40 minute read
Soul enterprise
A little theology
Advertisement
Money talks
“Our money may be talking so loudly people can’t hear what we say. Think about it. Our money may be shouting our loudest testimonies.
“Now, of course, money has no voice of its own. By itself, it has no ability to say anything. It can’t give its own witness. But money is a kind of public-address system. It amplifies and broadcasts our faith and our beliefs.
“That’s a startling thing about money. It’s silent until we do something with it. Then it talks. It says something about our priorities. It articulates our theology. It discloses our commitment. It reveals our values.
“We can talk until we are blue in the face. We can preach with vigor. We can respond at every testimony meeting. We can use the biblical vocabulary. But maybe, as someone has said, the real story of our Christian dedication is told on the stubs of our old checkbooks. Our money talks.
“Money is one of faith’s indicators. It’s an index and a window to the soul. It’s a sounding trumpet. It’s so vocal that it helps nudge us toward confession and repentance. Thank God for money!
“Think what our money could be saying to the world!” — John H. Rudy, reprinted from an early edition of The Marketplace. A larger compilation of his columns can be found in his book, Moneywise Meditations: To Be Found Faithful in God’s Audit (Herald Press) Have you ever thought of your job when partaking of communion at church (other, that is, than letting your mind wander)? The late Pope John Paul II saw an implied connection in the Catholic prayer, “We have this bread to offer; which human hands have made.... We have this wine to offer, fruit of the vine and work of human hands.” In his view, the bread of the Lord’s Supper is not just baked dough, not just bodily sustenance, but also “the bread of science, and progress, civilization and culture.” The wine that is poured out and shared also represents the fruits and produce harvested by migrant farm workers, transported by truckers, and stocked and sold by grocers, writes William Droel in his introduction to a new book, Pope John Paul II’s Gospel of Work.
Soft answer staves off bankruptcy
Tom is a consultant for an accounting firm that often deals with bankruptcies. With a background in farming he gets called in when agribusiness firms are in trouble. That means emotions can run high, which makes it a timely place for Christian leaven.
One day he was assigned to sort out the value of some livestock that was in question. An outside party had rented barn space and services from a farmer who was going to look after and feed its animals to market weight. When the farmer ran into financial problems, the animals and rent agreement became part of a dispute. The owner of the animals wanted the animals out of there if the farmer was going broke, but the farmer dug in his heels and refused. The court-appointed receiver (a nice word for bankruptcy agency) assigned Tom to evaluate the situation. Tom’s boss took a hard-nosed approach. “Let’s bring in the cops and take the animals,” he said. “Whoa,” said Tom, thinking there might be a better way. “Let’s slow down a bit. Let’s let him keep the animals for now, and grow them to market weight. Then they can be sold for a better price, which benefits all parties.” His boss relented, and Tom proceeded. In the end, the original owner of the animals got more money than he would have otherwise; the farmer facing financial distress got some breathing room (and survived), and costly legal action was avoided.
By toning down the hostile rhetoric Tom became a peacemaker, producing a win-win-win situation.
God’s resume
“I reckon work to be the third-leading category of prayer requests, after health and family. People beg God for jobs, for success in business endeavors, for wisdom about career choices, and for better relations with bosses and coworkers. They bring extremely personal worries about work to God because they want to make a real connection with him. (Of course, they also want help.) Work is an important part of who they are, so they talk about it to God.
“Strikingly, we rarely turn that around. We rarely talk to God about his work.
“‘Hello, God, what do you do?’
“It is a good question to ask. Certainly it is a question God seems eager to answer. A very large proportion of the Bible addresses what God has done, is doing, and wants to do. You might call the Bible his professional resume.” — Tim Stafford in Personal God: Can You Really Know the One Who Made the Universe?
Great seminars ahead
MEDA’s annual convention always has enriching seminars (in addition to stimulating keynote speakers). Here are a few to watch for: • Why (and how) I show up at soccer stadiums — Hear young entrepreneur Pat Vendrely talk about his unusual company — providing decor and branding solutions to the sports industry • How I got started in business — A “must” seminar for young people who are thinking of their own start-up company • How well do you fit in your congregation? — Youthful businessman Conrad Brenneman and others will explore positive links between church and business • Youth and microfinance — The global struggle to provide jobs for growing youth populations • Multi-channel marketing and you — How retail, print and on-line work together to maximize impact • Managing your investments in a turbulent economy — You’re never too young to think ahead • Overcoming barriers to family business success — How a family business grew into its next generation • Providing employment for felons — How to help ex-offenders find employment and new life through a second chance • Sarona Green and green energy — Nothing is more timely than a look at the future of alternative energy
All this and more at MEDA’s “Dividends of Hope” convention, Nov. 6-9, Columbus, Ohio.
