God Is At Work: Transforming People and Nations through Business

by Ken Eldred

Overview

Global business has the potential to bring biblical cultural values, greater economic prosperity and blessings to the nations of the world. It's already happening in innovative undertakings, such as ET, a call center business in India where at least 60 percent of the employees call themselves Christians. Modeling biblical principles and recognized for its world-class level of service, this successful company has created jobs, built a profitable business, strengthened the local church and seen people decide to follow Jesus. 

In God Is at Work, Ken Eldred examines how God is transforming people and nations through companies like ET amidst an emerging missions movement called "Kingdom business." Challenging the view that capitalism and biblical principles cannot coexist, Kingdom business is achieving economic and spiritual transformation around the globe and is welcomed even by developing nations that are traditionally closed to the gospel. This unprecedented book gives a comprehensive overview of Kingdom business, its objectives and approaches. Ken Eldred's personal experience, as well as other Kingdom business efforts around the world, highlights this integrated missions movement, a unique combination of missions, successful business practices and economic development. 

Learn how leaders of developing nations around the world, some of whom are Muslims, are inviting Christian business leaders to come into their countries and bring needed spiritual capital and business principles to create greater economic opportunities for their people. Discover the role of Kingdom business professionals in advising, funding and operating for-profit enterprises of varying sizes and types. See what happens when God is at work giving individuals the opportunity to participate with Him in Kingdom business, one of the greatest missions endeavors of the twenty-first century. 

The opportunities to advance the cause of Christ have never been greater. We are called to act now.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780984091102
Publisher:	Burkhart Books
Publication date:	01/01/2005
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	336
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	3 Months to 18 Years

About the Author

Mr. Eldred has founded numerous successful companies, including Ariba Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: ARBA), the leader in the Internet business-to-business industry, and Inmac, which went public in 1987 and later merged with Micro Warehouse. He was named Silicon Valley "Entrepreneur of the Year" in 1988. Internationally, Mr. Eldred is co-founder and director of Epicenter Technologies, a 1,000-person call center business based in India. He has also founded other ventures in Europe and China.

Currently, Mr. Eldred is an investor and founder/CEO of Living Stones Foundation Charitable Trust, where he focuses his efforts primarily on charitable projects. He serves on the Board of Advisors for Crosspoint Venture Partners, named by Forbes as the most successful venture firm for three years in a row. Mr. Eldred is also chairman of Parakletos Venture Capital. He is in much demand as a speaker and as an advisor to various business ventures.

Mr. Eldred holds a B.A. and an M.B.A. from Stanford University. He was the Lauder Executive-in-Residence at Auburn University School of Business and was named a Hoover Fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution.

Mr. Eldred is the author of God Is at Work: Transforming People and Nations Through Business (Regal Books, 2005; Manna, 2009), named the number one book in the field by the Business as Mission Network, and the co-editor of On Kingdom Business: Transforming Missions through Entrepreneurial Strategies (Crossway Books, 2003), winner of a 2004 Christianity Today Book Award. He has been profiled in Executive Influence by Christopher A. Crane and Mike Hamel (NavPress, 2003).
 

Read an Excerpt

Author’s Note

In early 1848, gold was found during the construction of a new lumber mill on the American River in Coloma, California. It took two months for news to reach San Francisco, where it was greeted with skepticism. Several months later, a man waved a bottle of gold dust and shouted, "Gold! Gold from the American River!" and San Francisco caught gold fever. Crewmen abandoned ships in the harbor and went off in search of gold. Teachers left their classrooms to head for the golden hills. Within a month, the California Star newspaper reported that seaports, towns and ranches all over the state had "become suddenly drained of human beings."

I believe the opportunity in Kingdom business is every bit as exciting as the Gold Rush! In many ways, I feel like one of the early pioneers in California’s Gold Country, recounting exciting discoveries, telling of wonderful opportunities, and providing a map for others who wish to come. In particular, this book provides the following:

• Some foundational groundwork that addresses the language, definition, theology, historical perspective, structure and promise of Kingdom business

• Exciting examples of diverse Kingdom business ventures that are advancing the church all over the developing world

• A framework for understanding how Kingdom business is becoming a major missions thrust of the Church

• Guidance for Christians who are interested in participating in and supporting Kingdom business efforts worldwide

• A lexicon of terminology and a structure for Kingdom business in order to stimulate further thinking, research and discussion

Seizing the Opportunity

Businessmen and women are people of action. As entrepreneurs, they charge full speed ahead, seizing on business or ministry needs and objectives. Successful shoe salesman Dwight L. Moody became a great nineteenth-century evangelist, and hard-charging entrepreneur Bill Bright went on to found Campus Crusade for Christ. Sensing a specific spiritual need, these men used skills honed in the business world to establish successful ministries.

