Daring to Try... Win or Lose

Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.

-Teddy Roosevelt

The Critical Role of Discipleship in Liberia: A Shared History with Rwanda

(Written in 1995):

On Sundays in Rwanda, we used to see well-dressed neighbors walking to church on every road. Yet, last year these same neighbors slaughtered each other. I don't assume that all these people walking to church were all walking in the steps of Christ, the Lord. But the committed minority of the church was significant, 5 percent of the population, and the influence of the church was strong in the lives of another 75 percent of the people. Why was there no moderation, no dampening––just hatred and fear, farming tools becoming weapons, neighbors cutting each other down as enemies?

Gary Scheer

Long-Term Missionary in Rwanda

I asked my chauffeur, “Who killed [your] parents and siblings––the army or the militia?” Neither, he said, but rather the people next door who felt the authorities had given them the go ahead to kill their neighbors and take over their houses and lands. How do you re-knit society where that has happened?

David Rawson

U.S. Ambassador to Rwanda

So what happened in Rwanda? It is a reflection of Man's depravity. Sin touches every part of a person's life, reaching to the very core of his being. Rwanda is a reflection of man's inhumanity to man.

In part, what happened in Rwanda was that the nation was “converted” but not discipled at the profound level of culture. The tribal mindset that sees one tribe as superior to another was not challenged.

The blood of Christ was not applied to the breaking down of the dividing wall of hostility between Hutu and Tutsi (Ephesians 2:14-16). The ancient hostilities of tribalism were not broken by the powerful truth that Tutsis and Hutus are of “one blood”, having one set of first parents––Adam and Eve. It was tribalism, this mindset of poverty, that led to the genocide.

The task given to the church in the Great Commission was nothing less than to disciple nations. If the church does not disciple the nation, the nation will disciple the church. Rwanda is an extreme example of this principle.

Darrow Miller

Discipling Nations

While is is not advisable or even possible to draw a direct comparison between the surface causes of the conflict in Rwanda and the civil war in Liberia, there clearly was a common denominator: an anemic church. A church that succeeded in making converts, but failed at making disciples whose hearts, minds and lives were transformed. A church that succeeded in constructing building and founding ministries, but failed at changing the worldview of the culture. As a result, both countries reaped some of the same consequences; mass killings based on tribal and political identity, inhuman atrocities that showed no value for human life, and sadly, a blatant dishonor for the influence and power of God in the lives of his people. This version of the church made an embarrassing mockery of our Christian faith.

What's distressing is that as I visit different churches in Liberia, I discover that much of today's Liberian church continues to be anemic. A high percentage of churches fill their buildings every week, yet make little to no positive transformational impact on their culture. (There are, thank God, a few exceptions.) Most churches have long Sunday services and multiple weeknights set aside for Bible study, prayer and fasting, as well as annual revivals and crusades. Regardless, crime, government corruption, illegal business dealings, chronic land disputes and secret societies that practice ritual killings and FGM (female genital mutilation) continues unabated. Sadly, many pastors have little or no formal training and oftentimes, because of the high rate of unemployment, people call themselves “pastor” as a way to generate cash. The “prosperity gospel”, which was exported from America, is thriving in Liberia. Even in mainstream churches, the gospel message is contaminated with prosperity teachings and folk animistic influences.

The bonds of selfishness, greed and demonic strongholds can only be broken by the power of the Holy Spirit. As people become disciples of Jesus, God's Spirit transforms their lives. As disciples make disciples who make disciples, these transformed lives will transform culture. Until the 16 Liberian tribes embrace the truth that they (and we) are of “one blood”, the complex issues that brought forth the recent civil war are allowed to simmer below the surface, risking future conflict. Since the church is not accomplishing the task of transforming people, I believe the time has come for the people to transform the church. A spiritual revolution from the inside out.

As a Business As Missions practitioner, my business is simply a vehicle for making disciples: disciples who make generations of multiplying disciples, who transform churches that transforms cultural worldviews, which transforms nations, continents, and the world for Jesus. We are directed to do nothing less. Regardless of a believer's occupation or pursuit in life, making disciples is the calling of each person who claims a saving faith in Jesus. Plain and simple, fulfilling the Great Commission is a matter of obedience.

