this conviction is both biblical and foundational to the BAM movement.

Controversy #2: The Role of Money

What is the misunderstanding? Although Scripture makes clear that money itself is not evil (1 Tim. 6:10), many evangelicals view businesspeople with suspicion—assuming they are greedy or useful only for their financial contributions to the church.

Yet Jesus spoke more about money than about heaven or hell. As Wayne Grudem notes, “Money is fundamentally good and provides opportunities for glorifying God, but also many temptations to sin.” Jesus affirmed the importance of money, while warning against trusting it, loving it, or misusing it (Luke 16).

The real issue arises when Christians fail to distinguish between the abuse of money and its rightful, God-honoring use. Jesus’ command to “engage in business until I come” (Luke 19:13) implies responsibility, not exploitation. Faithful Christian businesspeople pursue ethical wealth creation while avoiding greed, poor stewardship, and unrestrained capitalism.

Controversy comes when believers forget that wealth, when rightly stewarded, is a gift from God as Deuteronomy 8:18 affirms.

Controversy #3: The Disruptive Nature of Missio Dei

What is the controversy? “Missions” is often seen as a narrow church activity, budget item, or sermon theme. In contrast, “mission” begins with God—missio Dei—His purpose to glorify Himself by redeeming the world. This broader understanding opens the door for all believers, in any profession, to participate in God’s kingdom work.

When I started using “mission” instead of “missions,” some saw it as semantics. But the terms “mission,” “missions,” and “missionary” are extrabiblical and shaped by personal or cultural biases—mine included. Stetzer describes missio Dei as God-focused: a movement from God to the world, with the church as His instrument. This view invites all believers to join in gospel proclamation and demonstration, while “missions” tends to mean a specific calling to cross-cultural evangelism.

Looking ahead, if missio Dei is our theological foundation, then the future belongs to God’s ongoing work in the world. As some theologians put it, the church does not initiate mission; rather, the mission of God gives birth to the church. Christopher Wright echoes this, calling the people of God the “primary agent of the mission of God.”

God is a sending God. He sent Adam and Eve to fill the earth, Israel to bless the nations, Jesus as Redeemer, and the Holy Spirit to continue the work. Mission flows from the Triune nature of God. The church today exists because of this divine mission and is a continuation of it.

This reframes our thinking. Mission is not what we do for God, but what we do with God, because of who He is. “Missions” implies fragmented church programs; “mission” reflects a unified purpose. As Stephen Neill wrote, “The age of missions ended. The age of mission began.”

So what difference does it make?

In Genesis 1–2, missio Dei begins with imago Dei—we are made in God’s image. Recent theology has emphasized the connection between these concepts. There’s unity between sacred and secular, faith and work.

Every believer bears God’s image and shares in His mission. Not all are “missionaries,” but all are called to live missionally through their work. As J.D. Greear says, “Whatever you are good at: a) do it well for the glory of God; b) do it somewhere strategic for the mission of God.”

Controversy #4: The Sacred–Secular Divide

What is the misunderstanding? Michael Greene defines the sacred–secular divide as the belief that some activities matter deeply to God while others don’t. Business as mission rejects this, affirming that all of life matters to God.

This divide is often more a misunderstanding than a theological debate. Many believers, like a former graduate student of mine, Michelle—a successful business owner—feel sidelined from “real” ministry. She once said, “It never occurred to me that my business was my ministry,” despite her evangelical upbringing. This mindset persists because missions is often seen as the exclusive domain of professionals.

In contrast, BAM practitioners in restricted nations often respond to questions about ministry time by saying, “My work is my ministry.” They understand that the early church spread the gospel through everyday life, without a divide between sacred and secular.

The historical roots of this dualism trace back to Greek philosophy, reinforced by Augustine and others who prioritized “higher” sacred work over “lower” secular work. This separation still influences modern Christians and undermines a holistic life of integrity. It also divorces the Great Commission from the Great Commandment—discipleship from love of neighbor.

It wasn’t until the Reformation that Luther, Calvin and others challenged this divide, promoting the priesthood of all believers. This provided the basis for the biblical unity of mission, vocation, and daily life.

Eldred notes that this dualism marginalizes most Christians from missio Dei, robbing them of joy and purpose in their daily work. A.W. Tozer echoes this: “It is not what a man does that determines whether his work is sacred, it is why he does it.” Dallas Willard similarly writes, “There truly is no division between sacred and secular except what we have created.”

Church roles like apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds, and teachers are vital for equipping the saints (Eph. 4:12). But perhaps, like in Acts 8, the model for the 21st century church is ordinary believers living out their trades while preaching Jesus. As Paul reminds us: “Whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31).

Controversy #5 – The Kingdom of God

What is the controversy? The Kingdom of God (or Kingdom of Heaven) is central to Jesus’ teaching in the Gospels. While interpretations have varied, many evangelical scholars now affirm the Kingdom is both “already here” and “not yet.”

In the 20th century, much of the church emphasized the “not yet” aspect, focusing on salvation from hell and avoiding social issues, which were seen as liberal. When I studied theology in the 1960s, the Kingdom of God was taught strictly as eternal. But by century’s end, voices like John Stott, R. Paul Stevens, Os Guinness, Dale Losch, and Tim Keller re-emphasized its relevance to daily life—highlighting the Kingdom as present and active today.

Acknowledging the present dimension of the Kingdom prompts the question: what does it look like now? Luke 17:21 says the Kingdom is within Jesus’ disciples, and Matthew 10:7 says it is “at hand.” Heidebrecht argues this view integrates social action into the gospel, alongside proclamation—reflecting Jesus’ concern for holistic human welfare. Thus, the gospel addresses both present needs and eternal hope.

Paul Hiebert similarly taught that mission includes preaching, teaching (Matthew 28:19), and addressing injustice, poverty, and suffering. Raynor, in The Sacredness of Secular Work (2024), and Nancy Pearcey stress that salvation is not only from sin but for purpose—partnering with God to reflect heaven on earth. Raynor writes, “the good news… is not just that I get to go to heaven… but that I get to partner with God in revealing heaven on earth until I die.” This reflects God’s reign of goodness and shalom in the world.

Controversy #6: The Whole Gospel

What is the controversy? The Lausanne Congress of 1974, heavily influenced by John Stott, affirmed a holistic gospel that addressed not only spiritual needs but also the social and physical conditions of people. This challenged the dominant 20th-century missions model, which often focused narrowly on spiritual salvation. Business as mission embraces this “whole man” perspective by addressing both joblessness and spiritual poverty.

Chris Wright summarizes the holistic gospel as requiring “the whole church to take the whole gospel to the whole world.” The redemptive work of Christ completes—not negates—God’s commitment to human wholeness and creation care. The gospel addresses the spiritually lost and the socially and economically marginalized, recognizing that people are whole beings.

BAM integrates the theology of work (Creation Mandate), the Great Commandment, and the Great Commission. Jesus taught that we are to love God fully and our neighbors as ourselves (Luke 10:27; Matt. 22:37–39). Kingdom businesspeople understand this means using their God-given capacity to create wealth, employment (jobs), dignity, relationships, and beauty. They are moved by the global realities of poverty and unemployment and inspired by Martin Luther’s conviction that the gospel must engage the issues of the day.

BAM workers see themselves as stewards of both natural and human resources—“vice-regents” over God’s creation (Stevens, 2012). Their work serves others and reflects God’s care.

