Liana Alvarez

A Paradise In Every Heart

April 10, 2018 By Liana Alvarez

What does it mean to “make a paradise in every heart?^[1]” To “plant the flag of truth within the fortress of a rebel soul^[2]?” To tend and cultivate for the Lord, day after day, month after month, year after year?

Deep in the heart of Southern Africa, in the country of Zambia, known for Victoria Falls, copper, incredible biodiversity, and as “one of the fastest growing economically reformed countries,^[3]” there is a paradox of Christianity. In a country that professes to be 95% Christian, many are unfamiliar with basic tenets, including the concept of sin, and even the redeeming love of Christ. This has been largely due to the historical failure of evangelical missions.

But that is slowly becoming a story of the past.

Throughout Zambia, a new wave of missionaries are educating community leaders, who are in turn spreading the Gospel within their respective neighborhoods. Thanks to advances in technology and free biblical training resources through digital platforms like LWM’s Lystra Global, pastoral resources are more available now than ever, allowing new church plants to quickly grow and spread.

In Kitwe, a city located in the Copperbelt region of Central Zambia, pastor Daniel Sitali, has lived this history. He was raised in a Christian household, because every household was Christian. He attended church because everyone attended church. But one Sunday, when he felt a pastor preaching directly to him at his sister’s church, holding him accountable for not living a proper Christian life, he did what many of us would do—he refused to go back. It wasn’t until a group looking to plant a new church literally rang his doorbell looking for volunteers that he was finally confronted with God’s calling for his life. They preached to him from the Bible, sharing with him the truth of sin and the redeeming love of Jesus Christ. They told him to change his life and accept Christ as his savior. They held him accountable and encouraged him on his road to salvation. And on December 25, 2000, Daniel gave his life to Christ. He then, in turn, joined in door to door evangelizations to share the gospel with others.

Over the years, Daniel worked with several church plants, serving primarily as a worship leader, before being promoted to assistant youth pastor. At the time, he was content and happy sharing the good news and helping others find their way to Christ. But as providence would have it, the pastor he worked with told him that he was destined for more. He pushed him to attend the Central Africa Baptist College (CABC), and study to become a pastor himself. While at CABC, Daniel received free access to Lystra Global resources, including The Preacher’s Outline and Sermon Bible. After graduating in 2015, Daniel became a full-time youth pastor. Since then, he has seen dramatic and incredible conversions.

One of the most notable came when he preached to a congregation of people living with HIV/AIDS. Many of them had given up on living, and only attended church because that’s what everyone did on Sundays. So he decided to preach to them about the woman with the blood disease from Matthew 9:21-22. He told them that the woman’s faith in Jesus as savior allowed her to accept the redeeming love of God which cured her. He told them of the promise of everlasting life and the unending forgiveness of God. Afterwards, he was approached by many people who thanked him, and four who gave their lives to Christ that very day.

Daniel was recently asked to take over a church that has been without a pastor for a year and a half. It is a small congregation of about ten people, but it is surrounded by “Christian” churches that focus on reaping worldly rewards. These churches ignore the true meaning of salvation in Christ, and often lead their followers into dangerous situations. Daniel works tirelessly to fight their influence in his community and in his church, but is often met with resistance from what many see as an “easier road” to salvation. But he will never give up; he knows each and every soul is precious to our Lord.

Daniel still sees himself as a newcomer to Christianity, and works diligently to educate himself and those around him, using the resources from Lystra Global to prepare his sermons and inform his arguments against “false churches.” According to him, “What I like about The Preacher’s Outline and Sermon Bible is that it provides good information and background of a text or a book of the Bible, and the sermon outlines are very easy and clear to understand and follow.”

Daniel’s hope is to grow spiritually alongside his community, so that they can greet Jesus together, as one family, one body in Christ^[4].

He endeavors to honor his calling to ministry by proving faithful to the Word of God and to his congregation^[5]. And in that, he needs our help and prayers. He has accepted a flock that is continually under attack, and works tirelessly to sow and reap the love of God in every soul—to create a “paradise in every heart” for Jesus. But he needs his brothers and sisters in Christ to help him. As his conversion was brought about by his community, so too can the conversion of his new community, and even his country, come through our love and support.