For a complete list visit www.businessasacalling.org
Overheard:
Neighbors again
It’s back to the future in Ukraine as MEDA helps farmers till ancestral Mennonite soil
Fred Wall has spent a lifetime in farming, business and development. A graduate engineer, he worked for 10 years promoting agricultural and industrial development in Manitoba before owning his own plastics company and joining the MEDA board. Since selling his business in 2002 he has worked with MEDA’s microfi nance initiatives in Nicaragua and with its affi liate, MicroVest. Last fall he went on MEDA’s agricultural development mission to Ukraine to explore microfi nance and investment possibilities. The following report introduces the background and challenges of MEDA’s emerging new work there.
by Fred Wall
My father used to gaze out on his grain fi eld in southern Manitoba and get a faraway look in his eyes. He’d remember his family’s farm in Crimea, south Russia, with its rich earth, moderate climate and abundant fruit trees. It was so different from the frigid Canadian prairie where topsoil is measured in mere inches.
“That,” he’d say wistfully, “was like living in heaven compared to this.”
Both my parents were born into Mennonite families in Ukraine and immigrated to Canada in 1924 after they lost their farms during the collectivization that followed the communist revolution.
Their Mennonite forebears had occupied the empty steppes of eastern Russia (now Ukraine) at the invitation of Czarina Catherine around 1800, settling at fi rst in a large tract called the Chortitza Colony (later referred to as the Old Colony) and a few years later in the Molotschna Colony. As a result of growth they expanded to various other new colonies, fi rst south into the Crimea and then to various other parts of Russia.
My father’s family came from the central part of Crimea. My mother came from the Molotschna Colony which had about 40 villages. Her family’s experience was a little more diffi cult as they were in the center of the civil war and lawlessness that occurred in that area. Both families were successful at farming and would never have left except for the revolution’s economic, social and religious disruption. Today there are virtually no Mennonites left in the area.
That land is now farmed by Ukrainians whose parents and grandparents were neighbors of our ancestral family. But the agricultural scene today is dramatically different than when my family left.
Ukraine was historically a part of Russia but after the 1917 revolution became a republic of the Soviet Union. Crimea remained a part of Russia until 1953 when Nikita Khrushchev gave it to Ukraine, where it remains today. The whole region is ethnically and linguistically more Russian than Ukrainian, which produces internal tension.
Ukraine achieved its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991 and has since been an independent republic. The country is divided between predominantly ethnic Ukrainians in the western part and ethnic Russians in the east, including
Every smallholder farmer’s dream — a home, a greenhouse and a fi eld of cabbage.
Crimea. The confl ict in the past several elections has been largely due to the differences between the nationalistic and pro-western sentiments of the Ukrainians in the west versus the more pro-Russian sentiments of the Russians in the east. The last two elected governments since the 2004 Orange Revolution have been led by nationalistic Ukrainians but their margin in parliament is small and the split is deep.
Ukraine has a population of some 46 million and a per capita GDP of about $7,800 operating under a free market system introduced in the 1990s. GDP growth has become strong in recent years (7% in 2006). It is far from being as poor as some other countries where MEDA is active, but economic disparity is great, and farm income in the eastern regions is far below the national average.
In recent years Ukraine has become more visible on the radar screen of the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). Last year MEDA and three other non-government organizations approached CIDA with proposals for agricultural development projects in Ukraine. Ours was to focus on vegetables and horticulture farming, while the others related to grain and dairy farming. We were also asked to consider assisting a minority group of Tatars who are of Asian descent but who lived in
Crimea for many years until being exiled after World War 2. They are now coming back and struggling to re-establish themselves. At the start of our mission a CIDA representative told us we were being invited to work in the ancestral Mennonite areas because of our history there as well as because of recent efforts by other Mennonite groups to promote social, cultural and economic development. Mennonites People were are respected and welcome not only for their achievements of a century ago but also for their current activities. amazed that after A number of people we met during our travels praised the Mennonite record — both past and current — as all the persecution being very good for the country. They were amazed that after all the persecution and hardship Mennonites enMennonites dured, their descendants are back trying to help without any attempt to recover ancestral property. They saw it as endured, their a lesson in forgiveness as well as an expression of genuine concern for their former neighbors. descendants are The MEDA mission comprised two development offi cers from MEDA’s offi ce in Waterloo, Ontario, a manback, trying to help. ager of its agricultural project in Tajikistan, which is very
The author visits the guesthouse on what remains of his family’s ancestral farm in Crimea.
