D.Min. Project Prospectus
Sharon L. Smith

I. Title: Bridging the Gap: A Pilot Project Aimed at Mutually Equipping Church and Business Leaders for Kingdom Impact

II. The Context: Followers of Jesus Christ who possess a divine calling, talents, and gifts to work and serve God through specific voluntary or paid vocations in the workplace face daily opportunities to impact the Kingdom of God. When believers walk by faith and obedience in the revelation that God’s divine presence and purpose is with them daily in their work lives, God empowers them to lead change that can transform lives, businesses, and even nations. Believers clearly see this truth in the lives of Abraham, Joseph, Daniel, and Nehemiah. The Great Commission (Matt. 28) commands believers to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every person. This directive includes Holy Spirit-empowered witness in the marketplace with signs, wonders, and the gifts of the Holy Spirit in operation. As His priests (1 Pet. 2:5; Rom. 12:1-2), God calls believers ordained for the twenty-first century workplace to worship and serve Him through their actions, words, and works. God’s Word calls for excellence in whatever a person does (Col. 3:17). Fruitfulness follows when believers root biblical ethics in excellence, and practice it in relationships and business decisions. Anthropologists and missiologists are observing major global shifts causing leaders to revise their understanding of the notion of culture. When business leaders, church leaders, and missiologists consider how to effectively participate and fulfill the mission of God, they face new opportunities and fresh challenges due to the relentless changes in globalization and technological advances in travel, communication, and media. Formidable challenges exist daily for twenty-first century believers called to work in the world.