John Stott put it simply: “We love. We go. We serve.” Loving our neighbor means caring for the whole person—soul, body, and community. Social responsibility flows from love, not as a strategy for gospel credibility but as an expression of compassion.

The Great Commission emphasizes making disciples and teaching all that Jesus commanded (Matt. 28:18–20; Acts 1:8). For Stott, this includes both evangelistic and social responsibility, since Jesus taught and served. His ministry was holistic—feeding the hungry, healing the sick, and comforting the grieving.

Discipleship, as Losch points out, often begins before conversion (John 6:66). Pre-faith followers may be drawn to Christ through acts of love and service. The marketplace, where life and work intersect, is a powerful setting for this kind of pre-cross discipleship and holistic mission.

While we are not divine like Jesus, our mission reflects His—to bring good news and serve. A biblical understanding of mission integrates creation care, love of neighbor, and disciple-making. Business, done faithfully, can demonstrate the gospel in action.

Controversy #7: How Christianity Spread

What is the misunderstanding? Many Christians in the 20th century were taught that the Apostle Paul was the primary model of mission. While Paul and the apostles played a vital role, historical and biblical evidence suggests the gospel mainly spread through everyday believers in the marketplace.

Tim Keller notes that evangelism in the early church often happened in the oikos—households—through friendships. Michael Green supports this in Evangelism in the Early Church, describing early Christian growth as driven by informal missionaries—ordinary believers sharing Christ in daily life settings like shops and homes.

Acts 8 confirms this: after Stephen’s death, “all except the apostles were scattered” (v.1), and they “preached the word wherever they went.” Despite lacking formal training, support, or Scripture, lay believers advanced the gospel significantly. The apostles stayed central, underscoring the continued need for pastors and theologians—but the frontlines were in homes and workplaces.

Acts 11 shows that these scattered believers reached Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, where “a great number… turned to the Lord” (v.21). Billy Graham once said, “One of the next great moves of God is going to be through believers in the workplace.” Perhaps the 21st century will resemble the 1st more than the 20th.

Conclusion

Ecclesiastes reminds us, “There is nothing better… than to enjoy [our] work” (3:22), and to “do it with all [our] might” (9:10). A faithful Jesus follower today should see people as whole beings—spiritual, social, and physical—and follow Christ’s example of holistic ministry. Jesus healed, fed, taught, and loved not just for a future kingdom, but for transformation now.

Business as mission (BAM) reflects this, emphasizing creation care, meeting human needs, job creation, and disciple-making. BAM invites everyday believers into missio Dei, affirming that our work itself is a sacred expression of worship and calling.

We aren’t called to be professional missionaries with programs and systems. We’re called to be witnesses. As Roberts says, “Start with Christology… if you focus on mission, churches will follow. But if you focus on churches, mission often gets lost.”

We don’t go to proselytize or plant “Christianity”; we go to live and love like Jesus in our work and relationships. If we bless others in His name, the gospel is planted and the Church will follow. Each believer should do what they’re good at, with excellence, in strategic places for God’s mission—planting the whole gospel wherever they go.

 

This article was first published on Missio Nexus and is reposted here by kind permission of the author and original editor.

Larry Sharp is the Founder and current BAM Support Specialist of a Business for Transformation (BAM, B4t) consulting firm, International Business and Education Consultants (www.ibecventures.com). Larry served 21 years in Brazil and then 20 years as Crossworld VP of Operations and as Vice President of Business Partnerships. He is currently a VP Emeritus and consultant with Crossworld. Since 2007 he has devoted energies toward Business as Mission (BAM) and currently is a consultant on BAM and education themes. Larry travels within North America speaking and teaching in conferences, colleges and churches on themes related to Business As Mission (BAM, B4t) and missions.  His travels abroad relate to BAM, crisis preparation and management, and team building. 

 

 

Get Larry’s Book: Missions Disrupted

Available at all good book stores online!

 

 


Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash

 

Business is a Gift from God to Transform the World [Video]

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by Mats Tunehag


Mats Tunehag teaches on what the Bible says about Wealth Creation and Business at the Fourth Lausanne Congress Workplace Track in September 2024.

 

 

Transcript:

I grew up in Sweden, the land of the Vikings. We used to do tough business and we drank out of the skulls of our enemies. Now we sell furniture in flat boxes, through IKEA, and you’re welcome! But that is a proof that people, businesses, and nations can be transformed. And that’s what we’re going to talk about now.

Business—that is a gift from God to transform the world. So I have a question for you. In our lifetime, in our generation, has global poverty increased, stayed the same, or decreased? What do you think?

It has decreased dramatically, from three out of 10 to one out of 10 in the world in a few decades. The biggest lift in the history of mankind out of poverty has happened in our generation, not through aid but through trade. Today this is good news, most people on the planet are better off in terms of longevity health, housing, and food than a generation ago and the essential contributing factor to this transformation is business.

Businesses have an enormous capacity to create different kinds of wealth. The Lausanne and BAM Global Wealth Creation Manifesto says, “Wealth creation through business has proven power to lift people and nations out of poverty.”

But what is wealth what do we mean by wealth?

There are different kinds of wealth. You can be financially rich and wealthy, but socially poor, you have no friends. You can be financially poor but spiritually rich because you know Jesus.

The Bible talks about wealth in three ways, one bad two good. The bad one is hoarding—more for me, myself, and more. The second one, which is good, is the sharing of wealth. To be generous, to give, that is commended in the Bible. But, there is never, ever any wealth of any kind to be shared unless it has been created. Wealth creation (the third one) is both a godly gift and a godly command.

When the people of Israel were about to enter into the promised land, God gave them instructions and it told them get engaged in business (see Deut 8). Two industries are mentioned, agricultural and mining, and [the scripture] says when you get involved in those kinds of businesses, different kinds of wealth will be created—but do not become proud or selfish because, He said, “I am the God who gives you the ability to create wealth.” (Deut 8:18)

And God is the ultimate owner of everything and we are to create and share different kinds of wealth through business to bless all peoples and nations. This is not a “health and wealth gospel”, this is not prosperity teaching, this is about stewardship of talents and resources. And, as the Bible says, to seek the welfare—the shalom, the wholeness, the flourishing—of the city (Jer 29:7). This is about provision and witness.

And this is not a capitalist idea, this is not a Lausanne thing, this has deep Judeo-Christian roots and is part of an ongoing tradition.

Worship is not sanctified entertainment. Work is worship! Avoda—the Hebrew word and the Jewish concept means “work is worship” as we serve God and people; life is an integrated whole to work, worship, and serve. Avoda!

In Judaism, our roots, the highest form of charity is not handouts but creating jobs. There’s another Jewish concept called tikkun olam, which means to co-create with God, to bridge the gap from what is to what it should be—from unemployment to employment, from misery to flourishing.

Tikkun olam means to repair a broken world, bring healing, and the Lord’s prayer is a tikkun olam prayer. May your kingdom come, may your will be done on earth as it is in heaven—it is a God invasion of the marketplace towards human flourishing. Tikkun olam!

This is theology, anthropology, and vocation. It is about who God is, the Creator, it is about who we are, created in his image to be creative, create good products and services. And our calling to preach, demonstrate, and extend the kingdom of God as we do business and we influence all spheres of society, among all peoples.

The Wealth Creation Manifesto again, quote, “We are created in God’s image to co-create with him and for him to create products and services for the common good. Wealth creation is a holy calling and a God-given gift which is commanded in the Bible.”