similar to that envisaged for Ukraine, and myself. I was to keep an eye open for microfi nance and investment opportunities. I also felt I could contribute in other areas because of my lengthy farming involvement and my familiarity with the Mennonite connection. I freely gave my colleagues lessons on Mennonite history until they wouldn’t sit near me in the van or at meals. We started our tour in Kiev meeting with CIDA and various other local government, NGO and fi nancial organizations to get a grasp of current conditions. From there we fl ew to Simferopol in the center of the Crimea and traveled to various communities from there. Next we drove by van to Zaporozhye and then Melitopol and to Dnepropetrovsk.
We visited with many smallholder farmers, both on their small plots of fi ve to 10 hectares (12 to 25 acres) and also in their local cooperatives and farm associations. We visited a few larger farmers who had grown in both size and success. How they made more rapid progress was not always clear, but prior connections to the communist party or government seemed to be a major factor. Here we were able to see what is possible if resources are available. We also visited some credit unions, a university and a private fi nancial organization.
The main purpose at every stop was to see what infrastructure already existed for smallholders and what they needed most. We had many ideas thrown at us and also a few demands. At a public meeting at an agricultural college in Melitopol about 40 farmers showed up and their fi rst question was where
The rolling land is were the forms so they could apply for low-interest loans. When they were informed we were there to consult highly fertile, with on future programs and not dole out cash the meeting became pure pandemonium as they shouted at our several feet of rich Ukrainian host and chairperson and at each other. The chair tried in vain to calm them, but they accused him of topsoil, but much misleading them about the meeting. He tried to read the written invitation he had sent out which clearly indicated this was a consultative meeting, but eventually gave up of the land is and sat down. Our young interpreter, on only her second assignment, gave up due to the noise and was reduced to poorly cultivated, tears. As nothing else seemed possible we in the mission talked among ourselves for a while until suddenly the some not at all. room hushed and one person in the audience said they were now ready to talk. About 10 people promptly left the meeting and we had a nice conversation with the rest. We were told this was common in Ukraine today, and encountered it elsewhere to a lesser degree. The agronomic possibilities were readily apparent to us. The rolling land is highly fertile, with several meters of rich topsoil and a favorable climate similar to that of southern Ontario. What was also very apparent was the low productivity being achieved in contrast to what we are used to in North America. Much of the land is poorly cultivated, and some not at all. The causes of
The goal is to develop a robust value chain for high-value crops such as grapes (above), tomatoes, peppers, berries and potatoes.
Under collectivization this disconnect are both political and the operators economic. The communist had equipment revolution of 1917 resulted in comand inputs; what munal ownership of all means of production, includ-was missing was ing farmland. The land was owned motivation. Now by the government as large collective they have much farms that were centrally managed. motivation, but The operators were employees of the little else. system. Technology, equipment and inputs, while not the best, worked after a fashion. What was missing was the entrepreneurial motivation we in the west take for granted.
When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1990, Ukraine became independent. The collective farms were liquidated and the workers all got a share of the land, perhaps 10 to 25 acres each. But what to do with it? Now they have much motivation but little else. Besides technology, inputs and fi nancing for equipment, they need markets for their products. While some individuals have found ways to move forward, many are stuck in the mud, fi guratively and literally, and are worse off than before.
After studying the local situation fi rsthand,
MEDA put together a proposal which CIDA approved this spring. The fi ve-year $10 million project aims to raise the incomes of small scale farmers in the Crimea and Zaporozhye regions by integrating them into domestic and potentially export markets.
MEDA will work with communities, fi nancial institutions, businesses and public sector agencies to develop a robust horticulture value chain for high-value crops such as table grapes, greenhouse crops (tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers), berries, potatoes and selected nutritional/medicinal herbs. It is projected that the initiative will directly help 5,000 farmers and a hundred businesses.
Among the implications of the project are the follow-
ing:
. Extension services will need to help farmers improve crop yields and quality as well as identify new crop options. Some resources are available in local agricultural schools, and some private agricultural consultants have already sprung up. The trick will be to make them affordable to smallholders. New technologies may also be imported. 2. Linkages will be created to the major markets in Ukraine and other nearby countries. Some of this is very basic, like creating basic processing and storage facilities. Vegetables and fruit are very perishable and much currently rots in roadside and village markets while supermarkets in the major cities import their food from other countries that can process, store and transport products to them in a predictable and timely fashion. Some aspects of this will be more sophisticated, like fi nding the markets and creating the right branding for customers. Virtually none of this infrastructure is currently in place. . Capital will be required all along the chain. Ukraine does not have the banking system in rural areas that we are used to. The credit union movement is growing, with guidance and support from North America, and has potential to help fi ll this gap. But credit unions get their capital from deposits and if members are poor they have little to deposit. So this is not an immediate solution. We may have to fi nd a way to inject capital into the credit unions to allow them to reach our targeted smallholders.
