Digital Commons Network^™

Cultural Landscaping Of North Korea: Preparing For Mission Engagement Through Large-Scale Defector Insights On Economy And Society, Soo Min James Park

Great Commission Research Journal

North Korea is one of the world’s most closed societies, yet history shows that closed systems can shift rapidly. A sudden opening through political change, humanitarian crisis, or expanded cross-border engagement could expose millions to unprecedented cultural, social, and spiritual influences. While earlier mission research relied primarily on anecdotal testimonies or small-sample studies, this study draws on the most comprehensive resource available to date, in-depth surveys of 6,351 North Korean defectors released in 2025 by South Korea’s Ministry of Unification. Through thematic analysis, the study conducts cultural deductions across nine categories, including five of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, cultural tightness/looseness, communication …

How The Economic Mindset Impedes The Faithful Practice Of The Missional Call A Case Study Of The Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus Global Mission Endeavors, Wondimu M. Game

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

Wondimu M. Game, “How the Economic Mindset Impedes the Faithful Practice of the Missional Call: A Case Study of the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus Global Mission Endeavors,” PhD Dissertation, Concordia Seminary, 2026, 278 pp.

This study examines the theological and missiological foundations of the indigenous church in light of the Venn–Anderson three-self principles of self-governance, self-support, and self-propagation. While these principles have shaped Protestant mission practice, their application has often become structural and economic rather than ecclesial and theological, In some contexts, this has contributed to patterns of financial dependency and weakened local initiative due to an impoverished economic …

La Contextualización De Las Misiones Cristianas En Quito, Ecuador: Celebrar La Cultura Al Comunicar La Verdad, Sarah Huneycutt

Senior Honors Theses

Sin un conocimiento adecuado de cómo contextualizar su ministerio en contextos culturales únicos, los misioneros no podrán honrar a la gente local, llegar a sus corazones e invitar a todas naciones a la meta unida de glorificar a Dios. Aunque bien existen muchos recursos sobre regiones amplias o aun continentales, pocos existen que ofrezcan una comprensión de comunidades específicas. Para rellenar este vacío, la investigación actual intentó recopilar información sobre una región especifica—Quito, Ecuador—y examinar las implicaciones para misiones cristianas actuales en Quito.

Para contestar estas preguntas, se realizó un estudio etnográfico cualitativo mientras que la investigadora vivía en Quito. …

The Relationship Between Evangelism And Social Action, Isaac Rex

Mission Theology & Strategy Papers

Evangelicals take multiple perspectives on the relationship between social action and evangelism. However, all evangelicals tend to agree that both evangelism and social action are deeply important. This paper examines the relationship between evangelism and social action while both affirming the priority of evangelism and the necessity of social action.

Book Review: Mission In Praise, Word, And Deed: Reflections On The Past And Future Of Global Mission Edited By Edward L. Smither And Jessica A. Udall, Nathaniel (Than) Veltman

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Business As Ministry In The Us Rural Midwest For The Common Good, Eric Zhong-Ming Ma

Business as Mission Theses and Dissertations

The rural Midwest region of the United States serves as a significant locus for American history, culture, and faith, in addition to being renowned as the nation’s primary agricultural hub for maize and soybeans production. Nevertheless, the prevailing body of literature pertaining to the integration of business and Christian ministry for the common good predominantly represented the viewpoints of individuals engaged in international missions or those involved in urban settings regarding the underlying purposes of business. Limited knowledge existed regarding the practices and perceptions of business as ministry stakeholders in the rural Midwestern United States concerning the concept of the …

Book Review: New Funding Models In Global Mission: Learning From The Majority World By Tim Welch, John Cheong

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Exploring The Impacts Of Funding Models On Business As Mission Organizations In Asia: A Multiple-Case Study, Jeremiah Joel Finch