Our views on wealth, wealth creation, and wealth creators are important and they make a difference. This is not a theoretical discussion, this is not just a theological exercise, it has real life implications and consequences.

Compare the health and the wealth of nations like South and North Korea, same culture same language same geography; or West Germany and East Germany. We have witnessed how Zimbabwe went from being the “bread basket of southern Africa to become a basket case” [see here, for example]. Or the oil-rich Venezuela is another tragic example of how disregard for basic wealth creation principles has destroyed a country.

Wealth creation is about flipping the script. We are not asking how can we fight poverty, no! We are rather asking how can we create different kinds of wealth—financial, social, cultural, intellectual, and spiritual—as we do business. Because business is the way that wealth is being created and that’s by God’s design.

So why should we do wealth creation? Why?

God wants it. The world needs it. And we are called to it!

And we are not the first ones to pick up this calling. God called and equipped John Cadbury to just that thing 200 years ago when he started the chocolate factory in Birmingham, England which had a holistic impact on many stakeholders for several generations. Chocolate for Jesus!

Also 200 years ago God called and equipped Hans Nielsen Hauge in Norway. He was instrumental in creating both a church revival movement and an entrepreneurship movement and that transformed the nation of Norway and his legacy is still alive to this day.

So through business, God calls us and equips us to find business solutions to human trafficking, business solutions to growing youth unemployment, business solutions to environmental challenges, business solutions to be able to serve unreached peoples. But, we are never to impose Jesus but rather propose him. Faith is not an imposition, it is a proposition and so is wealth creation through business.

Jesus should be an integral part of our value proposition, alongside our products and services—and the market actually is asking for spiritual health. A global survey done by McKinsey shows clearly that the vast majority of all people around the globe—regardless of faith, culture, ethnicity, age, and socioeconomic status—they consider spiritual health as important as physical mental and social health, the market wants it. That’s why we are, and we should be, engaged in wealth creation.

We believe that businesses can and should address a variety of human needs, with a special concern for the least the lost, and the lowliest.

And this is not about techniques, at the end of the day it is about love. Creating wealth, doing business as mission, honoring God, and seeking the common good is about love. Business as mission (BAM) is about being a channel, a conduit, of God’s love to the world.

As St Augustine says, “What does love look like? It has the hands to help others. It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy. It has eyes to see misery and want. It has the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of men. That is what love looks like.”

So remember Christianity is not a self-help program, Christ is for the world! So growing businesses that’s not for our glory, it’s for the glory of God and that can change the world.

St Irenaeus, the great second century theologian, expressed the essence of Christianity as, “The glory of God is a human being fully alive.”

Human flourishing requires wealth creation of all types and wealth creation requires business.

May God bless you!

 

Access more videos, transcripts and study materials from the Lausanne Congress Workplace Track here.



Mats Tunehag is the Chairman of BAM Global, and he is a global thought leader on Business as Mission, BAM. Since the 1990’s he has created numerous networks of leaders from business, church, missions and academia from all continents. He has served as an advisor to groups involved in business, investment, freedom businesses, research and partnership development. He is the chief architect of the ‘Business as Mission Manifesto’ and the ‘Wealth Creation Manifesto’, which is a conceptual framework for the global BAM movement. See: matstunehag.com/about/ for more about Mats.

 

 

Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

 

 

 

Get Involved in Doing Business as Mission: BAM Pathways

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by Jo Plummer

 

There are many different ways to get involved in business as mission and the BAM movement needs many types of people, skills, experiences and passions. If you are interested in engaging with BAM, there is a path and role for you!

This article is based on an earlier post on the idea of different routes into business as mission and has been updated to coincide with the launch of the new ‘BAM Pathways‘ initiative. Read about it here.

Some of you reading this are still in early stages of BAM exploration, or maybe you are intrigued by the idea of business as mission and simply want to learn more. Or perhaps you are someone in a related area of work and just want to stay in touch and see how what is happening in the BAM community connects with you. If that is you, we’d love to stay in touch! Please see ways to keep connected with us in the footer below.

 

Actively Engaging in BAM?

Others of you will be look for more active engagement! Perhaps you are looking for tangible ways to get involved in BAM? Or perhaps you are already engaged and are looking for more resources pertinent to you? If so, this post is for you.

Two broad pathways for engagement in BAM are:
1) Doing – getting involved by doing business as mission yourself, in a BAM company context, or
2) Helping – enabling, resourcing or connecting others to do BAM — through activities such as mentoring, investing, praying, building networks, incubating, training, mobilising, and so on!

If option 2 is you, look out for the new ‘Helpers‘ segment of the BAM Pathways initiative coming next month, and meanwhile read this mini blog series on the topic.

Get Involved Doing BAM

If you are interested in option 1, getting involved in doing business as mission yourself, chances are you are thinking about one of the following options:

A: Starting up a BAM company
B: Joining a BAM company that someone else has started
C: Repurposing an existing company to integrate BAM principles into it

 

There is no right or wrong way to get involved in BAM, but here are some helpful ideas and a roundup of resources for whichever option you are exploring…

 


A: Starting Up a BAM Company

Business Planning Blogs

If you are in the business planning and start-up stage, then we have loads of free resources on The BAM Review Blog for you, whether you already have an idea and are testing it, or are trying to identify a product-market fit. Start with Business Planning for BAM Part 1: Overview & Getting Started, then read through blogs on Business Planning for BAM Part 2: Product and Market and Business Planning for BAM Part 3: Financial Planning. You might find blogs on Launching and Landing and Integration are also good for foundation building. More Blog Topics here.

 

Praxis Course

Praxis offer a free course that will help you develop your mindset as a BAM starter. As they describe it, ‘Through a free six-session video and discussion series, the Praxis Course aims to help innovative leaders and builders to develop an imagination for what we call “Redemptive Entrepreneurship,” which means to leverage personal and organizational power for the sake of others, and to create products, services, and organizations that join God in the renewal of all things.’ Watch the Redemptive Frame intro video and find out more here.

 

Lean Canvas Frameworks

Lean Startup concepts have taken the business world by storm over the past decade and more. Kingdom-minded business incubators and BAM trainers have taken these concepts and adapted ‘Lean Canvas’ frameworks  specifically for missional business models. You can find resources at BAM Connect Business as Mission Model Canvas, ThirdPath Lean Canvas Course, and CO.STARTERS. For more in-depth training see the School of Business and Entrepreneurship and other training resources here.

 

Triventure Process

If you are looking for a bit more support to launch your BAM company, then Triventure has the resources for you. Triventure describes itself as ‘the Business as Mission Launchpad’ and offers a comprehensive package of Courses (by ThirdPath Initiative), Coaching, and Capital to help you get your BAM company off the ground. Discover more here.

 

B: Joining a BAM Company

Launching into BAM Blogs

If you are going to help build a BAM company that someone else has started, then we have tons of blog content for you too. Get a strong BAM foundations with some of the resources above, plus BAM 101 blogs and articles on the Integration of Business and Mission. Our Launching and Landing series covers topics on successfully deploying into business as mission. More Blog Topics here.

 

Explore BAM Stories

We recommend reading a variety of BAM stories to get an idea of what kind of BAM company you’d like to join. You’ll find recommended Blogs and Books containing stories on our Stories page. The BAM Stories Podcast is another great source, and do come along to a BAM Global Event where BAM case studies are shared every year and connections to BAM companies will be made!