^[1] Maria Valtorta ^[2] C.S. Lewis ^[3] According the World Bank in 2010 ^[4] Ephesians 3:6 ^[5] 1 Corinthians 4:1-2

How Faith Influences the Owner of a Resort

March 8, 2018 By Liana Alvarez

Sally at summer camp

Sally Worland owns Hidden Hollow, a summer camp and event venue in North Georgia. Her faith and values are an integral part of how she operates her business.

Hidden Hollow is in the southern Appalachians and is a part of McLemore Cove, which is included on the National Historic Register. It is 135 mostly wooded acres of seclusion at the foot of, and on the side of, Lookout Mountain, 20 miles from downtown Chattanooga. The five-acre lake is spring-fed with a small creek bordering the property. Special on-site interests (besides the many tourist attractions in the nearby areas) are the Cherokee Indian heritage, the Civil War happenings, remnants of old moonshine stills, and varied outdoor games.

How did you get started? How did your business idea originate?

When I was 14 years old, I felt very strongly that the Lord was leading me to start a camp for children. I immediately talked to my mom and dad about buying property. At first they thought that sounded rather odd. I tried to convince them how serious I was; I even offered to help pay for it (although there wasn’t much I could do at 14). But my mom decided to humor me, and so we looked at different properties. Over time, she developed an interest in having a bed and breakfast, and started to really enjoy looking at farms and daydreaming about the future.

At this point my dad had no interest in it because he thought it would just be one more thing that he would have to work on (and he was right). But when we found this property several years later, we convinced him that it was “the one,” and we purchased it. Through the years, I took on different projects and loans to pay my share, and make the improvements that had to be made. My first camp started in 1976, and it’s happened ever since.

Did you experience any resistance to your business idea, especially as someone so young?

Yes, I told my minister (who I just thought hung the moon), and he laughed and said, “No, Sally. He wants you to be a missionary.” So I decided that I wouldn’t tell another person because I didn’t want anybody else to throw cold water on me. So I kept it to myself, even though deep in my heart I still knew it was what I was going to do. I even decided to explore the mission field to see if that’s where God was leading me.

So over the course of the following summer, I went to France and Africa, and several more trips in the years after that. But after every trip, although I gained more and more respect for missionaries, I always knew it was not my life’s call. And because of that, I’m very conscious of not putting a damper on what children tell you they’re supposed to do. Only they have access to that direct connection between them and God.

As a young person who felt so strongly called to a particular role, are there any lessons you learned between realizing your goal and achieving it that you would like to share with today’s youth that might feel similarly called?

There are kids of faith, teenagers and younger, who already know that the Lord is leading them. I would encourage them to know Luke 1:37, “With God all things are possible.” They may feel defeated at times, but don’t give up, keep putting one foot in front of the other. God gives us these dreams and goals because He expects us to take action.

I would also remind kids that it’s really important to prepare yourself. In college I took every camping and camp leadership class because that’s where my passion was. However, I majored in social work in case I needed something else to fall back on. And it turned out to be a good move that allowed me to achieve my dream.

My social work degree helped me to get my first job as the youth director for the YWCA, and then after when it merged with the YMCA. It involved a lot of inner city children’s work, but it also followed alongside the school system, allowing me to have summers off. So I was able to start and fund my camp, doing both jobs at the same time.

And for those who don’t consider themselves persons of faith, I think it would be a whole lot more difficult, but they still need to pursue their dreams and their goals. Everyone, regardless of faith, has a purpose and a role, and are called by God to follow that.

Within your business, with your employees and clients, how do you, as a Christian business person, see your role with them?

Personally, it was to be kind to one another^[1]. If you can’t do anything else, you can be kind to people. And we all fail on that at times. Even if someone has different religious beliefs, or values, I can still be kind to them. But it’s a constant thing I need to work on.

I also want to be as generous as I can be. And that has to be balanced with being wise in a business sense, which can be hard at times, because you want to be generous, and you want to give, but you also know you can’t run a business if you don’t run it business-like. The key for me is to find the balance between those two.

Has there been any point where the two came into conflict?

Yes there have, and I’ve learned some valuable lessons along the way, like sometimes in the spirit of generosity you can end up hurting your business. Even though the Bible tells us not be slovenly in business^[2], sometimes you get your heart ahead of what is probably the best thing to do at the moment. Especially in my line of business, because I’m not selling something directly, I’m offering an over-night stay, or a week stay, people don’t realize how expensive it is to put them up for free because there are many, many people and programs involved. But you don’t want people to see that, you want everything to be in a spirit of generosity.