A related fi nancing problem is that the government has imposed a moratorium on all farmland sales in an effort to prevent the rapid concentration of ownership by the few bigger and richer farmers. This prevents farmers from getting what little fi nancing is available as no lender will provide a mortgage loan if they cannot foreclose on their collateral. So the government and the farmers debate the issue as they are afraid of going back to a feudal system in place before the revolution when a few land barons owned all the land and the majority of people were serfs working for bare subsistence. Smallholders who don’t qualify for loans are stuck in midstream. They can’t go back to the collective farm system and they can’t move forward to grow and develop their farms.
Another challenge is the farmers’ distrust of fi nancial institutions and anyone trying to form organizations. This goes back to their collective farm days when in theory everyone was supposed to work together for the common good but in reality the stronger ones undermined the weaker. It will take time and many small steps to build up trust and cooperation to move forward together.
This program can have a huge impact on an important country that even now is just emerging from the legacy of its long communist slumber. As noted, there will be many challenges. Fortunately, MEDA is up to them as it has a long history of helping poor people become more productive and has special skills in assisting transitional economies. ◆
Better than golf
Bernie Poetker got the best vacation of all when he put the clubs aside and went to Paraguay to help keep small farmers on their land
by Tracey Wagner-Rizvi
Some might call it divine intervention.
Bernie Poetker was all set for a relaxing holiday in New Zealand, but as the trip drew close, something didn’t feel right. Poetker postponed his departure. Not long after, he received a call from MEDA.
“Gerhard Pries [director of Investment Fund Development] said, ‘Bernie, you have been wanting to get more involved with MEDA — how would you like to go to Paraguay in three weeks?’ It came completely out of the blue,” tells Poetker.
Poetker has been associated with MEDA for more than 25 years and says it has been an anchor through years of running his own electronics business. Last year he spent three weeks in Tanzania with a project promoting anti-malaria mosquito nets and other health-related items.
“I had to make up my mind fairly quickly whether or not to go to Paraguay, but the decision was not very difficult,” says Poetker. “I felt quite guilty, actually — here I was flying off to New Zealand for Bernie Poetker to play golf when there was this opportunity to do some real good. I felt that I needed to go.”
And so it was decided — Poetker was off to Paraguay for six weeks, leaving at the end of February.
“On my way there I got to thinking, ‘Just what is it I am to do?’” laughs Poetker, adding that he went with rough ideas of what was to be done, but once there, more possibilities came up. “The idea for a microfinance foster plan, for example, presented itself once I was there. It was really about responding to the need and realities on the ground.”
Poetker’s main objective was to help smallholder farmers. Alongside MEDA Paraguay’s director, Arnold Epp, Poetker spent a lot of time in Asunción and East Paraguay at two manioc starch processing factories sponsored by MEDA Paraguay, and visited both larger manioc farms and smallholder farm families.
“There are approximately 350,000 smallholder farmers in the East Paraguayan Caguazu area, each of whom owns about three to five hectares of land that they were given several generations ago,” says Poetker. “Many of them only use enough to grow a garden, as they can’t afford to till the rest. They are able to live off it, but it does not get them anywhere in terms of progress. We want to help them farm the whole plot.”
Land prices have risen appreciatively in recent years. People are coming from Brazil and Argentina and aggressively buying up land, offering up to $10,000 for three to five hectares. The farmers readily accept the money — more than they have ever seen — thinking they are going to be rich and set for life. They leave their land and end up on the outskirts of cities with no money-managing skills, no food source, and before long no money.
MEDA Paraguay hopes to give smallholder farmers an alternative to selling their land. Manioc starch processing plants are part of the strategy, offering a market for their surplus manioc.
“Manioc processing is quite profitable. The main challenge is that they need to be set up near a reliable source of the raw materials,” says Poetker, who later in his visit helped complete a plan for opening a third manioc processing plant. “Smallholder farmers do not have trucks to haul the raw manioc. Instead they use ox carts or old school buses with the roof cut off and the manioc thrown in where the seats are.”