 

Sending Organisations with a Business Focus

If you are looking to be equipped and sent out to join a BAM company, then training and deployment with a mission sending agency or ‘tentmaking’ training entity might be for you. Check out Antioch Partners, Interserve, World Venture, Navigators, Tent International, FaithTech and many more—see the ‘Recruiting & Mobilising’ section of the BAM Ecosystem Map. Most mission agencies have a BAM strategy integrated in some way, so find an organisation that resonates with you or works in the region you want to go to and enquire about their business initiatives.

 

Discover Internships & Jobs

If you are starting out in your career then we really recommend getting an internship or two under your belt. Any kind of experience is good, but learning about general business disciplines in a small to medium sized company context can be particularly useful. Ready to search for a BAM job or internship? Check out the Jobs boards at: Transformational SME and the BGlobal Community, the Apprenticeship program at OPEN Network, and the ‘Head Hunting & Jobs Board’ section of the BAM Ecosystem Map

 

C: Integrating BAM Principles into an Existing Company

 

Integrating Faith & Business Foundations

If you’re looking to integrate business as mission into your company, but don’t know where to get started, we highly recommend reading Business for the Glory of God, a short book that sets out a biblical way of thinking about business. Other great resources to help you integrate faith and business and find your tribe, include: Faith Driven Entrepreneur, Theology of Work Project, Faith & Co., Institute for Faith, Work & Economics, LICC, and the Biblical Business Resource Center.

 

Integration Blogs

And yes, we have a whole series of Blogs for that too! Read foundational topics like BAM 101 and Biblical Foundations for BAM. Explore ideas and practical tips for integrating BAM into business with articles on Integrating Business and Mission. More Blog Topics here.

 

Wealth Creation Manifesto & Global Classroom

BAM Global and Lausanne partnered to produce a series of video resources and papers on the critical need for wealth creators, i.e. business people, to partner with God in mission. Watch the Video series here, read the Wealth Creation Manifesto here, and download the Report series here.

 

Rēp – Repurposing Business Training

Rēp specialises in training and resources to equip business leaders for marketplace impact. Rēp’s goal is introduced as follows, ‘God has long used work and business as vehicles for his plans on earth. In centuries past a fictitious divide between work & worship, business & ministry crept into our thinking. Our goal is not to get God into business, but to get businesses into God’s business.’ Check out their training courses here, including a free foundation course for ‘repurposing your business’.

Foundation Resources for Everyone

Whatever your approach or path, here are a few resources that will help everyone get a good foundation in BAM:

 

BAM Manifesto

The BAM Manifesto is our foundational document to frame business as mission; it shares in one page what BAM is all about. Read it here.

 

Start Here Page

Our Start page on this very website is designed to give you a brief introduction to business as mission and is ground zero for the BAM Pathways. Go there now.

 

BAM A-Z Booklet

If you would like to learn your BAM ABCs, look no further than the BAM A-Z booklet that communicates the concepts of BAM with graphics, single words and short texts. Using the 26 letters of the English alphabet, Mats Tunehag has identified 26 key words and concepts related to BAM. They are accompanied by a brief explanation and a graphic. Download your copy here. Watch the BAM Global leadership team share about each letter in 1-2 minute videos here.

 

BAM Global Movement Book

Get an introduction to BAM with one book purchase, this introductory book on business as mission by Gea Gort & Mats Tunehag is for you. It interweaves foundation-laying chapters on the concept of BAM with case study chapters, sharing the stories of real companies. Find out more.

 

Introduction to BAM Courses

Looking for a bit more BAM to study? Two of our partners offer great introduction to BAM courses:

ThirdPath Initiative offer a free 7 part course that will start you on your BAM path – check it out here!

YWAM Colorado Springs offer a more intensive 10 part Introduction to BAM Seminar that can be taken online or in-person in a cohort – discover more here.

 

There are many more ideas on the BAM Ecosystem Map and you can discover more great BAM resources right here at the Business as Mission Resource Centre, in the Business as Mission Resource Library and The BAM Review Blog.

God has equipped each of us with various skill sets and backgrounds, leading each of us on unique paths. No matter how you’ve been equipped, what role you have in business as mission, or where you are on your journey, we hope you will find the resources on this website useful and encouraging.

Check out the new resources for ‘Do-ers’ on the BAM Pathways here.

 Jo Plummer is the Creative Director & Co-Founder of BAM Global and the co-editor of the Lausanne Occasional Paper on Business as Mission. She directs BAM Global initiatives such as BAM Global Events, BAM Global Think Tank consultations, and the BGlobal Community. Jo has been developing resources for BAM since 2001 and serves as Editor of the Business as Mission website and The BAM Review Blog. 

 

 

Photo by Javier Allegue Barros on Unsplash

 

 

What’s Your Role in BAM? Introducing the BAM Pathways

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by Jo Plummer

 

We need all kinds of gifts and skills in the BAM movement, people from all kinds of background, in all kinds of roles. Indeed, it is quite likely that whatever God has called you to, and whatever he’s given you a passion for, there is a need for it in the business as mission community!

We think of this as the ‘BAM ecosystem’, and it is an ecosystem that is broad and diverse—consisting of many individuals, companies, networks, constituencies, and organisations.

Having been working to build this ecosystem over more than two decades, we at BAM Global have observed that most people fall into one of three main categories: Do-ers, Helpers, and Explorers. We are calling these the ‘BAM Pathways‘ and each pathway includes particular roles. Here is a helpful overview of each one:

 

Click to Open PDF & Download

 

These BAM Pathways are not exhaustive, but our hope is that they will provide a handle for people that are exploring the BAM Resource Centre to quickly identify where they might fit into the BAM community and discover the best resources and ideas for them.

We’ll be launching new toolboxes for each role in the coming months, as follows:

 

Here is a quick introduction to each main Pathway:

Do-ers

Do-ers are the heart and soul of the Business as Mission (BAM) movement. Whether you’re a seasoned owner of a BAM company, part of the business team, or someone preparing to launch a new enterprise, you’re a do-er. Do-ers turn ideas into action, creating a ripple effect of positive change. Explore Do-ers Pathway

Helpers

Helpers are the architects and scaffolding of the BAM ecosystem. Whether you’re a passionate intercessor, a supportive church or mission leader, a dedicated academic, or a seasoned professional, your unique skills build the foundation for success. By connecting, sharing knowledge, and offering guidance, you empower do-ers to make an even greater impact. Discover Helpers Pathway

Explorers

Explorers are those fairly early on in their BAM journey who are learning more and discovering their next steps to get involved. Whether you are a student or young professional, have years of business experience, or years of mission experience, there is a place for you in the business as mission ecosystem. Begin Explorers Pathway

Just want to stay in touch?

Perhaps you are not looking for an active role in the BAM community, but are interested in the concept or are in a related area of work and you just want to stay connected with business as mission? If that’s the case, welcome—we invite you to keep in touch via our social media and by subscribing to BAM Global News and Resources.

 

Ready to discover your path? More BAM Pathways toolboxes will be available soon! Get started here.

 

 Jo Plummer is the Creative Director & Co-Founder of BAM Global and the co-editor of the Lausanne Occasional Paper on Business as Mission. She directs BAM Global initiatives such as BAM Global Events, BAM Global Think Tank consultations, and the BGlobal Community. Jo has been developing resources for BAM since 2001 and serves as Editor of the Business as Mission website and The BAM Review Blog. 

 

With many thanks to Shay and Alana, BAM Global Communications, for visual design for the BAM Pathways.