But on the flip side, you can often fail to be generous when you should have been. So you try to learn, is this someone that really needs this—is God saying, “Yes, give this to them,” or is it someone who is just trying to take advantage? I’ve learned a lot about human nature, especially from the resort end of the business. But I don’t want to ever get jaded because there are more kind, thoughtful people out there. You just have to learn to be wise.

Do you have any specific examples you can share with us?

Oh yes. There was this one lady who called me and said they didn’t have the money, but they wanted to stay for several days. She said she was in some kind of promotional business, and she would be sure to promote our business “big time.” I gave it to her at a greatly reduced rate and in end, they just trashed the cabin. It was terrible. But it was a lesson well learned.

Do you feel that Christian business leaders should be held to a higher standard, and if so, how has that affected you (or not) with Hidden Hollow?

Yes, I ultimately think of God as my CEO. He’s the one I’m trying to work for. So when I make mistakes, I need Him to show me what I’ve done wrong and how to do it differently. And I know if I choose to go in a way that is not proper for a Christian, it’s going to be counterproductive. It’s just going to make things worse.

I’ve learned that so much more is “caught than taught” (especially by kids). Every interaction can be an opportunity to showcase your faith. Now, it’s not like I stand around talking about my Christian faith to everybody by any stretch, because I don’t. But if there’s opportunities I would, or if it seems like it’s appropriate I would. A whole lot more is expressed by attitude, and that’s what people notice.

Unfortunately, because of many new laws and rules we now have to be careful of how we share. And although I try to never shirk from that responsibility, at the same time, I’m hoping people see more than they hear of how much Christ does love them.

In bringing up our legislature, how do you think we can support, encourage, and/or invest in Christian business leaders in what they believe they are being led to do?

I think it’s good to have networking among those folks. And there’s a lot of that already going on, but being able to talk, share, and be supported is so important, in addition to reaping wisdom from others.

Do you see your business growing into other avenues over the next 3-5 years, or do you feel you’re in the place your supposed to be and the focus now is just on maintaining?

That’s actually something I’m dealing with right now. I’m trying to decide exactly what direction to take it. Maintaining is important. I don’t foresee doing any additional business projects other than some small things in the future.

But I also want to know what direction I am supposed to be going in, because, as I said earlier, there have been so many changes that make having a Christian business difficult. It’s especially cumbersome since I’m an incorporated business and not a non-profit.. Hidden Hollow isn’t looked at as a Christian ministry, even though I feel like at its heart it is.

Hidden Hollow Resort

Do you have a message you would like to share with either today’s youth who feel called like you did, or current Christian business leaders, or both groups?

Don’t give up for one thing. Keep that glimmer of what you’re supposed to be doing and keep adding to it so that it builds a bigger and bigger fire for that passion that you have. I think you’ll know if it’s a passion if it just doesn’t go away—it stays with you. You usually know if you’re not doing exactly what you’re cut out to do, and I think it’s the same way when you’re directed towards a specific goal.

Also, share your dream with a few trusted people. In my situation, I didn’t get a very supportive response at first, but I did later on, especially from my parents, and I really appreciated that. Some people (like my pastor) mean well but they are guiding you to their vision for your life, and it may not be the same as God’s vision. So I’ve learned never to say, “Oh no, you’re not supposed to that,” when kids come to me. Unless of course it’s some thing that’s illegal or dangerous, then that’s a different story.

I would also add that God is the only absolute we have. There’s the saying that “The only thing constant in the world is change,” and there’s a lot of truth to that from the world’s perspective. But from Christ’s perspective, He says very clearly, that He is the same yesterday, today, and forever^[3]. We know he is not going to change; He’s not going to leave us^[4]. And so when you’re His, and when you’ve accepted Him, He holds you in the palm of his hand. No matter how hard things of the world become around you—if something bad happens to you, or your family, or your friends—He’s still there. Even though we can’t understand it all, because we’re not in heaven yet, we know that we still can trust God. He is the absolute constant in all things.

Edited for content and brevity.