Manioc has no fixed harvest time and can be left in the ground for many months without spoiling. This gives farmers a lot of flexibility and can even serve as a reserve for lean times. Conversely, if sorghum and sesame seeds, a high-profit crop, are not harvested in time, birds will eat the entire crop overnight.
“Farmers anywhere must consider many factors when
No trucks here: Farmers use ox carts to haul manioc to the starch plants.
deciding what to grow — which crops offer the most profit or the most stable prices or require the least work — depending on their priorities or the current market,” says Poetker, who comes from a farming background. “These smallholder farmers need technical support to help make these decisions and plan for the future.”
MEDA wants to encourage the farmers to grow manioc to supply the processing plant, but also to diversify into other food crops and cash crops. So it works to create companies that buy and process farm produce, as well as to provide technical and family support to smallholder farm families.
“Paraguay has many natural products that can be utilized in North America and Europe. The country can become the breadbasket of Europe, supplying fruit, tomatoes, and so on,” says Poetker. “The only problem is shipping. It is more difficult to ship to North America. Paraguay has a connection with Germany and The Netherlands going back more than 60 years, so that would be a natural market.”
Inspired by his visit, Poetker envisions developing a plan for a microfinance initiative modeled after children’s foster plans. “In this case, families here in North America would sponsor smallholder farmers,” he explains. “They would receive pictures of the farmers and their families and updates on how the loans have transformed their lives.”
Under his proposal, farmers who need it would receive loans of $200 to $500 for several years. They could use the money to improve their seed quality, purchase equipment, or have equipment contractors work the land for them.
In 2007, the 1,600 smallholder farm families that supplied manioc to the two starch plants each earned an average of $1,150 — a big boost to families that live on a few dollars a day. With improved crops and farming techniques, families are soon able to build better houses and send their kids to school.
“The biggest concern of parents is that their children get to go to school, but if they are just surviving on their plot, no school will be built,” he says. “And we must not forget the dreadful alternatives awaiting them in the cities.”
Spiritual boost: “Faith is their life there,” says Bernie Poetker (above). “We can learn a lot from them.”
Poetker says his experi-
ence in Paraguay has strengthened his faith. “I went there thinking that I was going to a poor country, to people needing help, but in faith we need help, not them,” he says. “Faith is their life there, but it tends to be a weekend thing here. There is a lot we can learn from them.” The 900-member Ron Enns photo Concordia Mennonite Church and campus also made a lasting impression on Poetker. Seeing all the facilities available on the campus — including a day care, a 40-classroom school, gymnasiums, auditorium, tennis courts, Parents’ biggest wish is to basketball courts and soc- send their children to school, cer fields – left him won- but if they are just surviving, dering what was possible no school will be built. here in Canada and what it would take to make it a reality.
Having never been to Paraguay before, Poetker had visualized a hot barren, sunny country. Much to his surprise, it was raining when he arrived and continued to rain for the next four days. The streets were potholed and did not have drains or curbs, so roads quickly became torrents of water.
“I thought, ‘This is the pits!’ Finally, the rain stopped and the sunshine came out. Instantly it was 40-45 degrees Centigrade and I wondered when it would get rainy and cloudy again so we could have some relief from the heat!” he says. “I quickly learned to appreciate the huge shade trees; you live from tree to tree and need the shade for survival. Otherwise you stay in the air conditioning and do not go out in the sun if you can avoid it — certainly no tanning!”
The people Poetker encountered impressed him with their attitudes and friendliness. “Though people were predominantly poor, there were no complaints and they were always smiling and friendly,” he says. “At the bed and breakfast I stayed at, they were eager to learn English from me. In return they taught me Spanish.”
Unlike Brazil, Argentina and Chile, which are frequently in the news for one development or another, Paraguay is seldom mentioned, says Poetker. He believes, however, that there are some big things happening in the country. He says he would like to remain involved in MEDA’s work in Paraguay, but would also like to pursue several other business initiatives aimed at helping the people prosper.
“As inspiring as my trip last year to Tanzania was, I feel even more invigorated after Paraguay because I was more directly involved with the people and I stayed there twice as long,” says Poetker. “I have lots of ideas for new initiatives — there are just so many possibilities for helping these wonderful people get a step ahead!” ◆
Tracey Wagner-Rizvi is a freelance writer and a student at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario. She lived for 13 years in Islamabad, Pakistan, where she worked primarily with non-profit organizations.