 

Photo by Craig Melville on Unsplash

 

God is at Work: How the BAM Movement Has Grown Over 25 Years

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by Mats Tunehag


By God’s grace we have seen an exponential growth of the global business as mission movement in the last 25 years. A movement, per definition, consists of many organizations and initiatives, which are independent but choose to be interdependent. They share mission and values, and they communicate and collaborate.

The nature of a movement means that no-one but God has the exact figures of the growth, but BAM Global has been tracking the direction of growth over the years. The trends are clear, and even the approximate numbers are astonishing.

Please allow us to paint a picture of this encouraging growth—looking at ten variables—and how they have changed in the last 25 years:

1. 25 years ago, we talked about BAM businesses in the dozens, often micro to small size businesses. Today there are thousands, mainly in the SME sector, but also large companies.

2. 25 years ago, churches and denominations had not embraced BAM. Today there are all kinds of churches and whole denominations like in Korea, Indonesia, Singapore, Brazil, USA, Russia, and many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, which are engaged in BAM.

3. 25 years ago, a handful of mission organizations had started to include BAM in their strategies. Today most of the oldest and major Evangelical mission agencies in the world are involved in BAM.

4. 25 years ago, BAM was not a topic in academic institutions. Today many universities and MBA programs teach BAM, and there are dozens of PhD’s and a lot more Master theses on BAM from all over the world.

5. 25 years ago, we talked about investments in BAM companies in thousands of dollars, today in millions of dollars.

6. 25 years ago, there were no BAM incubators or accelerators, but today they exist in about 20 countries.

7. 25 years ago, there were no BAM networks. Today there are 30+ BAM networks—national, regional and international. Most are related to a country or a region, and others are focusing on an issue, industry or constituency.

8. 25 years ago, the conversations about BAM were in English. Today there is BAM material, conversations and work in over 20 languages.

9. 25 years ago, BAM was not a part of the Lausanne Movement, but it was introduced 2002, which was the start of the first global think tank on business as mission culminating at the Lausanne Forum in Thailand in 2004 and the Lausanne Occasional Paper on BAM. Since then, around 40 global consultations on business as mission topics have been convened, resulting in over 30 white papers on BAM. At the Fourth Lausanne Congress in Korea, September 2024, where 5000 people from about 200 countries participated, around half the attendees had indicated on the registration form that they were interested in faith at work, including business as mission.

10. 25 years ago, we approximate that there were about a dozen BAM resources. Today there are almost 1000 BAM Resource Library entries and Blogs here on the BAM Resource Centre at businessasmission.com alone—articles, papers, videos, books, organizations, and more.

God is good, and he is at work. There is a significant kairos moment in our generation, manifesting itself on all continents. We are in anticipation for what He will continue to do in the next generation.

AMDG—Ad Maoirem Dei Gloriam—for the greater glory of God!

 

Mats Tunehag is the Chairman of BAM Global, and he is a global thought leader on Business as Mission, BAM. Since the 1990’s he has created numerous networks of leaders from business, church, missions and academia from all continents. He has served as an advisor to groups involved in business, investment, freedom businesses, research and partnership development. He is the chief architect of the ‘Business as Mission Manifesto’ and the ‘Wealth Creation Manifesto’, which is a conceptual framework for the global BAM movement. See: matstunehag.com/about/ for more about Mats.

Together, Towards, Tomorrow
Building from Generation to Generation

That’s the theme of the BAM Global Summit this year. Join us and discover what God is doing through business as mission.

 

Discover More About the Summit & Register

 


 

Photo by Imagine Buddy on Unsplash

 

 

The Unique Ability of Business to Create Value and Speak Hope to Nations [Video]

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by Hakan

 

To continue our series on business as mission through the lens of the Bible and God’s mandates to us, here is a keynote address from the BAM Global Congress 2021.

 

 

This month we are looking at business as mission through the lens of the Bible and God’s mandates to us.

Read introduction post here.  All posts this month.


Keynote Video Transcript

Thank you for the introduction. Many of us have eagerly been waiting for this [BAM Global] Congress for many years now.

We are gathering because we are excited to take part in what God is doing. You know, we can’t bring Him anywhere! He’s already there waiting for us to join him in all spheres of society and among all people—to the peripherals, to the marginalized and the forcibly displaced and to the worlds of media, government, economy, family, academia, religion, and the artists, He’s already there.

Most of our role models in the Bible have a secular profession. It’s easy to become preoccupied with the kings and prophets and priests and apostles when we’re reading from the Bible. But if we allow ourselves to see it from a different perspective, we find that many of our real role models were actually professionals. Isaac developed real estate. Jacob was a rancher. Joseph, a government official in charge of agriculture, economy, and immigration policy. He served a Pharaoh in a foreign land and he did not choose to leave his well-paid job to start a charity work in order to be able to serve God. Read more

Why Business is the Biblically Prescribed Solution to Poverty

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by Mark Ingram

 

The Bible, often regarded simply as a spiritual guide, also provides comprehensive instructions on economic practices and wealth creation, positioning business as a key tool in solving poverty. This approach, rooted in the Old Testament and reaffirmed by Jesus in the New Testament, suggests that business, when conducted according to biblical principles, is not just a means to personal wealth but a divine strategy for human flourishing and poverty eradication. This aligns closely with business as mission (BAM), which integrates excellent business practices with intentional mission, aiming to glorify God, spread the gospel, and promote the common good.

Understanding Biblical Poverty

The Bible’s concept of poverty primarily refers to material lack—those without basic necessities such as food, clothing, and shelter. This definition aligns closely with modern understandings of extreme poverty, such as the World Bank’s threshold of living on less than $1.90 a day. In the Scriptures, poverty is depicted as a state of vulnerability, where the poor are exposed to oppression and exploitation due to their lack of resources and connections (Deuteronomy 15:7; Psalm 109:16). Therefore, addressing poverty involves more than charity; it requires empowering individuals to generate and sustain wealth.

Wealth Creation as a Divine Mandate

From the beginning, wealth creation is depicted in the Bible as a divine mandate. In Genesis, God commands humanity to “fill the earth and govern it,” entrusting humans with the responsibility to manage and cultivate the resources of the world (Genesis 1:28). This stewardship involves productive work and creative enterprise, which are essential to generating wealth and ensuring human flourishing. The Israelites’ journey from slavery in Egypt to prosperity in the Promised Land illustrates this principle. God promised to bless them with wealth, not for individual indulgence but to build a flourishing community that glorifies Him (Deuteronomy 8:18). Read more

The World is Open for Business and the Bible is Too!

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by Jo Plummer

 

Business is a powerful response to mandates that God gives His people in the Bible.

God calls His people to join His ‘missio dei’—His mission to the world—to respond to the pressing spiritual, physical, economic and social needs of people and communities. We can do that effectively through business.

When we intentionally respond to God’s missional mandates through business, this is ‘business as mission’! We emphasise that business as mission (BAM) is a response to three particular biblical mandates:

The Culture Mandate – the power of business to ‘tend the garden’ and ‘steward creation’ (Genesis 1 and 2)

The Great Commandment – the power of business to ‘love God’ and ‘love our neighbour’ (Matthew 22)

The Great Commission – the power of business to ‘make disciples’ and ‘proclaim the gospel in all the world’ (Mark 16, Matthew 28, Luke 24, Acts 1:8)

These are the foundational mandates for BAM, although there are many other commands and precepts we can apply in the context of business. For example, we are called to be justice-bringers, light-bearers, peacemakers, honest-dealers, servant leaders, enemy-lovers, mercy-showers—and many more. All of these can be lived out in the context of business, as Jesus-followers in the marketplace.

