November 1998 Update

ball.gif (1956 bytes)Marketplace Leaders Commit to Intercessary Prayer, Challenged To Expect Global Economic Changes

Virginia Beach, Virginia - Over 80 leaders throughout the United States and five countries convened at the Founders Inn in Virginia Beach to here speakers and other leaders discuss current trends in marketplace ministry. Leaders from over 54 organizations attended including CBMC International, Fellowship of Companies for Christ, International Christian Chamber of Commerce, Business and Professional Network and many other groups that work among Christians in the workplace. "This was a time of hearing the Holy Spirit reveal what He was doing in the marketplace. Our speakers gave us a clear call to intercessory prayer and the need to prepare for major changes in the world over next twelve months," said Os Hillman, Director of Marketplace Leaders.  Summit organizers felt the Lord was directing the conference to have more focus on intercessory prayer. The first evening Tim Philpot, President of CBMC spoke to the leaders about the need for intercessory prayer, unbeknownst to the organizers that this was to be his message. Later, the International Director of Intercession for the nation of Nigeria, Emeka Newankpa, was a last minute attendee and spoke to the leaders about the need for understanding the spiritual realm of intercession in business.  

Other presentations were given by James Lockett, international lawyer and Vice President of International Christian Chamber of Commerce regarding the major changes going on in the world economies and provided a spiritual relevance to the days we live. Shanti Feldhan, President of The Joseph Project 2000, gave a thorough presentation on the Y2K crisis that will be a result of the year 2000 computer glitches. Additional speakers made presentations to the leaders about the "Joseph Calling", a movement in which God is calling for business leaders as "Josephs" and what that means, evangelism and discipleship in the marketplace, and how the internet can be used to unify the movement among marketplace groups.  Unity and the sharing of information and resources was another major theme of the summit. Leaders commited themselves to working together for a common vision. Practical ways in which this could be done were discussed in round table format the last morning of the summit.  The summit endedwith an emotional time of prayer, repentance and sounding of the Shofar as a symbol of the leaders desire to reflect Jesus Christ in the marketplace. For a complete report on the conference visit www.aslangroup.com. Audio tapes of the summit are available.

ball.gif (1956 bytes) ETHICAL DILEMMA RESOLVED AT SCRUPLES ETHICS FORUM
In a recent issue of the Scruples Update we presented an ethical dilemma that a Christian Manager faced in doing business with another Company that distributes pornography. We had a great response and we want to thank everyone who participated. The responses are posted at the Scruples Forum page http://www.scruples.org/web/forums/forums.htm     There was an interesting variety of opinions. Everyone counseled the manager to avoid the deal, but some offered ways of doing it that avoid offending the client and the Boss as well.  For those who are interested in solving OTHER ethical conundrums in business check out http://www.ethos.com/conundrum.htm. ETHOS Magazine encourages individuals and organizations to adopt a clearly defined set of leadership values and principles of conduct based upon the truth and relevance of the teachings and the wisdom of Jesus. Subscriptions are available at <Ethos Magazine>

ball.gif (1956 bytes)WHAT DO YOU DO WITH CHRISTIAN COMPANIES WHO PROMOTE CHRISTIAN PRINCIPLES BUT ARE ACCUSED OF NOT ABIDING BY THOSE PRINCIPLES
We received a complaint about a company that we have listed in our ROLE MODEL COMPANIES directory. <http://www.scruples.org/web/directry/dirolecm.htm> The complainant had an unresolved dispute with this company and had posted a web page to the Internet describing their dispute. They put the question to us about the company's eligibility to be listed as a Role Model Company. We responded that if we received more complaints about the company we would delist them. So my question to you is how would you handle a complaint that your company or organization is not biding by its stated principles? What would you do if unethical practices came to your attention involving ANOTHER company with a Christian reputation? Would you approach that company? What if they ignored you and continued to act unethically? Do you expose their "sin" publicly by posting it to a web site? What are your legal liabilities in that case? As in the previous Ethics Question I would like to post your answer to the Ethics forum. Let me know if you do not want it posted. I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you for your input.