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

In a 2014 research study, Dr. Steve Rundle examined the impacts of business-funded versus donor-funded business as mission (BAM) organizations. The research study answers Dr. Rundle’s call for further research on funding models, and the findings from the study help to fill in gaps in the social-entrepreneurship (SE) and BAM literature. BAM organizations, like other SE-oriented organizations, seek to achieve success in multiple bottom lines. The qualitative, multiple-case study utilized a theoretical replication design to explore differences between donor-funded and business-funded BAM organizations in Asia. Specifically, the research study explored principles related to BAM funding methodology’s impact on economic outcomes …

Book Review: Missions And Money: Global Realities And Challenges By Jonathan J. Bonk, Michel G. Distefano, J. Nelson Jennings, Jinbong Kim, And Jae Hoon Lee, Gregory C. Cochran

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Legitimate Business As Mission Ventures And Effective Witness, Summer Rogers

Senior Honors Theses

This thesis discusses the practice of missionaries creating cover businesses solely for visa purposes, which brings a dishonest presence and harms the ministry. In contrast, Business as Mission (BAM) is a strategic business model to bring the gospel overseas through social, economic, and spiritual impact. Through a literature review, best practices for legitimate BAM ventures are explored based on studies done by BAM professionals and experts. Research shows that Christian businesspeople can establish an authentic image and credible witness through BAM businesses that are integrated into the local community, generate a profit, and incorporate biblical principles into business operations. BAM …

Equipping Marketplace Ministers For Unity: The Need For Ministry Leaders To Model Interdenominational Partnership, Eric Laudenslager

The Asbury Journal

In recent decades, the marketplace ministry (MPM) movement has made significant progress. A predominant theme in the current discussion is a focus on how to support individuals in their place of work. While this renewed attention to supporting laity is an important change, it should be asked whether strategies that focus on the individual alone reflect the pragmatic needs of MPMs or the role models put forward in the NT. This paper will review a case study of a MPM team and how a team based approach contributed to the longevity of the ministry. It will then examine the responsibility …

Sacred Business: Outlining Business As Mission For The Fulfillment Of The Great Commission, Eli Jackson

Senior Honors Theses

Business as Mission (BAM) is the operation of a for-profit business located in a cross-cultural setting and aimed toward the fulfillment of the great commission. This definition reveals four key success factors for BAM: support, financial and otherwise, for both the business and the missionaries; the ability to gain access to cross-cultural settings; the opportunity to advance the gospel; and the requirement of managing both missional and business goals. Examining each of these areas, along with the historical effectiveness of BAM, reveals that BAM is an efficient and effective missional strategy, which should be used to see the Great Commission …

The Continuity Mindset For Christian Mission, Jack T. Davison

Great Commission Research Journal

Missionaries from the Global North regularly serve as trainers for Christians in the Global South. From personal experience, missionaries are regularly seen as being qualified to do this work simply because of their position. Rather than missionaries assuming they are competent purely on the basis of their titles, I believe they should instead practice the Continuity Mindset for Christian Mission, a mindset that emphasizes the continuity of one’s identity and ministry in one’s home culture with one’s identity and ministry in the host culture. This practice includes elements of vulnerable mission, nonresidential mission, tentmaking, cultural intelligence, and authentic leadership. I …

Volunteering Abroad : Best Practices For Connecting The Gifts And Skills Of North American Christians With The Expressed Needs Of The Global Church, Bruce Wilson

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Faith-Based Social Entrepreneurial Orientation: A Case Study Of Evangelicals, Richard Clark

Business as Mission Theses and Dissertations

The focus of this study is the experiences of eight individual evangelical social entrepreneurs within their congregations. What type of legitimacy do they seek and/or receive for? Do they sense any pressure to conform/motivations to act relative to their congregation’s values/identity? Do these relationships encourage or discourage their entrepreneurial orientation/intensity and in what ways?

The primary research question is “how does embeddedness in an evangelical faith community affect the experiences and expression of social entrepreneurial orientation and intensity for evangelical faith-based social entrepreneurs, if at all?”

The study identifies three types of congregations in terms of their relationship to the …

Toward Ten Thousand Tozers, Jayden Wilhelm, Hank Voss

Presentations

No abstract provided.