Common ground
Years of straddling the dual worlds of for-profit and notfor-profit organizations shows similarities on both sides, including a tendency to stereotype the other.
by Herman Bontrager
Iwas raised in an Amish farm family where the sacred and the secular were not separated. Learning to work was a God-given mandate, and the harder the better. My father was a bishop, so the lines between church and other work were blurred.
I grew up in a family business — farming and construction — where I not only learned and practiced the manual skills of farming and carpentry but also observed entrepreneurship, aspired to it and acquired the capacity to solve problems, both alone and with other people. Later I developed skills in teaching, communication, research, general management, organizational development, board service and advocacy.
Roughly half of my working life has been in not-for-profit organizations and half in for-profit. I spent almost 14 years in various roles with Mennonite Central Committee (MCC): personnel development, Latin America director, overseas peace office, plus five years in Central America.
Currently I am living my Christian vocation in an insurance company. I’m in my 19th year at Goodville Mutual Casualty Company, which offers auto, home, farm, church and small business insurance.
During this dual career in business and non-profit organizations I’ve encountered many generalizations, on both sides.
At MCC I resented the stereotype that church workers don’t know how to run a real business. While I was there a friend and I set up our own company, Development Associates of Lancaster, which did consulting and training and forged connections that eventually landed me at Goodville.
At Goodville, I resent the stereotype that businesspeople aren’t able to serve church organizations. For my own satisfaction and sanity I have continued to serve on church boards so I could maintain international connections.
Goodville Mutual is a for-profit business, but as a mutual it operates a bit differently than a stock company. The profits are for the benefit of the policyholders, the ultimate owners. There are no external shareholders to satisfy, only thousands of customers. This helps avoid some temptations that are so rampant today, like excessive CEO/management salaries. I’ve noticed over the years that some people experience a gap between church and business. I’ve concluded that if there is an actual gap it is because of arrogance on both sides — arrogance of piety and arrogance of pride. Church people sometimes feel superior to business, and people in business are sometimes dismissive of the church. You can get so steeped in the culture you’re committed to that it can come across as arrogance. Both produce the same result: alienation and broken relationships.
Straddling the two realms of profit and non-profit organizations has led me to some conclusions about Christian faith and work.
My Christian vocation comes first. In other words, my calling is to follow Christ in everyday life. That calling is nurtured in the faith community, the Body of Christ. The church, my congregation, is my most important affiliation, and the place where I work is where I spend a lot of time
Goodville CEO Herman Bontrager: Earlier, he resented the stereotype that church workers don’t know how to run a business. Now he resents the stereotype that businesspeople aren’t able to serve the church.
fleshing out the values of my faith.
I’ve learned that there is much common ground
between the for-profit and the non-profit worlds. • Businesses and church agencies are one and the same in that both are formal, man-made entities with structure, rules of operation and people. Both have a specific purpose, or sense of mission. At Goodville, even though it is a business, our mission is to help policyholders recover from loss and we feel satisfaction when we are part of restoring well-being to people whose lives have been disrupted. • The same ethics apply in both. Neither side is immune to mistreating people on occasion, or engaging in excesses for purposes of self-preservation. • If you live your Christian vocation you are involved in God’s work to redeem the world whether you draw a salary from the revenue generated by a for-profit business or from contributed dollars paid through a church agency. Your calling is equally valid in both.
• Every person deserves performance evaluations that have the goal of continuous personal and professional development, or to move them on to an assignment where the skills and requirements are better matched. At the risk of stereotyping, I think not-for-profits (NFP) might be more forgiving of inadequate performance for a longer time; that ends up being a disservice to both the individual and the organization. • A soft touch in leading/supervising/managing people is effective in both business and church. • Decision-making: both have the same needs, participation and efficiency. NFPs place a high value on consensus and participation, sometimes at the expense of efficiency. In either case the organization is better if every individual is valued; efficiency is achieved in both cases if leaders can help people keep the focus on mission. • Capital formation applies to both: it takes a compelling mission to attract contributed funds or venture capital; you have to produce positive results and provide honest reports for the support to continue. When it comes to accountability, non-profits can be a little lax at times. Those that fail to meet objectives may be more easily tempted to beg for mercy and assume they will be given a second chance. • Policy and operations: whether in church or business, boards need to stay out of operations and staff needs to respect and support the board’s policy-making role. “Christian • Leadership is a combination of innate vocation is first qualities, specialized knowledge, willingness and primary. For to work hard, tenacity, flexibility, respect for every now, I’m living it person, appreciation of the competition and comin an insurance mitment to a vision. Those are all needed to successfully manage any complex company.” organization, whether church or business. • An intentional focus on operating by biblical principles is essential no matter what your enterprise. • Both in church agencies and in business, deeds are more powerful than words in sharing one’s faith. People notice your faith witness if it is lived.