However, the three mandates above give us a clear framework to build BAM on solid biblical foundations.

Tending the Garden: The Cultural Mandate

In the creation story in Genesis, God gives humans the task to steward the world’s resources and care for creation. We often call this the cultural mandate or creation mandate. Business is a powerful way to ‘tend the garden’ in this way because it takes natural resources, along with creativity and work, and combines them to multiply resources and drive innovation. Business is a God-ordained institution, with a God-given role in society, that stretches right back to Genesis. By God’s design, business should bring dignity to people and flourishing to communities.

Deuteronomy 8 confirms that it is God who gives us the ability to produce wealth. God told his people that the manna would stop as they entered the promised land because he had provided abundant natural resources. God can provide supernaturally for us in extraordinary circumstances, but the God-given way His provision comes in most ordinary circumstances is through work and business. So in Deuteronomy 8, God told His people to take those abundant resources and start agricultural and mining businesses (v 8-9). We see that business, done well—and not forgetting the Lord our God (v 11)—is glorifying to Him.

If the natural role of business in God’s design for humankind is to create livelihoods, multiply wealth and resources, drive creativity and innovation, and sustainably provide for families, communities and nations, then we can already clearly see the potential of business for God’s kingdom work on earth. Businesswomen and men may then intentionally harness this power of business and focus it to sustainably address some of the world’s most pressing problems: lack of gospel access, environmental crises, joblessness, poverty, slavery, sanitation problems, food security, and so on. When we intentionally weave in such missional responses into our company strategy, we are doing business as mission. We are leveraging the innate power of business to respond to two further interwoven mandates: the great commandment and the great commission.

Loving Our Neighbour: The Great Commandment

Jesus said, love God and love your neighbour. Dallas Willard once said that ‘Business is a primary moving force of the love of God in human history.’

Bringing those two ideas together, business has an innate God-given power to do good in the world. As we have seen, business creates dignified work, multiplies resources, provides for families and communities, and pushes forward innovation and development. It can be a moving force of God’s love by creating decent livelihoods and economic stability, enabling peace, provision, and generosity.

Aid and relief for the poor is necessary in times of crisis and disaster—and for the likes of the ‘widow and orphan’ who cannot provide for themselves. But, like the people in Deuteronomy 8, the usual way families provide for themselves is not through aid, but, through trade, through business and a thriving economy. Business shows the love of God by creating meaningful ways to work in the world.

For-profit enterprises are the primary way that good jobs are created. On the other hand, a lack of jobs leaves families vulnerable to extreme poverty, corruption, human trafficking, and exploitation of all kinds. Business is a powerful way to love God and love our neighbours because in many parts of the world, what our ‘neighbour’ needs most is a good job.

Proclaiming the Gospel: The Great Commission

In every village, town and city in the world, businesses are at the heart of the community; that is true in Kenya, Canada and Azerbaijan, Brazil, Cambodia and Iraq! Business people have an influential role in a community, meeting real needs, and building a strong network of relationships.

People spend more of their waking hours at work than anywhere else. Deep relationships can be formed and biblical principles modelled in the crucible of daily business life, creating a company culture that reflects Jesus as well as opportunities to share His Good News. Business is a powerful way to make disciples, and to share the gospel in word and deed in the context of everyday life—to the ends of the earth.

Many of the places that the gospel has still to reach are hostile to traditional missionaries and difficult to access, yet business people are welcome nearly everywhere. The world is open for business!

In Conclusion

God has mandated His people to be good stewards of creation, to create resources for the good of society, to love God first and then love our neighbour, and to take the gospel to all nations. Thus, a business as mission company includes spiritual transformation as a measure of business success, alongside social, environmental and economic concerns—and has a special concern for the poor, marginalised and unreached peoples.

The definition of business as mission is:

  • Profitable and sustainable businesses;
  • Intentional about Kingdom of God purpose and impact on people and nations;
  • Focused on holistic transformation and the multiple bottom lines of economic, social, environmental and spiritual outcomes;
  • Concerned about the world’s poorest and least evangelised peoples.

Let’s keep our Bibles open and keep our eyes open for opportunities to solve pressing global issues through business as mission, in response to God’s mandates and for His glory!

For more reading on ‘the three mandates’ read this post by Mats Tunehag.

 

This month we are looking at business as mission through the lens of the Bible and God’s mandates to us. All posts this month.

Parts of this post were adapted from the paper ‘Business as Mission and the Global Workplace’ read it in full here. Mats Tunehag also contributed to this post through our many conversations and the ideas he has shared in past articles and talks.

 

 Jo Plummer is the Creative Director & Co-Founder of BAM Global and the co-editor of the Lausanne Occasional Paper on Business as Mission. She directs BAM Global initiatives such as BAM Global Events, BAM Global Think Tank consultations, and the BGlobal Community. Jo has been developing resources for BAM since 2001 and serves as Editor of the Business as Mission website and The BAM Review Blog. 

 

 

Photo by Rachel Strong on Unsplash

Creating the Map: Exploring Categories in the BAM Ecosystem

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by Jon B, with Jo Plummer

 

In Part 1 of this two part series, we introduced the new BAM Ecosystem map developed in partnership by The Stone Table and BAM Global, with input from other partners in the business as mission community.

In our first post, we outlined our motivation and hopes for this new tool. In this second post, we will briefly share our approach to adding entities to the map and then discuss in turn each of the five main categories, including notable sources, resources and observations.

Mapping the Ecosystem

The business as mission community is broad and diverse, with a wide range of entities associated with it from across the world. Some are solely focused on BAM and would label themselves as such. Whereas, others do not primarily identify with a “BAM label” but are like-minded in terms of goals and/or may have an association with BAM activities.

The BAM Ecosystem Map recognises that BAM overlaps, in terms of vision and activities, with several other movements that have their own growing ecosystems. For this reason, we have not put hard boundaries around what constitutes “BAM” when it comes to inclusion on the Map; we have not limited ourselves to those who self-identify as BAM entities or who operate only within our definition of business as mission.

Instead, we have asked ourselves whether an entity has resources and activities that would be of interest to current and would-be BAM practitioners. We have also looked at the degree of alignment in terms of vision, i.e. a shared goal to multiply business solutions to the world’s pressing global issues in response to God’s missional call on His people. And we have looked at historic and relational connections between the entity and those active in practicing or resourcing BAM.

An exception to this approach is in the Networking, Events and Prayer category, where we have included only networking and convening entities that are more specifically focused on BAM, plus a few significant like-minded networks. This is because we could not include the vast number of “marketplace ministry” networks around the world that share our theology of work foundations but do not have an overt BAM application. There are other directories for such organizations for different countries of the world and our intention is that the BAM Ecosystem Map will stay more focused on helping people discover specifically BAM-centred networks, events and prayer initiatives.

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The Business as Mission Ecosystem Map: A New Interactive Tool

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by Jon B, with Jo Plummer

 

Business as mission is a growing movement around the world. It is not our movement but the move of God through His people.

In 2004, the first global consultation on business as mission took place under the auspices of the Lausanne Forum. Around ninety people took part altogether and we estimate that at the time there were around 10 BAM-related books and approximately 20 articles, plus a couple dozen entities in early stages of developing BAM networking or resourcing. Twenty years later, there are almost 1000 resources and blogs here in the latest version of the BAM Resource Centre website. In September 2024, at the fourth Lausanne Congress, 2,400 people (nearly half of the total attendees) reported that they were interested in a workplace track.