ball.gif (1956 bytes)FAITHWORKS TO LAUNCH SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURS NETWORK AT SUMMIT
The FAITHWORKS National Summit - Exploring New Paradigms for Social Enterprise will take place in Boston at the Hyatt Regency Cambridge. Speakers will include: James E. Austin, Harvard; Ken Blanchard, Author; Bob Buford, CEO; Peter F. Drucker, Innovator George Gallup, Jr.; Christine Letts, Executive Director, Nonprofit Organization; Laura Nash, Author. Those who will attend include: Business, Professional and Community Leaders; CEOs and Chairmen of Medium and Small Firms; Senior Officers of Fortune® 1000 Companies; Founders, Chairmen, Presidents/Executive Directors of Nonprofits; Church Executive Leadership Registration for all attendees is $300 per person. Fee includes Wednesday dinner, Thursday lunch and dinner and all conference materials. The Summit begins Wednesday at 3:00 P.M. and ends Friday at noon. Dress is business casual. Please contact FaithWorks at http://www.faithworks.net or e-mail paige.alexander@faithworks.net.

FAITHWORKS Summit dates are Wednesday, October 28th to Friday, October 30th, 1998.

ball.gif (1956 bytes)THE SCENIC CHRISTIAN WOMEN’S NETWORK LAUNCHES NEW WEB SITE FOR CHRISTIAN WOMEN AT WORK!
Located at <www.scwn.org> SCWN is a ministry designed to meet the complex needs of today's Christian business and professional woman. Our Vision is to fulfill Christ's mission by encouraging women with a sense of belonging to God and each other; equipping women to develop spiritual maturity and to become all they are to be in Christ; and energizing women to bless others with the love, grace, and truth of Jesus Christ.  

ball.gif (1956 bytes)SCRUPLES TO DEBUT PRINTED DIRECTORY AT MARKETPLACE LEADERS SUMMIT
A 50 page Directory of Marketplace Ministries will be produced for participants attending the Marketplace Leaders Summit at Virginia Beach, October 11-13. The Directory will include contact information on all 500 plus organizations listed at the Scruples Site with indexes for Educational Institutions; Enterprise Development Foundations Fellowship Organizations and Teaching Ministries to name a few. Also, organizations will be indexed by countries. The Cost of the Directory will be $19.95 U.S. including shipping. To request a copy send me an e mail at <scruples@csi.com> and I will send you a copy of the directory with an invoice. You can preview the Directory at the Scruples site: <http://www.scruples.org/web/directry/directry.htm>

ball.gif (1956 bytes)EDUCATIONAL DIRECTORY LISTS 100 PLUS COLLEGES OFFERING BUSINESS PROGRAMS TO MARKETPLACE CHRISTIANS
The Scruples Web Site has updated its Educational Institutions page to list 100 plus Christian Colleges, Universities and other Educational Institutions that offer business programs to Christians interested in a Career in the Marketplace. The Directory is located at <http://www.scruples.org/web/directry/direducn.htm> for your information. While you are at it check out the great Bibliography of Books and Resources for Christians in the Marketplace at the resources page: <http://www.scruples.org/web/resource/resource.htm>

ball.gif (1956 bytes)Jerusalem Conference to feature Modern Day Josephs
The purpose of this conference to bring together a small, select gathering of today's Joseph's -- business leaders who use their businesses and resources for Kingdom purposes -- and who have a heart and a burden to make a difference in the Name of the Lord in addressing the impact of persecution underway among the Jewish people.  November 9 - 14th in Jerusalem.  Phone 1 (843) 881-2341 or e mail paulsamuels@compuserve.com .

ball.gif (1956 bytes)ETHICS IN BUSINESS ARTICLES TO BE FEATURED AT SCRUPLES WEB SITE
Dr. Sharon Johnson of Cedarville College as kindly agreed to have the Scruples Site publish some of the articles from the JOURNAL OF BIBLICAL INTEGRATION. These articles plus many more great article links can be found at the Scruples Articles Page <http://www.scruples.org/web/resource/articles/articles.htm>

Why not add your own articles to the Scruples Site. You can publish ONLINE at the Scruples Articles Forum Page <http://www.scruples.org/articles_toc.htm> or you can play the "critic" by filing a reply or comment on those articles currently published there.