I have a life-long mission to not accept that there has to be a gap between business and church people. Once we understand that our Christian vocation is first and primary, appropriate occupational choices come naturally.
Working in both for-profit and not-for-profit enterprises has helped keep the focus on my Christian vocation. My faith has been nurtured in all my involvements. ◆
Herman Bontrager is CEO of Goodville Mutual Casualty Company, New Holland, Pa. His article is adapted from a talk he presented to the Lancaster MEDA Chapter in its breakfast series on Faith and Work.
The kids are watching
What message are you sending about the work you do?
If you are a parent, you send a lot of “work messages” to your children. They pick things up from what you say and do. You are their primary teacher about “calling” in the world of work.
If your work makes you feel happy and fulfi lled, they too may look forward to joining the work force some day. But if you usually come home miserable, they may develop negative images about work, and likely won’t think of it as a place to minister and manifest Christian values.
Even people who like their jobs can unwittingly send a negative message to their children if all they do at home is grumble about a lazy co-worker or bad boss. “Attitudes are like garlic. They ooze from our pores even when we don’t realize it,” says social worker Gary Direnfeld (quoted in The Globe & Mail).
Here’s a chance to test yourself by answering this quiz put together by career expert Dr. Barbara Moses.
. Do your children know what you do professionally? 2. Do your children know where you work? . From listening to you talk about work, would your kids conclude that you like your work? 4. Do you check your BlackBerry, e-mail or voice mail while engaging in family activities? . Do you make a point of discussing money with your kids so that they have a realistic understanding of fi nances? 6. When you come home from work, are you so bagged that you have little left to give your kids? 7. Do you often complain about your job, boss, colleagues and clients? 8. Do your children know what you fi nd rewarding about your job? 9. Do you spend quantity time, as well as quality time, with your children? 0. Would you be disappointed if your kids chose a less-ambitious or lower-paid professional path? . When you return from work, can you put to bed whatever work problems you are grappling with? 2. Do your kids think that your job takes precedence over them? . Do you feel uncomfortable or think it crude to talk about money around the kids? 4. Do you frequently use words like “jerk” or “idiot” to describe people you work with when kids are within earshot? . When you have a problem or confl ict at work, do you show your kids how you are trying to solve it? 6. Do you ever use long-suffering or victim language such as, “I have to go to work or my boss will be angry with me” or “I hate my job but what can I do about it?” 7. Do you frequently boast about your title or salary? 8. Do you say “no” to non-emergency work requests that infringe on family time? 9. Are your kids fi nancially literate? 20. Do your kids understand that all jobs have some frustrations? 2. Would you be happy if your children showed the same attitudes and behaviors related to work and home life as you do? 22. Are you distracted by or do you think about work problems when you are spending time with your children? 2. From your family’s perspective, do you model a balanced work and home life? 24. Do you constantly moan about your job but do nothing to change it? 2. Do your children feel that your career expectations of them put them under too much pressure or are unrealistic?
Here are tips from career expert Barbara Moses:
Setting the right example
Do
Talk to your kids about work: Let them know what you do, where you work, the nature of your responsibilities and how you interact with others.
Offer a balanced view: Talk about the rewards as well as the challenges. A compliment from the boss or a great presentation should be shared along with stories about projects that failed or colleagues you don’t like.
Honor family commitments: Push back against unreasonable work demands. Do not check BlackBerry, e-mail or voice mail or allow your mind to drift to work during family time.
Model healthy attitudes: Don’t come home every day looking completely defeated or constantly complaining.
Show problem-solving skills: Discuss job confl icts and explain how you are resolving them.
Don’t
Respond effectively to adversity: If you’ve had a setback, don’t walk around the house moping. Instead, show how you’re trying to fix the problem and demonstrate optimism that your efforts will succeed.
Tailor your message to the age of your child: A five-year-old doesn’t need to know that you are worried about your job; a 15-year-old can handle it, especially if you explain how you’re dealing with it.
Talk about money: Kids need to develop a realistic understanding about income and work.
Draw positive parallels between your work and their school: Make comparisons such as both of you getting to learn new things.
Spend quantity as well as quality time: Kids aren’t programmed to turn on and off like taps according to your schedule. Fancy vacations do not replace regular daily interaction.
Act on career desires: Don’t complain endlessly about hating your job. Show your kids how you are either trying to improve it or are looking for alternative employment.