Today, a growing number of business people who are every bit as committed to the Great Commission (see Matt. 28:19-20) are taking a slightly different approach. Unlike Moody and Bright, they are opting to remain in the business arena. They are using commerce and business development themselves as vehicles for blessing a people and bringing the gospel of Jesus. The approaches are varied, as are the needs that are being met. Some sense the vision of enabling the poor to engage in small entrepreneurial ventures. Others are seeking to create jobs by assisting and growing small- and medium-size businesses. Yet others are involved in operating larger ventures that have the potential to influence entire cities and industries.

Clearly, Kingdom business is a major opportunity, and the key will be the response of the Church. We can fight it—or we can see the opportunity in it. Perhaps more than any other missions movement, effective Kingdom business requires support and involvement from a wide range of members of the Body of Christ. It is my prayer that as you read this book, you consider how God might use your gifts, training and passion to advance His Kingdom through business.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"Ken Eldred’s God Is at Work is a remarkable achievement and a gift to the Body of Christ. It is nothing short of a comprehensive theology of business as a calling but also as a Kingdom change agent. This book is a must-read for those who sense God’s call to a business career as well as for those with a pastoral calling who desire greater insight into the major focus of the majority of those who make up their congregations. It is among the finest books of its kind that I have encountered in my 35 years pursuing my own business calling."

Edward G. Atsinger III

President and CEO, Salem Communications Corporation

Camarillo, California

"This is more than a book. It is a handbook! Comprehensive, clear, compelling and carefully thought out, God Is at Work breaks new ground. ‘The opportunity is ripe for Kingdom business,’ and so is the timing for this expansive and valuable work."

John D. Beckett

Chairman, The Beckett Companies, Elyria, Ohio

Author, Loving Monday: Succeeding in Business Without Selling Your Soul

"I am honored to be Ken’s friend, local pastor and occasional hunting buddy. Ken is a global visionary; everything he does, whether business or church ministry, he does with the kingdom of God in mind. This powerful book is a must-read for people who see the ‘big picture.’"

Dick Bernal

Founder and Senior Pastor, Jubilee Christian Center

San Jose, California

"For years, my mission has been to encourage those who have found professional success recognize how their talents and training can further God’s Kingdom. God Is at Work speaks squarely to that objective in a refreshing way—by showing how those in the marketplace can pursue Kingdom business. Ken Eldred lays out the biblical basis for business as ministry and offers practical examples to illustrate how that can be pursued anywhere in the world. I recommend this book to businesspeople seeking to use their abilities and passions for God's glory."

Bob Buford

Founder, The Buford Foundation

Founder, Leadership Network

Author, Halftime and Finishing Well

"Ken Eldred has discovered secrets to prosperity in the kingdom of God and he reveals them in a simple and practical way for each person to take hold and make those blessings become his or her own."

Cesar Castellanos

Founder and Senior Pastor, Mission Charismatic International and G12

"The title says it wonderfully: God is at work and is uniquely using Kingdom business to bring about spiritual, social and economic transformation in our world today. As Ken Eldred shows in this exciting book, artificial barriers between business and missions—between work and faith—are melting, and the Lord is using an unexpected tool—business—to reach the lost."

Christopher A. Crane

President and CEO, Opportunity International

"Ken Eldred has written one of the most profound books that I have read in years. The program outlined in God Is at Work has the potential to revolutionize the missionary work of the Church. Ken shows how it is possible to use business not simply to fund missions, but also to do missions and evangelism more effectively than either could ever be done with the current methods. Moving beyond theory to actual results, Ken demonstrates that business is already being used to extend the kingdom of God in extraordinary ways, even in third world countries. I heartily recommend this book to all Christian businessmen, pastors and church leaders."

Dr. Jack Deere

Pastor and Author, Surprised by the Voice of God and Surprised by the Power of the Spirit

"So often the reaction to economic hardship in our country and abroad is an expectation that the government address the problem through financial aid. In God Is at Work, Ken Eldred has written a compelling case for private citizens becoming part of the solution through business. He is right: Economic and business development must go beyond simply providing financing. Indeed, the backbone of our own country's economic success has been the application of deeply held values and beliefs to business practices. I encourage every businessperson to read this book and get involved—for the sake of our country and the world's future."