Today our opportunities in business as mission include: a growing awareness and acceptance of BAM as a strategy in the global Church, a greater breadth and depth of expertise in the business as mission ecosystem with more specialisation and functionality, and growing communication and collaboration between respective parts.

Yet, there is still a dissonance between the God-given potential of business for His kingdom purposes and the way that many Christians perceive business as inherently evil or corrupt. Businesses and business people remain a relatively untapped resource for intentional mission impact.

Our barriers remain: ongoing scepticism, outstanding resource siloes, lack of resources in critical regions and languages, and lack of easy access to existing resources.

If we are going to leverage the opportunities before us and overcome these barriers to BAM growth, we cannot waste an ounce of energy in pride or division. Christ has called us all as a global body, and He has commissioned us to redeem culture, to free the captives, to bless the nations, and to see the good news of the gospel proclaimed to the ends of the earth (see for example, Colossians 1:19-20, Luke 4:18-19, Genesis 12:2-3, Matthew 28:19-20).

Howard Hendricks once described church ministry as a football game with, “Twenty-two men in need of rest and forty thousand people in the stands in need of exercise.”

We need everyone in the game. We need a diverse range of expertise and experience in the BAM ecosystem and better ways for people to collaborate with one another. There is work to be done to mobilise new people, companies and entities—and to enable them to make their vital contribution and connections. That’s the “why” at the heart of the new BAM Ecosystem Map.

Introducing the BAM Ecosystem Map

We are delighted to announce the launch of a new interactive tool for the business as mission community, the BAM Ecosystem Map. Click the image to explore: Read more

Greed Isn’t a Business Problem (Here’s What Is)

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by Erik Cooper

 

I heard (another) infuriating story about a corrupt businessman this morning. A friend shared how his brother might lose a ton of money because someone completely misrepresented himself in a massive business deal.

“It’s the dark side of business for sure,” my friend said over coffee.

That made my blood boil—not just for my friend’s brother, but because these kinds of stories are what so many people associate with business: greed, corruption, deception, selfishness, taking from others, and hoarding for yourself.

These broken counterfeits have become synonymous with business in the minds of many. So when we start talking about business as mission (BAM), business as a sacred calling, or leveraging the marketplace for God-honoring Kingdom purposes, it’s no wonder some people can’t break through the dissonance.

But it’s worth wrestling with…

Is business inherently selfish? Is it just some sinful, cutthroat institution man invented to survive in a fallen world? Is business synonymous with greed? Or worse—does business make people greedy?

I’d like to pose a different take. Check this out:

“So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.” – Colossians 3:5

Greed isn’t a business problem. Greed is a worship problem.

At its core, good business is about adding value to others and the world around us. It’s about seeing a need and meeting it, recognizing a problem and solving it, or creating something the world is missing.

When business is redeemed by the gospel, it actually becomes the antidote to greed—not the cause of it. This paints a beautiful, redemptive picture of what business and the marketplace can be.

Don’t buy into the sin-broken caricature. Business isn’t synonymous with greed; it’s an opportunity to create, serve, and bless. This makes it a perfect tool to make Jesus known to the world.

The real question is, what are you worshipping?

 

First published in The Stone Table weekly newsletter and published on The BAM Review with kind permission from the author.

 

Erik Cooper is the President of The Stone Table. After starting his career in the business world, Erik spent 12 years in full-time ministry, both on staff at a large suburban church and as a church planter in a downtown urban context. In addition to his role at The Stone Table, he also serves in executive leadership of Community Reinvestment Foundation, a nonprofit real estate company that provides high-quality affordable housing all over Indiana while investing its profits into missions through The Stone Table.

 

 

Biblical Foundations for Business as Mission

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by Jo Plummer

What does God say about business in the Bible? What were His intentions when he made enterprise part of His design for human society? For those pursuing business as mission it is essential to build on solid Biblical foundations.

Three reasons to build a Biblical foundation for business, work and economics

1. Broadening our horizons

Most start with a particular motivation when they launch into BAM and there is nothing wrong with that. However, embracing all the ways that business might positively impact a community will give us greater potential to intentionally create that impact. Let us understand and embrace the fullness of God’s design for business. Let us celebrate His intentions. As we do that, we will have to say, “Wow!” God is so creative and He has given us the ability to be creative, to add value, to make money, to create wealth and come up with new innovations, that provide livelihoods, that help a community develop, that help us live in peace, that close the door on exploitation, that give lives meaning and transform people’s values, that communicates the Gospel… These are all God’s gifts to us in business!

2. We will multiply what we sow

Whatever we believe about business in our own worldview we will multiply as we go out and do business as mission. If we only emphasize that business is a means to a particular end and not something to celebrate it in its own right, then that is what we will multiply. We will perpetuate the split thinking about what is sacred and valuable, and what is not, in the minds of the people we will influence and disciple. If we are to see a multiplication of business people bringing Kingdom transformation, we must multiply a Biblical view of business.

In our society we become what we celebrate. In order to release business people to get engaged, we need to celebrate their role in the Kingdom of God. Business is a high calling, we need to celebrate it so that our children and their children know that if they are called to business then that’s what they should be doing to God’s glory.  Steve Saint

3. It is good for business

Thinking broadly about the transformational power of business is also good for business. This is something the world at large is waking up to. Terms like ‘social entrepreneurship’, ‘shared value’ and ‘conscious capitalism’ are becoming common currency as society re-evaluates the role of business. There is a growing understanding that as we create products that are good for society and meet human needs, then that will also be good for business in the purely economic sense. This cutting-edge thinking is rediscovering God’s original design for business! As Christians we need to have a firm grasp on what God says about the purpose of business.

 

Read all Blogs on Biblical Foundations for Business as Mission

 

Thoughts on the fundamental Biblical purpose of business

Excerpts from the BAM Think Tank Biblical Foundations for Business as Mission paper:

God calls His people to do good… Whenever business is carried out justly, it does good and is God-ordained because we are assured that all good things ‘come from above’ (James 1:17). God created the marketplace to serve positive ends. Human provision, facilitated by the beneficial exchanges of the marketplace, is a fundamental function of creation. Commerce can also be, at least informally, a means of revelatory grace, specifically as immanent charis, the kindness, mercy, and goodwill of God in the world, as business generates wealth that can be used to pay wages, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and care for widows and orphans. Business can be evangelizing witness to the glory of God… Christ is present in the marketplace when the devout carry out their business in accordance with God’s will, purposes, and character (Doty, 2011, pp. 93–4).

Understanding God’s purposes for business comes through understanding God’s purpose for humans outlined in Genesis and understanding God’s purposes for institutions (principalities and powers outlined in the New Testament writings). Broadly, the purpose of business lies within the context of the purpose of life―that is, the ‘chief end of humankind is to glorify God and enjoy God forever’ (Westminster Confession). God is in the people-developing ‘business’ to make a people to live in harmonious relationship with God and with one another (Daniels, 2012, p. 60).

First, business appears to be uniquely well situated to work the fields, to cause the land to be fruitful, and to fill the earth—what we might in modern parlance characterize as “to create wealth”. Second, business is the dominant institution (although obviously not the only one) equipped to provide organized opportunities for meaningful and creative work (Van Duzer, 2010, pp. 41–2).