If you answered Yes to questions 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 9, 11, 15, 18, 19, 20, 21 and 23, and No to 4, 6, 7, 10, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 22, 24 and 25, you are doing a great job of modeling healthy work attitudes. On items where you scored differently, think about what you can do to change your behavior. Avoid talking about work or make it look simple: Your kids will develop a slanted view about the ability to always be successful. They will also think that everything should come easily.
Complain about job demands: An endless litany about how you work too hard for what you are paid will leave your kids thinking either that employers are abusive or that you are a pushover.
Moan about co-workers or bosses: Kids need to understand that no workplace is perfect and that there will always be people you don’t like. At the same time, they also need to know there are people you enjoy being with.
Use suffering language: Instead of saying, “Mommy has to go to work,” say, “Mommy wants to go to work.”
Use anxiety-inducing words about money: For instance, if you lose your job, reassure your kids that life as they know it will not change drastically.
Cling to a job you hate: Bad work is toxic. By moving on, you demonstrate that nobody deserves an unfulfilling job, and that you have the power to change your situation. ◆
Barbara Moses, Ph.D, is an international speaker, work/life expert, and best-selling author of Dish: Midlife Women Tell the Truth About Work, Relationships, and the Rest of Life and What Next? Find the Work That’s Right for You. For more: www.bmoses.com
Auction fever
Churchly commercialism and just desserts
by Wally Kroeker
Ithink Jesus was on to something when he chased the moneychangers out of the temple. The church is no place to do business. Not, at least, a pie auction. Her cherry pie, however, was among the last to go on the block, long after those with criss-cross crusts and curls of dark chocolate
The intention was noble enough — to raise had vanished. money for the young people to attend a youth I made it my cause to go after convention. People were asked to bake pies that it, and got it for $60. would be auctioned at outrageous prices. At home I wasted no time.
Since our kids are grown I contended that Lunch had been light, and even we had paid our dues in the youth department cherry pie was better than no pie. and could sit and watch. My dear wife, she of I peeled back the plastic wrap and more expansive spirit, proceeded to create not excavated a large wedge. For mere one but two pies for the auction. cherry it looked pretty fine.
The first would be a plain cherry, and for that The first forkful gave me I was willing to abide her do-gooder inclinations. pause. This was the best cherry pie
But then, doubtless as a rebuke for my I’d ever had. curmudgeonly thoughts, she would make the Not really. Clearly, someone second one of saskatoons. had switched the labels, either by
Now, to non-prairie folk the word saskatoon mistake or by mischief. What I had may simply denote a pleasant city on the banks before me was saskatoon pie. of the Saskatchewan River. But to us it means I don’t usually say grace for a luscious purple berry, packed with flavor and dessert, but in this case I was wild intrigue. I’ve always thought the Creator tempted as there seemed no other was showing off when he made them. explanation for the switch than
Saskatoons are persnickety. They grow when divine favor. I was ecstatic. they feel like it, and some years don’t show up For me that would have been at all. They are a precious fruit, not given to the the end of it, but not for my wife, wanton commercialism of an auction. for whom this transaction did not
So I was chagrined that my wife would dig compute. The Peters family had into our precious freezer stash so young people could go paid $110 for a premium pie and received mere cherry to a convention and pay for hotel rooms they probably instead. wouldn’t use anyway. At least not to sleep in. “It’s for a good cause,” I said, wiping scarlet juice
My protests were ignored. from my lips.
We brought the pies to church, me scowling and my In minutes she was on the phone explaining to the wife glistening with selfless virtue. Peters family there had been no intention to deceive.
She had to leave early for another errand of mercy, They, having abundantly more, um, fruits of the spirit and I was left to preside alone. Now, at previous auctions than I, accepted the explanation — and substitute pie I often felt sorry for bakers whose offerings fetched a low — with good humor. price. I have been known to bid up a lonely pie, then bail Far better humor than I, however, when I learned my out before the gavel comes down. wife had decided to right the scales of justice by yet again
I resolved to not let the saskatoon pie go cheap. plundering our store of summer berries and making an-
No fear of that, it turned out. The auctioneer made other pie for the Peterses — this one the genuine article. quite a fuss that this was a saskatoon pie, and the berry The saskatoon rack in our freezer now had two gaping season was long past and wouldn’t be back for months. holes, like missing front teeth. In no time my wife’s pie soared to $110, somewhat ame- I could only hope the youngsters had a good time at liorating my sense of loss. their convention. ◆
Was it by mistake, mischief or divine favor that someone had switched the labels on the pies?