Please contact Dr. Johnson at Cedarville College johns@cedarville.edu for subscription information on the Journal or visit their web site at <http://www.cedarville.edu/dept/ba/jbib/>.

ball.gif (1956 bytes)SHOULD CHRISTIAN MINISTRIES BE IN BUSINESS?
The answer to that question and to many more was discussed at the YWAM Marketplace Ministries Small Business Start Up Seminar for Christian Ministries. Seminar Participants learned that the business of ministry is MINISTRY not business. Which may seem obvious; what is not so obvious and I believe is the radical approach we are taking towards discipling business people is -- The business of business is MINISTRY NOT JUST business. That is, the reason one is in business is people; and value; and service -- beyond and before money; power and position. The end of business is MINISTRY just as the end of ministry is MINISTRY, but there are different types of ministry; serving customers and adding value is as much a ministry as feeding the hungry and preaching the gospel. Money, power and position are means to an end not an end in themselves as Milton Friedman would advocate. Once these idols become the end objective we get all sort of problems (evils as 1 Tim 6 puts it.)

So having said that I believe if one has a right perspective on business (it is ministry) then Missions and Business or Ministry and business can work hand in hand. Other wise one will pull the other apart. Many of the people I have dealt with in YWAM and also in other Ministries who are interested in small business as a means to more money in their ministry have not thoroughly addressed the REASON why they want to do business. If it is purely economical one and has no relation to his or her ministry activity then I will aggressively challenge the idea. However, if the business really complements the ministry and the two can obviously work together (such as a tent maker professional on the Mission field or the guy in India who is operating a Computer training business to reach high cast Hindu’s) then I will affirm and encourage that partnership and challenge them to do their business with excellence (which means getting some proper training and having a proper business plan.) What do you think?

The next Small Business and Missions/Ministry Seminar will happen at Heritage College and Seminary in Cambridge, Ontario from January 4th to 9th, 1999. Please contact Scot Forbes for more information at <sforbes@odyssey.on.ca> or you can e-mail me at <scruples@csi.com> and I will keep you posted on future events.

ball.gif (1956 bytes)NEW WEB SITE PROMOTES "LIFE AT WORK"!
The Life@Work Company™, founded in 1996, is located in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The company explores the intersection of spirituality in the workplace. The Life@Work Company™ strives to help Christian integrate their Sunday spiritual experiences with their Monday work world through products including Life@Work™ Books, Life@Work™ Conferences, Life@Work™ Research, Life@Work™ Radio, www.lifeatwork.com, and The Life@Work™ Journal.  The Journal, published monthly, looks at common work issues with Biblical principles. At the same, The Journal highlights several key leaders living at this intersection including Dr. Ben Carson, Bob Buford, Richard Bolles, Collin Powell and Howard Hendricks, to list just a few. Some of the topics discussed include skill, failure, calling, mentoring, and strategy. It can be purchased for $49.95 for one year by calling 800-739-7863, or by subscribing via the web site.  Life@Work™ Books currently has eight titles under the brand from over five prominent writers that look at concepts like leadership, calling, and principles to live by in your life at work. Life@Work™ Research continually studies the best ways to meet the needs of the 'teammates' as well as what the most prominent issues are in work. Life@Work™ Conferences are gatherings of real people working and integrating their Christian beliefs with their work responsibilities. The first conference, Leading Innovation, occurred at Regent University August 3rd & 4th, 1998.  To find out more about The Life@Work Company™, visit their web site at <www.lifeatwork.com>, where you can participate in on-line research, read The Journal on-line, or just let them know what

ball.gif (1956 bytes)THIS BULLETIN BROUGHT TO YOU BY YWAM Marketplace Mission
Youth With A Mission Marke†place Mission is dedicated to know God and make him known in the marketplace. It is staffed and funded on a voluntary basis by missionaries who receive no remuneration for their services. If you would like to assist in the effort of this ministry please visit the Help Scruples Page at <http://www.scruples.org/web/helpus.htm>    You can sponsor a Scruples Update Newsletter that goes out to over 800 Marketplace Christians by contacting <scruples@csi.com>. Tax receipts are available in the US and Canada through YWAM. Thanks for your support.

Visit the Archive Page for past Scruples News and Updates.

Please bring to our attention other news worthy items of interest to Marketplace Christians by sending us an email: scruples@csi.com. Thank you.