Dear Marketplace Leader, TFN is working diligently to develop a robust marketplace track. God is moving powerfully in the marketplace in this hour and we want to embrace that move and do all we can to extend the kingdom of God in the marketplace. Our prayer is that these resources help you in your ministry.
Dear Pastor, As 5 fold ministers we embrace our Ephesians 4 responsibility to equip the members of the body for the work of ministry. The reality is that for over 90% of our church members their primary ministry will be at work or in the community and outside the four walls of the church. We have a limited number of slots for greeters, ushers, Sunday school teachers, children’s workers, elders, etc. Furthermore, for the marketplace leaders in our church, these church ministry roles may not be the best and highest use of their anointing and gift mix.
Only 3% of all Christians are in conventional vocational ministry roles, so for most of our members, their primary ministry is on Monday and not Sunday. But how do you effectively equip your members for their Monday morning assignment? This biblical ideal has been articulated in various ways over the years – Breaking the sacred-secular divide, every member a minister, ministering outside the four walls and so forth. But though we talk about it, the actual strategies and resources to implement this are few and far between.
A survey [https://regententrepreneur.org/rceresources/research-and-articles/] of Christians in business leaders indicate that 6 out of 10 of them perceive that their Church’s leadership is only moderately, slightly or not at all interested in Kingdom business. In the same survey, 90% of Christians in the marketplace believe they can fulfill their calling to Christ in the marketplace. To interpret that – most of them believe the church is uninterested in their calling. But, Is that true?
I don’t think so, I certainly hope not. In fact 84% of pastors polled agree that someone can fulfill their ministry calling through business. So where is the disconnect? I believe most pastors want to equip their members for their Monday morning assignments but aren’t sure how to do it. I know almost nothing in my own ministry training in the local church, Bible School or seminary equipped me with the theology, resources, or models I needed to effectively shepherd business leaders. To learn how to really affirm, equip and empower people for Kingdom effectiveness in their work-life I had to look outside these traditional training channels. I hope this resource list can help remedy this.
Here you will find an annotated list of organizations and resources that are a part of the growing faith at work movement. Here we hope you will find inspiration, theological resources, equipping resources, models, and more to help you effectively pastor those in your care with a calling in the marketplace.
- At Work on Purpose – Founded by Chuck Proudfit this organization is instrumental in one of the most robust Christian workplace movements in the US. They have resources for Work Life ministry in the local church and for city transformation. https://atworkonpurpose.org/local-church/ P, ML, CT
- Blessed2Bless – A 10 lesson small group study on Kingdom Business. Developed from a Spirit filled perspective, this study is Ideal for Sunday school classes, life groups, business leader bible study, etc. It’s a Great resource for the pastor looking for a resource and system to help disciple business leaders in their church and city. http://blessed2bless.net/ ML, CT
- Disciple Nations Alliance (DNA) – Not as focused on the marketplace per se, but nevertheless, a robust site with resources for Biblical worldview, community transformation, breaking the sacred-secular divide and the dignity of work. https://disciplenations.org/ CT, BAM
- Faith Driven Entrepreneur – Founded by Henry Kaestner and Led by Justin Foreman, this organization has an abundance of resources for the faith driven entrepreneur: a podcast, blog, Right Now Media Study, and more. Their podcast is an excellent source of encouragement for Christian marketplace leaders, investors, pastors any anyone who is interested in what God is doing in the marketplace. https://www.faithdrivenentrepreneur.org/ ML
- Greenhouse Church Seminar – This youtube playlist features an abbreviated version of the seminar designed to help pastors make their churches a more nurturing place for worldchangers (business leaders in particular). These video sessions were originally filmed for missionaries as part of their training in Business as Mission. Nevertheless the content is designed for pastors and marketplace ministers. https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLl6U-Kr5ngaO7rnWbiKs_F8jOLZ5mXkzv P, ML, CT
- Marketplace Leaders – Founded by Os Hillman an prominent leader in the faith at work movement, this site features a blog, daily devotional, weekly podcast and much more. https://todaygodisfirst.com/ ML, CT
- Nehemiah Project International Ministries – Founded by Patrice Tsague this organization has a blog and training and mentoring resources for Christian business leaders and aspiring entrepreneurs. Their Biblical Entrepreneurship course has been used in the US and around the world globally to train Kingdom minded entrepreneurs. https://nehemiahecommunity.com/biblical-entrepreneurship-3/ ML
- Regent Center for Entrepreneurship – A research center at Regent University focused on accelerating what God is doing in the Kingdom Business Movement and transforming people and nations through business. They have a resource page on their site with helpful articles including a Kingdom Business Survey https://regententrepreneur.org/ ML, BAM
- Transforming your City – Founded by David Robinson, this Youtube channel features kingdom business and city transformation content in the form of interviews. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCy3W-9bKh6WHSjZsrti0Ipg
CT, ML, P
[categories or tags]
P – resources specifically for pastors and or the local church
ML – resources for marketplace leaders aka business leaders. Pastors will see these are tools to equip their members.
BAM – resources related to Business as mission
CT – resources for Community/City Transformation
Organizations that offer short-term international ministry opportunities for Christian business leaders.
- Global Advance – https://www.globaladvance.org/ BAM
- Go To Nations – https://gotonations.org/ BAM
- Partners Worldwide – https://www.partnersworldwide.org/ BAM
- Regent Center for Entrepreneurship https://regententrepreneur.org/ BAM
