REFLECTIONS FROM THE EDITOR KRISTYN KOMARNICKI
A Bull Market in Bear Times Those who have the habit of starting their day by confirming their value to God in the Scriptures have had a lot more peace of mind lately than those who start their day by checking their stock values in the newspaper. If the financial turmoil of the past few months has taught us anything, it’s that security is elusive. The only dividends that really pay are the ones that result from Christ’s investment in us, and this painful but poignant reminder should give us pause to rethink not only our retirement plans but our whole worldview as well. Our cover story looks at a number of Christian businesspeople who, due directly to their understanding of the high price Christ paid, hold a unique view of the bottom line. Like other entrepreneurs, they seek to turn a profit and are always on the lookout for a sound investment in which to place their assets. But their goal in all of this is what sets them apart, for instead of working to maximize only (or even mostly) their financial profits, they seek also (and most of all) to maximize human transformation. You’ll learn about a large conveyor belt company that builds careers for residents of one of the nation’s poorest zip codes and a Texas tycoon who uses his connections to upgrade the Dallas public school system.You’ll meet professionals who “power lunch” with inner-city teens, and the owner of an upscale coffee company who’s found a way to serve 30 meals to orphans in Swaziland for every pound of beans he sells. You’ll read how small businesses are partnering with a Chicago church to train up new employees and even build affordable homes.You’ll hear about “social business,” the latest brainchild of microfinance guru/2006 Nobel
Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus. The businesspeople in our cover story share a strong preference for empowerment over charity, a preference also shared by the two outreaches to the homeless that we feature in this issue. Both Project H.O.M.E. in Philadelphia and the Night Ministry in San Francisco start with the premise that the poor are not objects to be managed, serviced, or pitied but human beings to be respected, engaged, and loved. “Behold I do not give lectures or a little charity,When I give I give myself,”
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:19-21
wrote Walt Whitman. This is an excellent description of what Jesus does. But while Jesus gives himself freely to all who ask, he always makes it clear that there is a cost to receiving what he so freely gives. Do you want to enjoy the banquet? You must drop all your plans and go immediately to the party. Do you want to be healed? You must articulate your desire for healing and trust him to provide it (two things that seem so simple but can prove so difficult!). Jesus disperses the accusers of the woman caught in PRISM 2008
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adultery—but subsequently asks her to sin no more. He acknowledges Zacchaeus up in the tree—but then asks him for lunch, an experience that prompts the tax collector, in a convulsion of joy and gratitude, to promise restitution (and then some) to those he’d cheated. The cost to the recipients of Jesus’ love varies in detail, but it always requires ultimately that they be willing to be transformed. It is this exchange, this invitation to relationship that marks the difference between transformation and charity. Whether we find ourselves in the business world, in the nonprofit world, or just in our neighborhood, our approach should always be that of Jesus. Like him, we offer our gifts freely to others— friendship, skills, resources, opportunities—but never without the invitation to connect, reach, grow, learn, transform. Some people, maybe a lot of people, will turn you down; others will let you down and leave you feeling used. Jesus understands. He sees a lot of that, but it doesn’t affect his posture; he remains openhanded, inviting. As our sisters from International Justice Mission remind us in “Building the Kingdom, Prayer upon Prayer,” God initiates everything; he moves toward us. We love because he first loved us; we pray because he first invites us to speak with him. We have something to offer because he increased our value by investing in us. What are you investing in these days? In the people that God has placed in your life? In the marginalized folks that reside on the streets of your city? In prayer? Thankfully, these types of investments are invulnerable to fluctuating markets. And unlike AIG and Wachovia, they are eternal. n
NEW RESOURCE! Check out the discussion questions for this issue of PRISM at esa-online.org/PRISM DiscussionNovDec08