SINGAPORE, 21 NOVEMBER — MARK 16:15 SAYS, “Go into all the world (kosmos) and preach the gospel to every creature.” This is all about bringing Christ into culture and being in a position of influence, and the very topic of the workshop “Starting a Marketplace Ministry” conducted by Choong Tsih Ming.
  |
Choong was one of the people to spearhead the Business Breakthrough Group (BBG) in 2003. He shared that they started with just 10 people, with five of those being bankrupt at that time. The purpose of BBG was to reach out to the business people in church as most of them could not fit into the normal cell group system. From 10, BBG has grown to 500 people now. They have weekly meetings not to hold business talks, but to preach simple messages on faith, hope and love. An interesting thing to note was that their early BBG meetings only lasted for an hour, but fellowship could continue on for three hours after. BBG even conducted yearly camps to Malaysia just to unwind and relax.
  |
| PHOTOS: Albert Soh |
Choong cited biblical figures like Daniel who gained favor before the king, and real-life examples like Elim Chew who is a top businesswoman who runs a social entrepreneurship program at the same time.
The goal of the marketplace ministry is to equip members to make an impact in the marketplace. And that can only be done by being a problem-solver.
Hendri Suteja The, a full-time pastor in Indonesia, said after this workshop, “This lesson gave me inspiration to manage the business people in my church. A few months ago, God gave me a word to handle the marketplace ministry, but I didn’t know how to start. Now I feel charged up to train up the marketplace people in my church. I feel very blessed by this session.”
