Featured Story

KIDPRENEUR: A New Perspective of Early Childhood Education Programs

Written by: 
Corrie De Boer & Chonabelle Domingo

The Psalmist wrote about the activity of God in the womb this way:
Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out;
you formed me in my mother’s womb.
I thank you, High God—you’re breathtaking!
Body and soul, I am marvelously made!
I worship in adoration—what a creation!
You know me inside and out,
you know every bone in my body;
You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit,
how I was sculpted from nothing into something.
Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth;
all the stages of my life were spread out before you,
The days of my life all prepared
before I’d even lived one day.
Psa. 139:14-16 The Message

Christmas is being celebrated around the world in December and January depending on whose calendar year you are looking at.  It is a time for family gatherings, corporate joy, presents for children and of course worship of our Lord’s entrance into earth as an infant over two thousand years ago. The text of his birth in Matthew, Luke and John tell us, he came with a DNA imprint which made his purpose, mission, talents and skills unique and powerful.  However, when you look at his birth story and compare it to his cousin John, who we call The Baptist; you will discover that they were both

  • raised in the same time period,
  • lived in the same region of the world,
  • nurtured in the same extended family system,
  • and they were both filled with the same Spirit while in their Mother’s wombs.

Yet, their calling, mission, vision and life approach were so very different from one another and the way they lived out their callings actually caused confusion between the two of them.   That confusion can be felt as you read about John sitting in prison where he raises the question to Jesus through his disciples are you really who we thought you were? (Matt. 11:1-3) This is all part of the Christmas narrative. Some of the TOW study done by doctoral students at BGU has been focused on what we have chosen to call the mystery of “Womb Theology” where what happened to John and Jesus is explored and applied to every womb in the world as the Palmist wrote in Psalm 139. 

It is with this part of the Christmas story in mind that we share this incredible story of Mission Ministries Philippines (MMP) that is taking seriously the idea that every child is created in the image of God, to be co-creators with God in this world.   They have started a Gospel movement of pre-schools where children are more than poor needy kids who need handouts; they are helping them become what Dr.Gregg Keen called “agents of community transformation” by teaching TOW concepts to 3-5 year old children in over 1000 preschools nestled into the sums of Manila.  Enjoy this wonderful Christmas story!

Mission Ministries Philippines (MMP) has worked to bring hope to the children in the slums of Manila for over 30 years under the direction of Drs. Stewart and Corrie De Boer.  Their preschool team is headed by Ms Chona Domingo. Together they have planted over 1000 preschools in those slums taking the good news of God’s engagement with Children by developing these education centers in places of incredible poverty and chaos.  Read the article below explaining their country’s view of education of young children and take the time to read the answers given to some questions about the article given by Chona Domingo and Corrie De Boer that will further clarify the wonderful story of the KIDPRENEUR Curriculum that could be available for you to use in your setting.  MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Featured Book

Church for Monday by Dr. Svetlana Papazov

Note: Below  is the excerpt from Church for Monday by Dr. Sveltana Papazov.  To purchase the book, go to churchformonday.com

 At Real Life, the church I started and pastor in Midlothian, VA, we have embraced the biblical mandate for work and fostering next-generation creativity and have developed a hands-on entrepreneurial program that teaches the value of work, faith, and innovation. For kids, we offer Real Life KidPreneurs and for teens Real Life TeenPreneurs. In this program elementary, middle school, and high school students are trained in faith and entrepreneurship during the year. Students develop business plans and present them to friends from the community in a “Shark Tank” environment. For adult entrepreneurs we offer business training and speaking coaching.

These are some of the ways we embed ourselves in the economy. How do you envision your local church embedding itself in the marketplace?

Announcement

Submission of 2020 International Theology of Work Grant Applications is now open.  

Notice: 
please go to the TOW Grant Application for guidelines.