^[1] Ephesians 4:32 ^[2] Romans 12:11 ^[3] Hebrews 13:8 ^[4] Deuteronomy 31:6

How Faith Influenced The Owners of A Painting Company

February 7, 2018 By Liana Alvarez

In anticipation of the upcoming publication of a handbook for Christian Business Leaders, we will be interviewing business leaders who seek to exemplify Christ in the workplace. We hope to explore various topics involving how their faith influences their business, the role of Scripture, their role in the Church, and more. Our first interview is with Greg Duble, about how God owned their painting company.

Walk us through your business journey.

In 1998, I met with the owners, two brothers, of a manufacturing company in Memphis, in what I thought would be a routine appointment. But little did I know that their company story would change my life forever.

Their father owned the company and was ready to retire, but the brothers were unsure if they wanted to buy it. They began to pray, and came up with a plan. “If we’re going to buy this company,” they said, “we’re going to make a covenant with God.” They would set aside the resources to run the company and grow it, but everything beyond that, they would donate for Kingdom work.

In their first year, they gave away $20K to several ministries. When they followed up, they were amazed at the impact they had made.

Fifteen years later, they were giving $20M away. They still ran the company as if it belonged to God, calling it a “storehouse company.” They wanted to follow ancient Egypt’s example, storing supplies in case of famine, and ensuring that they would always be able to provide for their community.

Even though I left that appointment thinking, “Man, doing something like that would be really cool,” I also thought my interest would eventually fade. But it didn’t. I wrestled with the idea for several years, praying for clear direction.

Finally, six years later, I was convicted to go out and see what God had for me. I sat down with wise people whom I really trusted and cared about. After discussing the idea, two of them wanted to get financially involved. I realized then that God had already found the capital to start the company. Now if only He would tell us what kind of company it would be.

My two investors and I agreed that there would be three pillars for the business. Again, using the manufacturing company as a model, we wanted to do Kingdom work with the money we gave away. So, our first pillar was to have an impact on the people that work for us for Christ. The second pillar was to have an impact on all those we encounter for Christ. And the third was to be a storehouse company. We made a commitment to God that everything above what it cost to run the business, we would donate.

Then we decided to get into the commercial painting business. We named the company, “Thousand Hills Cattle Company,” because of Psalms 50:10, “God owns the cows on a thousand hills.” It made sense to us, but apparently not to anyone else. People would ask, “What’s that got to do that with painting?” And I’d say, “In all things, Christ preeminent^[1].” Christ is in everything. And it was because of the name that I had so many opportunities to share the gospel with people. I really believe the name came from God—I would never have picked it out. For example, I had decals on the side of our vehicles with cattle on the side of a hill. People would stop me on the street, and ask how many cattle we had. When I told them we were a painting company, they would always be confused and ask for an explanation. Occasionally, I would even get the opportunity to share the gospel with them. We even used wrong number phone calls as a chance to talk to people about Christ. We were blessed with multiple opportunities to live the gospel out in front of people, and with the people I worked with.

We truly believed that our company represented Christ. And because of that, all the things we did had to be done as if we were doing it for Christ. We worked hard to make sure work was done properly, and a job site was left spotless. Multiple times we got compliments from clients, and again, it was just another opportunity to say it’s because we’re doing this for Christ.

This was the first time I really recognized that it doesn’t matter what you do—if you’re a garbage collector, if you flip burgers—it doesn’t matter. God wants to use that.

In the first year, we went from 2 to 43 employees. We had multiple job sites all running at the same time. It was exciting to see what God was doing, and at the end of each year, how much we could give away to various ministries. It really changed my understanding of business from the heart, not just the brain. It was amazing to recognize God’s ownership, not just of our money, but of our time and talent. This was the first time I really recognized that it doesn’t matter what you do—if you’re a garbage collector, if you flip burgers—it doesn’t matter. God wants to use that. It’s a part of His plan to send the gospel out. We had several guys that worked for us that became believers. And we had believers who were deeply impacted by that process. It was really exciting.

But the work also had to fall within contractual and legal guidelines. There are all kinds of hoops to jump through to weed out dangerous circumstances and keep people safe. But it can lead to hard decisions. For instance, we would compete against companies that would cut every corner and underbid us on jobs. We would say, “OK God, I’m going to do the right thing, the thing you called me to do.” And you’d watch someone that was doing the wrong thing get the bid, get all the rewards, and not get caught. We’d wrestle through those moments, trying to focus on scripture. In the end, the important thing for me was being assured that God’s intentions were good for me, being assured that God was going to take care of me, as I followed Him.