Business, from a Christian viewpoint… is a calling to transformational service for the common good. It is a calling on personal, institutional and structural levels to serve God and participate in his ministry of bettering the lives of others in multiple dimensions (Wong & Rae, 2011, p. 284).

Christ talks about invasion: may God’s Kingdom come on earth, may God’s will be done in our lives and societies today. The incarnational mystery is one of engagement, living among us, sharing our lives and circumstances. Business as Mission recognizes our calling to be salt and light in the marketplace. It is not about evacuating Christians from a sinful and corrupt sphere, but rather becoming an answer to the Lord’s Prayer: May your Kingdom come in the business world (Tunehag, 2013b).

Read the full paper to unpack these and other ideas. See also Further Resources list below.

What does the Bible say about business, work and the economic sphere?

Selected scriptures for further study:

We are to be stewards of God’s creation: Genesis 1:28, Genesis 2:15, 19-20, Leviticus 25:2-7, Psalm 8:6.

Provision for human society and multiplication of resources is designed by God to come primarily through dignified work. God is creative and pleased with his work and we are made to be creative in His image: Genesis 2:1-3, Deuteronomy 28:1-13, Joshua 5: 11-12, Psalm 128:1‒2.

Material provisions are good and important for our daily life and the healthy functioning of communities, however they are not sufficient to fully satisfy us as humans: Deuteronomy 8, 1 Kings 4:25, Psalms 62:10, Proverbs 23:4-5, Ecclesiastes 5:10-20, Zechariah 3:10, Matthew 4:4, Matthew 6:33, Mark 8:36.

Business creates opportunities for meaningful work and creativity that is essential for human dignity and a peaceful society: Genesis 2:2-3, Ephesians 6:5-9, 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12, 2 Thessalonians 3:10–12.

Entrepreneurship, wealth creation and wise management of resources is commendable: Genesis 41:46-49, Proverbs 31:10-31, Matthew 25:14-30.

We should care for the poor and needy and support the work of the Church out of the abundance of economic activity. We are to be generous: Deuteronomy 15:4-10, Proverbs 31:18-20, Leviticus 19:9–10,  Acts 20:33-35, Ephesians 4:28, 1 Corinthians 9:10-14, James 2:14‒17

God hates oppression, injustice, and those who exploit the economically and socially vulnerable: Exodus 22: 22-27, Deuteronomy 24:14–15, Deuteronomy 25: 13-16, Proverbs 22:16, Amos 8:4-10, Micah 2:1‒2, Micah 6:8, Malachi 3:5, Colossians 4:1, James 5:4.

Biblical values and precepts can be modeled in the context of daily business life; this makes our message and witness more credible. Life in business can be a training ground for moral development and spiritual maturity: Deuteronomy 22:8, Proverbs 11:1-3, 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12, 2 Thessalonians 3:6-9.

We are to be intentional about our response the needs of the world and the task of making disciples of all nations: Matthew 22:36–40, Matthew 25:34–36, Matthew 28:19–20.

We are God’s image bearers in the world and our chief end is to Glorify God and enjoy Him forever. We are to be salt and light in the world, called on to be witnesses for the Gospel in any daily situation: Genesis 1:26-27, Psalm 86:8-13, Matthew 5:1-16, Colossians 4:5-6, 1 Peter 3:15.

God’s Kingdom coming encompasses all of creation, the physical, social and spiritual: Isaiah 9:1-7, Luke 4:18-19, Romans 8:19-22.

Further Resources

Recommended Books:

Wayne Grudem – Business for the Glory of God: The Bible’s Teaching on the Moral Goodness of Business (2003)

Timothy Keller – Every Good Endeavor: Connecting Your Work to God’s Work (2012)

Jeff Van Duzer – Why Business Matters to God: (And What Still Needs to Be Fixed) (2010)

Kenman Wong and Scott Rae – Business for the Common Good: A Christian Vision for the Marketplace (2011)

Articles and Web Resources:

BAM Global Think Tank Report – Your Kingdom Come, Your Will Be Done… in Business: Biblical Foundations for Business as Mission 

Lausanne Occasional Paper No. 59. – Business as Mission. See Chapter 2, The Word and the Mission: Biblical Foundations for BAM  

Theology of Work Project – A Biblical Perspective on Faith and Work

Additional References:

Daniels, D. (2012). Toward a theology of business. In Okonkwo, B. (ed.). Finding Meaning in Business: Theology, Ethics and Vocation. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

Doty, D. (2011). Eden’s Bridge: The Marketplace in Creation and Mission. Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock.

Saint, S (2010). Unpublished conference speech, Call2Business, Long Beach, USA

Tunehag, M. (2013). Business as Mission can be smelly. Retrieved March 20, 2013, from www.matstunehag.com.

Van Duzer, J. (2010). Why Business Matters to God: And What Still Needs to be Fixed. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic.

Wong, K. & Rae, S. (2011). Business for the Common Good: A Christian Vision for the Marketplace. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic.

Read all Blogs on Biblical Foundations for Business as Mission

 Jo Plummer is the Creative Director & Co-Founder of BAM Global and the co-editor of the Lausanne Occasional Paper on Business as Mission. She directs BAM Global initiatives such as BAM Global Events, BAM Global Think Tank consultations, and the BGlobal Community. Jo has been developing resources for BAM since 2001 and serves as Editor of the Business as Mission website and The BAM Review Blog. 

 

 

Photo by Marjhon Obsioma on Unsplash

 

Helping BAM Practitioners Start Well and Endure for the Long-Term

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To celebrate the launch of a new BAM Global Consultation on BAM Practitioner Care and Well-being, we are reposting a resource blog from two years ago that first helped us identify the gap in this area. Read more on BAM Endurance here.

by Jo Plummer

Recently I received a question about training resources and spiritual courses from a BAM practitioner who reads our blog. There already are lots of great resources on this site and elsewhere for helping BAMers start well and endure for the long-term. This post is designed to introduce some resources that BAM practitioners may find helpful for both preparing to launch into BAM and enduring long.

However, having asked advice from a few other business as mission leaders, we identified that there are relatively few dedicated, BAM-related resources for what the mission community calls ‘member care – that is helping ensure the personal, physical, relational and spiritual well-being of BAM practitioners. There are, however, many general member care and spiritual life resources that we can glean from in the wider Christian community, and a selection of these are also listed below.

Training & Preparation: Launching Well

How do people get from BAM vision to BAM reality? What training resources are there out there for BAM practitioners? What factors help launch BAMers out into stable, successful business as mission enterprises? What are the skills and characteristics that BAM companies are looking for as they recruit? How do potential BAMers best develop themselves and prepare for doing business as mission?

Here are some places to start:

  • Courses & Training Page – BAM Resource Library
    Looking for some BAM-related training? Start with the Courses & Training page in the Resource Library here on the BAM website for a list of training organisations and course providers related to BAM. Follow that up by browsing the Video & Audio Page which links to many Podcasts and Video Series which have great content and are all totally free to access. (And of course we have great Books and Papers listed too, as well as over 550 Blogs to read – see Blog Categories listed on this page!)

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What is Business as Mission? A Brand New Explainer [Video]

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We’re excited to share with you our brand new 3 minute explainer video for business as mission!

 

Business as Mission is the creation and growth of for-profit, sustainable companies that are intentional about Kingdom of God purposes. Business as mission (BAM) addresses the economic, social, environmental, and spiritual needs of unreached peoples and vulnerable communities.

 

Concept and script by BAM Global Communications Team, animation by Alana Schreiber. An initiative of BAM Global.

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