Hon. J. Dennis Hastert

Speaker of the House of Representatives

"A meticulous study on God and business, God Is at Work provides both a theological and practical framework for understanding the potential of those in the marketplace to transform the world. This book offers helpful examples and ideas for Kingdom-minded businesspeople in all capacities and markets. As a venture capitalist, I found the practical discussion about Kingdom-focused investing particularly exciting. I have known Ken Eldred for years and can think of no person better suited to write this book. His integration of family life, business life and a passion for God has been a model for me and for others to follow."

Paul Kim

Managing Partner, Parakletos@Ventures

"I have seen the incredible work of God transform Korea from the poorest nation on Earth in 1960 to the twelfth most developed country in the world today. God Is at Work pinpoints what has been the source of our economic success—the tremendous spiritual transformation of a large portion of our population—and shows that such spiritual transformation is the key to successful economic growth in other developing nations. Dr. Cho has always taught that those of us in the business world can advance the work of God through business development, but this book has put meat on that idea. I am so excited about the concept of Kingdom business that I have literally renamed my company to reflect its mission!"

Soon Bae Kim

Head Elder, Yoido Full Gospel Church

Seoul, Korea

"Ken Eldred has written the definitive work on the exciting business-as-missions movement. The movement comes alive through many examples and case studies explained by an accomplished, savvy businessman. But, whereas the participants of this movement may see only their little pieces, Ken has developed a systematic framework that explains how God will use their diverse activities to transform nations economically and spiritually. The book is scholarly in its carefully researched historical and biblical context, practical in its discussion of how to do Kingdom business, and inspirational in its call to action. I will use this book as the main text in my MBA course on Entrepreneurship and Economic Development."

John E. Mulford, Ph.D.

Professor and former Dean, Regent University School of Business

Director, Center for Entrepreneurship and Economic Development

"During 35 years as a venture capitalist, I have found that the most important factor in assessing a new business venture is the venture's team. Before doing business with an entrepreneur, we carefully consider his or her integrity, character and reputation. God Is at Work wonderfully demonstrates that what holds true for winning Silicon Valley start-ups also applies universally to business around the world: Values and culture are foundational to successful business ventures."

John Mumford

Founding and General Managing Partner,

Crosspoint Venture Partners

"All over the world today, God is using a new breed of missionary who has the same heart for service and the same passion to see the Kingdom expanded but is using business to do it. Ken Eldred is part of the leading edge of this Kingdom business movement that is sweeping the globe, bringing jobs, hope and new life in Christ to millions. The Church needs to recognize and embrace this fresh wave. Reading this book is a great way to start!"

Luis Palau

President, Palau Association

"God is presenting a new paradigm for missions in the twenty-first century—that of Kingdom business. In God Is at Work, Ken Eldred takes us step-by-step through this paradigm and explores the role that we as Christians have in this new move of God. God Is at Work will challenge you to see the work of His kingdom in new and powerful ways."

Pat Robertson

Founder and Chairman, The Christian Broadcasting Network

Host, The 700 Club

Author, Bring It On and Courting Disaster

"In God Is at Work, Ken Eldred has captured a paradigm that is absolutely essential for the fulfillment of the Great Commission in our generation: how to use business to influence nations. Ken, a successful entrepreneur who has established successful Kingdom businesses in non-Christian nations, writes with the authority and insight of a seasoned practitioner. This book is a definite must for pulpit and marketplace ministers alike."

Ed Silvoso

President, Harvest Evangelism, Inc.

Author, Anointed for Business

"Ken Eldred is a man focused on God’s heart: missions. It’s going to take major sources of capital to accomplish the task of worldwide evangelization, and Ken has a plan to make that happen. His life is accountable, and his track record is proven. May the Lord multiply Ken’s plan and concept ‘a thousand times more’ (Deut. 1:10, NKJV)."

Larry Stockstill

Pastor, Bethany World Prayer Center

Author, The Cell Church

Editorial Reviews

Business as Mission Network, March 13, 2007

"Every significant movement can point to a book, paper, article or series of all of the above that communicates in one clear voice the vision of a movement... God is at Work by Ken Eldred defines and gives examples for the movement of Business as Mission with clear cut precision.

This has been the [book] brought up most frequently at events or meetings with business and mission agency leadership teams. It’s a great read."

Christianity Today, June 1, 2006

"God Is at Work is a helpful, user-friendly entry to this growing field."

Integra Ventures

"This book provides a comprehensive review of Kingdom business—what it is, how it’s done, and who’s doing it well. Eldred’s personal experience, as well as other Kingdom business efforts around the world, highlight this integrated missions movement, a unique combination of missions, successful business practices and economic development."

From the Publisher