Misconceptions (Separation of Church and State)

1. The first major misconception is the mindset that business and ministry should be separate and independent from each other (separation of church and state). As this is an entrenched and important misconception, this will be addressed in some depth. Unfortunately there are more than a few leaders in the body of Christ and in the business arenas who feel that one cannot be a minister of the gospel while also engaging in business or “the things of the world”.

Many of us grew up in churches that basically taught that if you wanted to be a first class man of God you needed to forego all secular things and dedicate yourself to becoming a full time minister of the gospel. This is a faulty mindset that is not supported from scripture. The Jewish model, which was the platform for the church, was trained in both practical vocational skills as well as in the Scripture. Paul is an example of that (he ran a business and did physical labor at times even when in ministry —1 Cor. 4:12, 1 Thes. 2:9). The truth is that the vast minority of God’s people are called into full time vocational priesthood! Only one of twelve tribes was set apart to be priests. The vast majority of God’s people are CALLED into the work place. You cannot have a church made up entirely of full time paid staff ministers. This mindset has created a class division in the body that is similar to the one that Jesus faced in his day, not to mention the competition that there is to acquire these paid “staff” positions. There are the “first class” citizens of God (kind of like the Brahmans are the first or top caste in “Hinduism“), the ‘priests’, who really love God because they are full time vocational ministers. Then there are the “second class” citizens of God who are somehow not quite as Godly because they are “of the world” and have a bent towards business, commerce, etc. The result has been to heap guilt on to those who are called into the secular arena, “the Zeubabbels” and has driven much of the church’s financial resource makers (aka “kings”) into the world! This church cultural mindset has dominated for many years causing significant damage to preaching of the gospel. It is a serious ‘tare’ the enemy has planted in God’s field. [Matt 13:24-30 & 36-42]

Throughout new testament church history we have had ‘Popes’ seeking to be Kings (secular authority) and Kings seeking to be Popes (spiritual authority) causing tremendous damage to the body of Christ. When the truth is that each is called to their respective arenas and are called to collaborate, not separate or compete! Only recently, out of expediency, has it begun to change and whether that change is good or not is open to debate. We were just one of the few that are ahead of the curve. If we were not absolutely sure of our biblical foundations concerning this concept of Kings collaborating with Priest, we would have never entered into it. The truth is in scripture that God intends priest and kings to collaborate is quite clear.

2nd Misconception (Financial assumptions)

2). The second major misconception is that because we endeavor to start businesses we have enormous financial resources, or that we have an infusion of investment returns from whatever businesses we did manage to establish. This is simply not the case. Though we do seek to start business, a few things need to be understood. More then 80% of all business start-ups in the US (started by US citizens) fail. The starting of a business takes quite a bit of start-up capital (aka “risk capital”). Establishing companies, gaining licenses, paying fees, paying sponsors, attorneys, accountants, otherwise known as the “the cost of doing business”, just to open the door, is quite costly no matter where you are.

However, these costs are magnified in the countries we are currently seeking to operate! Due to different business laws and corrupt governments, we often find that there is little chance of ever recouping any initial investment in the case of embezzlement, fraud or theft by corrupt bureaucrats. As one can see, it does not take much to understand why we do not have either an influx of funds or a deep well of capital to draw on. Most U.S. business people will not touch foreign business development with a barge pole! For most people the risk and cost of starting a “traditional” foreign business is simply too high! However, through years of experience, we have become convinced, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that the benefits (“treasures in heaven”) far outweigh the risks. We also now have a template that we use to determine when we start such an endeavor.

3rd Misconception (Implementation of both ministry and business)

3.) Over the years of experience in establishing startups whether business or ministry, what has been discovered is that Ministerial NGOs or churches have what we call a ‘donation based’ mindset. They raise funds to start and maintain ministries. Entrepreneurs generally have a ‘profit’ based mindset. They look at starting business simply from an aspect of is it financial viable, will it be profitable? SFI has sought to incorporate both the ministerial and business mindsets together. We call it ‘salt– practical and light– spiritual”.  SFI has been particularly active in the starting and supporting of ministries like orphanages, fellowships, schools and the like. These are ministries not businesses. However, we have always encouraged these ministries to not solely rely on donations from the west and we are looking to help them develop some sort of business enterprises so they can create jobs and have broader impact on their communities. We make it clear that SFI is not a ‘charitable’ foundation and we cannot be counted on to supply their continued support and maintenance indefinitely.

This is what we have done with our Philippine orphanage and farm with great success. Yet, SFI does not receive funds back from these ministry startups, nor do we expect to receive funds back. The orphans and mothers need it much more than we do! However, eventually the locals there on the ground need to be taught how to stand on their own two feet and not become ‘professional beggars’ seeking resources from the West! They need to be taught to fish for themselves. That said, we have, and always will, facilitate every start-up’s US donor base until they are capable of financial independence. Not only does this model provide an “exit strategy” for supporters, it also provides a means of entry into those nations that CAN NOT be reached by conventional missions. The only way that we can enter and impact those types of countries, practically (salt) is through some sort of business enterprise. However, these are not just strictly business for profit enterprises, they should be financially viable and profitable but  should  also be looking to actively bring the light of the gospel — the name of Jesus who is ‘the Word, the gospel– through the salt. We have done this successfully as well but we have significantly more failures than successes, and each failure has cost. Even when a “business as ministry” is successful it typically does not produce enough profit to support their needs locally while ALSO financially helping SFI reach the next impoverished or un-reached locale or nation.

Ultimately, it is not boastful to say that we have been pioneers in the concept of ‘business as ministry’. We have the scars to prove it. However, we have seen the fruit, though hard, the fruit is abundant and good and it multiplies.