“When it comes to being on mission for Christ, he may not necessarily call us to something different,” said J.D. Payne, keynote speaker for North Greenville University’s 11th annual Global Missions Conference.
J.D. PaynePayne said the Bible often sends believers into the marketplace and uses individuals’ talents to reach unbelievers. Jesus made prophets and apostles from farmers, fishers and tentmakers as well as from religious leaders like Nicodemus. Payne said, “[Having a business platform] gives Christians a legitimate reason to be there, at least in the mind of an unbeliever,” he said.
Even buying coffee can support missionaries. Cup of Hope Coffee is a non-profit organization that sells coffee to churches in the U.S. to raise awareness for missionaries and provides a business platform of employment for long-term missionaries in areas such as East Asia.
The thought of using coffee as a way to to reach people in an anti-Christian environment was revealed to founder Casey Burnett (in attendance for the conference) while he was serving as a Journeyman overseas. “Coffee – is the second most-sought-after commodity in the world next to oil,” Burnett said. Cup of Hope Coffee was just one of 26 mission organizations represented at the Global Missions Conference.
Burnett encouraged students to earn a major in something that is going to benefit the people they are trying to reach. – NGU