Complete Issue, David R. Dunaetz Editor

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

China’S Belt And Road Initiative: Mission Opportunities And Challenges, Paul Lee

Great Commission Research Journal

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is an infrastructure project proposed by China to improve transportation in Eurasia. This will bring both mission opportunities and challenges in the regions affected. God is perhaps giving Christians a unique opportunity for evangelism through this project which facilitates the movement of not just humans and products, but also the gospel.

Justice And Righteousness For Creation, Renita Reed-Thomson

Business as Mission Theses and Dissertations

A hymn entitled “This Is My Father’s World,” written by Maltbie Davenport Babcock around the year 1901, includes the words: “This Is My Father’s World, O let me ne’er forget…” Unfortunately, many Christians seem to have forgotten that this world belongs to their Heavenly Father. Justice for the poor and the environment has been neglected as Christians pursue economic and material gain, as well as the church’s pursuit of converts over disciples. That the Protestant Evangelical Church may have forgotten the creation may be a surprising point for some given that it has a reputation for caring for the poor …

More Than A Means To An End : The Practice Of Bi-Vocational Ministry Among Missionaries In Northern Nigeria, Oludamilohun Adeliyi

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Pentecostal Collaboration: A Pragmatic Necessity Or A Spiritual Principle?, Arto Hamalainen

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

No abstract provided.

Engaging The Poor: Leveraging Local Poverty Assistance Programs To Prepare For Global Engagement, Darren Hercyk

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

With globalization, there has been an explosion in travel by academic institutions and the church. For the church, this growth has been in short-term mission trips. Unlike traditional missionaries, most short-term travelers are untrained or lightly trained laypersons. The purpose of this phenomenological qualitative study was to understand how local poverty assistance programs could be leveraged to prepare the church today for global engagement. This study provided ten church volunteers with training that included a Scripture overview of the poor, the multidimensional factors of poverty, reducing harm in poverty programs, and the skills for affirming dignity during an interview. Following …

Faith In The Marketplace : Measuring The Impact Of Church Based Entrepreneurial Approaches To Holistic Mission, Samuel Lee

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Faith-Based Social Entrepreneurship: The Integration Of Faith And Business For Sustainable Social Impact, Christine Beech

Business as Mission Theses and Dissertations

Faith-based nonprofit organizations face myriad challenges in securing a sufficient donation base within a restricted pool of donors. This funding challenge often limits their ability to conduct their mission. To offset this challenge and model self-sufficiency, many faith-based organizations are looking to evolve into hybrid platforms that operate as faith-based social entrepreneurial ventures and manage to a triple bottom line of social good, financial impact, and spiritual mission. Yet even with the best of intentions, successfully merging a for-profit business model into a preexisting nonprofit organization often fails, even before the faith-factor is in play. This study of social entrepreneurship …

Entrepreneurial Church Planting (Ecp) As A Model Of Fresh Expressions In The South Korean Context : Case Studies Exploring Relationships Between Church Planting And Social Capital, Sang Rak Joo

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

An Eschatological Framework For Assessing The Effectiveness Of Business As Mission Companies, Samuel Lee

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

From The Editor, Robert Danielson

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

Journal In Entirety

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

Business As Mission And Mission As Business: Case Studies Of Financially Sustainable Christian Mission Ventures With A Focus On Anglican Dioceses In East Africa, Dennis Obura Tongoi

Business as Mission Theses and Dissertations

Anglican dioceses established by The Church Mission Society and other Western-founded Christian denominations in East Africa were envisaged to grow and become self-governing, self-propagating and self-supporting. The first two goals (to be self-governing and self-propagating) have more or less been achieved. The third goal (the pursuit of self-support) is at a critical stage, especially considering that resources, in terms of funding and personnel, are in decline. This research sought to document the factors that contribute to, or hinder, the role that lay people (business people in particular) can play in sustaining the ministry and mission of Anglican dioceses. The research …

From Mcgavran’S Church Growth To Taber’S Kingdom Of God Tracing Distinct Missiological Trajectories In Undergraduate And Graduate Mission And Intercultural Studies Programs In Christian Churches/ Churches Of Christ Instiutions, Kevin (Kip) Lines Phd

Papers

No abstract provided.