How did you see that play out? In terms of, you lose an important bid to someone who wasn’t doing as good of a job as you could have, and you trust God to take care of you.

Yes. It’s clear to me that God uses these kind of wounds or trials in our lives to help us draw closer to Him saying, “God, I don’t understand this, but I trust what You tell me in scripture. I trust that what I am doing is reflecting You, and that’s the most important thing here. I cling to the promise where You say You’ll care for my needs.”

Often times, I’d be upset about losing a bid to someone who would cut every corner, and then another significant bid would come up. I would win it, and then I would realize that the bid we won fits perfectly into what we were trying to accomplish with the company. If I had gotten the other job, it wouldn’t have worked as well, and I would have missed out on the other bid.

So, lots of times I had to wait on things that I couldn’t see where God was at work. God’s always looking ahead and saying, “Hey, I’ve got something for you, just trust Me, trust Me, trust Me.” These moments would remind me that I don’t trust God like I should. That I wanted to be in control. I think we go through these things so that we realize, “You really do have me God. You really are trustworthy.”

I did my best to let God steer the company. Things only got messed up when I tried to grab the reins. But when you’re trying to do things in a biblical manner, you’re trying to follow, to reflect Christ, people are going to cheat you. People are going to mock you. People are going to be naysayers. You just have to face that.

Any way that the church as part of the community can be more supportive of Christian men and women in business?

I think the true picture of the church is the body. And a large part of the church is made up of business owners and business leaders. And so I would say that we are the church. The church’s responsibility is to love people through grace, to shepherd people, to pour their lives into people. And I don’t think that only involves the pastor, I think that includes the body. We should look for ways to engage; we should look for ways to be involved. Because let’s be honest, in our culture especially, the biggest mission field is where the business leaders are going to be. So I think we should walk alongside, and love, and care, and hold accountable as a united church.

Do you have any specific advice you would give for an up and coming Christian business man or woman before they start their business, or in general?

I would say two things are key. Stick a nail in your hand, cut your finger, do something to keep you from being idealistic. There’s nothing idealistic about starting a business. If it can go wrong it will go wrong. You have to be logical; you have to be grounded. The other thing I would say is you have to find wise counsel. Find people that you trust that can walk alongside you. People you’re willing to hear hard stuff from. Those are key.

Also, “growth” always seems like a good thing. And the right kind of growth can be great, but the wrong kind of growth can drive you out of business. So be mindful. You always have to be present. We have this idealistic thought that if I start a business, I’ll be my own boss, and I can do what I want. Well you really can’t. So being mindful, being present in your business, is really important.

What I’d like people to take away from my story is that as a believer we need to realize that what we do, we do for Christ. So that means He is the business. He is a part of the business. He owns the business. And we are but mere stewards. You’re never your own boss. In fact, I was so convinced of that, that I rejected the idea of being called the president or the CEO of Thousand Hills Cattle Company. My title was Chief Steward. And I think that’s what we are—we are each the chief stewards of God’s work.

Any favorite sections of scripture that explicitly address business?

Proverbs is full of great wisdom about how we’re to reflect Christ in our dealings. But there are many places where, as a business owner or leader, you’re going to be confronted about how you should act. You’re not going to have to look very far to figure it out. Proverbs is one of those places. Psalms is another. The whole Old Testament talks about when God is displeased by His people’s actions. Understanding that is important.

In Ephesians, Romans, and Hebrews, Paul encourages us to not shrink back, to keep our eyes on Christ, to realize that we’re broken and sinful. And because of what Jesus did—that justification on the cross, His resurrection—we’re in a life of sanctification to become more Christ-like.

I named the company after a verse that God gave me in Psalms. And interestingly enough, if you read that whole section, God is yelling at His people because they are rejecting His ownership over all things. And God’s responding, “Who are you? What do I need you for? I own it all. I created the wild animals of the forest, and I own the cattle of a thousand hills.” And God wasn’t just bragging. He was giving an example of great wealth—unattainable wealth—for all generations to come. And God’s responding, “Who are you? What do I need you for? I own it all. I created the wild animals of the forest, and I own the cattle of a thousand hills.”

*Interview has been edited for continuity and brevity.

^[1] Col. 1:15-20.