For other questions, please email Dr. Lowell Bakke:  

Dennis Bakke's Resources

Document Resources
Download Link Subject
Decision Maker (Slides) v. 1
pdf
 Free to Download Theology of Work
Decision Maker Bible Study
pdf
 Free to Download Theology of Work
Joy at Work (Postscript)
pdf
 Free to Download Theology of Work

Video Resources
Download Link Subject
Joy at Work (Seminar Video)
This is a set of 9 videos of Joy at Work Seminar by Dennis Bakke
 Watch on YouTube Theology of Work

Audio Resources
Download Link Subject
Joy at Work Audiobook
Audio Link: 
Joy at Work Audiobook (the complete set of 1-57 tracks)

This is the audiobook version of Joy at Work by Dennis Bakke, narrated by Dennis Bakke, 9 hours 28 minutes.

To download one track at a time, click on the link provided.  This will take you to a folder in mediafire with all 57 tracks.  Click on each title to download.

To download the whole folder, click on the green button with the down arrow at the right top of the page in mediafire.

 Download this audiobook Joy at Work

Book Resources
Download Link Subject
Joy at Work: A Revolutionary Approach To Fun on the Job
Book Description: 

Imagine a company where people love coming to work and are highly productive on a daily basis. Imagine a company whose top executives, in a quest to create the most "fun" workplace ever, obliterate labor-management divisions and push decision-making responsibility down to the plant floor. Could such a company compete in today's bottom-line corporate world? Could it even turn a profit? Well, imagine no more.

In Joy at Work, Dennis W. Bakke tells the true story of this extraordinary company--and how, as its co-founder and longtime CEO, he challenged the business establishment with revolutionary ideas that could remake America's organizations. It is the story of AES, whose business model and operating ethos -"let's have fun"-were conceived during a 90-minute car ride from Annapolis, Maryland, to Washington, D.C. In the next two decades, it became a worldwide energy giant with 40,000 employees in 31 countries and revenues of $8.6 billion. It's a remarkable tale told by a remarkable man: Bakke, a farm boy who was shaped by his religious faith, his years at Harvard Business School, and his experience working for the Federal Energy Administration. He rejects workplace drudgery as a noxious remnant of the Industrial Revolution. He believes work should be fun, and at AES he set out to prove it could be. Bakke sought not the empty "fun" of the Friday beer blast but the joy of a workplace where every person, from custodian to CEO, has the power to use his or her God-given talents free of needless corporate bureaucracy.

In Joy at Work, Bakke tells how he helped create a company where every decision made at the top was lamented as a lost chance to delegate responsibility--and where all employees were encouraged to take the "game-winning shot," even when it wasn't a slam-dunk. Perhaps Bakke's most radical stand was his struggle to break the stranglehold of "creating shareholder value" on the corporate mind-set and replace it with more timeless values: integrity, fairness, social responsibility, and a sense of fun.

 Free to Download Theology of Work
The Decision Maker
The Decision Maker by Dennis Bakke
Book Description: 

Who makes the important decisions in your organization? Strategy, product development, budgeting, compensation—such key decisions typically are made by company leaders. That’s what bosses are for, right? But maybe the boss isn’t the best person to make the call.
That’s the conclusion Dennis Bakke came to, and he used it to build AES into a Fortune 200 global power company with 27,000 people in 27 countries. He used it again to create Imagine Schools, the largest non-profit charter-school network in the U.S.
As a student at Harvard Business School, Bakke made hundreds of decisions using the case-study method. He realized two things: decision-making is the best way to develop people; and that shouldn't stop at business school. So Bakke spread decision-making throughout his organizations, fully engaging people at all levels. Today, Bakke has given thousands of people the freedom and responsibility to make decisions that matter.
In The Decision Maker, a leadership fable loosely based on Bakke's experience, the New York Times bestselling author shows us how giving decisions to the people closest to the action can transform any organization.
The idea is simple.
The results are powerful.
When leaders put real control into the hands of their people, they tap incalculable potential. The Decision Maker, destined to be a business classic, holds the key to unlocking the potential of every person in your organization.

 Free to Download Theology of Work, Joy at Work