Note: All quotations came from Chapter Nine of Miller's Discipling Nations.

Working Towards Glory

Wherever man may stand, whatever he may do, to whatever he may apply his

hand, in agriculture, in commerce, and in industry, or his mind, in the world of art,

and science, he is, in whatsoever is may be, constantly standing before the face of

his God, he is employed in the service of his God, he has strictly to obey his God,

and above all, he has to aim at the glory of his God.

                   Abraham Kuyper
                   An Adequate Philosophy of Religion

Healing the Fracture

Before leaving for West Africa on my BAM adventure, a wise friend and leader asked me a question: “When you are in Africa and neck-deep in making the business successful, how are you going to find the time for ministry?”

My answer was, “I can't.” Please understand that this question did not come from someone who is a BAM skeptic. In fact, he is a successful businessman who has a heart for global missions and is actively promoting BAM in his local church. He knows how consuming business can be and how much focus and dedication is required in missions. So, just as his question wasn't naive, my answer wasn't trite. I expanded my answer by explaining that I will neither have the time nor the luxury of separating business and missions. The two must be fully integrated.

The fact is, Western society does a great job of promoting segmentation. The average American Christian juggles a myriad of segments: a church segment, a friends segment, a work segment, a charity segment, a family segment—the list goes on.

Amazingly, many of these segment have no “crossover” relationships. One of the loneliest times of my life was when I moved my family to Kansas City. After being there one year, I realized that none of my segments crossed over. My church, my job and my neighborhood had no (relationship) connection to one another. Each relationship was its own island.

In his excellent book, Discipling Nations: The Power of Truth to Transform Cultures, Darrow L. Miller describes the influence that worldview has on societal development. In depicting today's predominate worldview in the West, Miller states that Christians are living in a sacred/secular dichotomy.

Thus many Christians today suffer from “split personalities.” Their lives are divided into compartments: the “religious,” what they do when attending church or Bible study; and the “secular,” their jobs, recreation, and education. Millions of believers operate from this worldview, which I call evangelical Gnosticism (see graphic below). Never hearing the challenge to be consciously Christian in their daily lives, they are conformed to the pattern of this world and have secular minds.

The fact is, we were not designed to live segmented lives. I find nothing in Scripture that supports segmented lives, and I can guarantee you that Paul wasn't tight lipped about living the gospel while he was making tents.

As I write this, the word “fractured” comes to mind. To think of it, “fractured” may be an even better description of the Western church, and even some parts of the global church (such as my host country). When we divide our lives and give God only a portion, we are broken... indeed fractured. When we intend to keep a portion for ourselves, we are trying to take what belongs to God... that is sin.

So what are some practical ways that we can heal the fracture?

All I can tell you is what I am attempting to do.

I am finding time for business and ministry by ministering in business. In my company, we begin each day with a voluntary 20-40 minute exegetical study of a section of scripture. Often times, the discussion exceeds the time we have allotted, so I encourage my employees to continue the discussion during their daily tasks.  We conclude the study time with prayer for each other.  I try to be intentional about later asking my employees if our prayers for them are being answered and how God answers them.  My BAM business is a construction services company, so before leaving on a day job, we pray for the employee's safety, the equipment's reliability and the hearts of our customers. My employees know that our work and words are our testimony and should always bring God glory.  Throughout every day, I have the opportunity to grasp “teachable moments” that I can use to point back to scripture. Questions from “Why not bribe? It's the only way to get things done!” to “Why do you want to take taxes from my money and give it to a corrupt government?” to “When I have an African sickness, is it wrong with going to my tribal healer?” are asked every day. These are not questions that will be satisfied with a quick “Christianese” answer. Every day I try to have my heart and mind available for discipleship (and many days, that is easier said than done).

But, let's be honest, isn't that what Jesus asks of us? To follow him every hour of every day? To intentionally make ourselves obedient to His commands and teachings in every part of out lives? To continually strive to be a better reflection of the essence of Christ? That's no easy task. Nonetheless, that is our calling.