Planting Mangoes in the Church: Economic Development, Social Enterprise, and the Global Christian Church

By Keith McNichols

The Gospel of Christ is our hope—but it is only the starting point of our Christian faith and lives. Too often, Christianity is limited to Sundays and has little effect on our daily work and even less on our local economy.

So, what do we do? How can we leverage our faith to make an impact, especially in places where Christians and their communities are struggling to survive?

This book seeks to get Christians thinking about how to gather together as an incubator church to seek spiritual and economic growth in our communities. The author draws on simple but powerful stories to show how we can bring the shalom of God to our neighborhoods via social enterprise driven by the local church.

The Christian Church is growing with the most momentum in Africa, Latin America and Asia – areas historically plagued by poverty. The Gospel has reached much of the world. But the Kingdom of God does not end with conversion – it should grow to affect every area of life.

The success of Planting Mangoes in the Church is that readers are quickly led to think, discuss, and brainstorm meaningful and actionable steps to benefit their own work and, collectively, their local church and economy.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Aug 19, 2022
• ISBN: 9781664269712

Keith McNichols

Keith McNichols is a multifaceted follower of Jesus Christ with a deep love for business and for people in developing regions of the world, especially people struggling in difficult economic situations. Planting Mangos in the Church represents the outpouring of his heart and the unique combination of his creative, business, missional and storytelling abilities. He believes that God gave us many gifts and it’s our job to figure out how they fit together and can best be used for God’s glory and as service to others. Dr. McNichols studied Design at the University of California, Los Angeles and became a creative/art director focused on computer graphics and animation. His love of technology and creativity launched a 24-year career with The Walt Disney Company. His desire to deepen his business knowledge and find the “root of the idea” led him to augment his education with an MBA at the Peter Drucker School of Management. With these new skills he pivoted his career at Disney toward marketing, brand building, and relationship management where he worked with Disney brands such as Pixar, Winnie the Pooh and, of course, Mickey Mouse. On the business side, Dr. McNichols managed relationships between Disney and leading companies such as Nestle, General Motors, HP and Siemens. Following Disney, he worked in marketing, sales, and management consulting. During his active career, Dr. McNichols grew restless in his faith and struggled to find “something more” for himself and his family. He and his wife, Jennifer, sought to use themselves and their family in service to God and during the height of the AIDS/HIV crisis (2001), they expanded their family of five by adopting an additional five older children from Ethiopia. This growth in faith blossomed into a fifteen-year, ongoing ministry in Ethiopia and elsewhere via missions-related roles at his local church. The McNichols family returned to Ethiopia and other nations plagued by economic uncertainty and developed deep and lasting relationships and ongoing projects aiding children, the elderly, church growth and business development. Seeking an educational framework for his ongoing missional and business efforts, Dr. McNichols completed his doctorate at the Bakke Graduate School focused on seeking the means to communicate theology of work to people in developing regions and pursuing the concept of the “incubator church.” Today, Dr. McNichols continues to work in business leadership, serves as the Director of Missions at Chino Valley Community Church and as an adjunct professor of entrepreneurship at Azusa Pacific University.

Book preview

Planting

Mangoes

in the

Church

Economic

Development,

Social Enterprise,

and the

Global Christian

Church

Keith McNichols

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Copyright © 2022 Keith McNichols.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

WestBow Press

A Division of Thomas Nelson & Zondervan

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.westbowpress.com

844-714-3454

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-6642-6972-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-6973-6 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-6971-2 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2022911501

WestBow Press rev. date: 08/19/2022

To my wife, Jennifer, my loving and supportive partner along many unusual and sometimes difficult paths, by the grace of God.

And to the mothers of my Ethiopian children. Into their shoes we were blessed to step.

You hem me in behind and before, and lay your hand upon me.

Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it.

—Psalm 139:5–6

If a man wishes to be sure of the road he travels on,

he must close his eyes and walk in the dark.

—St. John of the Cross

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Section 1 Preparing the Soil

Chapter 1 God Works

Chapter 2 God Is Creative

Chapter 3 Work as Service

Chapter 4 Work in the Kingdom of God

Section 2 Planting the Seeds

Chapter 5 Stewardship, Vocation, and Calling

Chapter 6 Innovation

Chapter 7 Entrepreneurship

Chapter 8 Marketing

Chapter 9 Strategic Planning

Section 3 Cultivation and Care: The Incubator Church

Chapter 10 Leadership

Chapter 11 Social Enterprise

Chapter 12 The Incubator Church

Acknowledgments

This book was not and could not have been done in isolation. From beginning to end, it was a collaborative effort with years of patient help, support, and input from many individuals. Several of those individuals are listed below. Others, not listed, include those authors and speakers who have diligently sought to convey messages of hope for those in developing regions of the world, those whose scholarly efforts have elevated the topic of theology of work, and those who have courageously sought to advocate for the use of creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship within business, educational, and theological fields.

First, I would like to acknowledge the work of Cheryl Carter Shotts, who has worked in the field of international adoption for over thirty years to find homes for children fleeing from wars, disease, and abject poverty. Cheryl provided early inspiration and direction to my wife, Jennifer, and me to adopt older children from Ethiopia. Further, she provided a model of courage and determination and the need to step outside our personal limitations and comfort zones and see ourselves as part of the larger world.

Similarly, Mr. Yoseph Mena has taught me a great deal about developing and maintaining a personal resolve to continue the work of God no matter the cost. Yoseph was arrested and scheduled for execution more than once for preaching the gospel of Christ in Ethiopia during the days of the Red Terror. His resolve to keep moving in the direction that God had provided helped me to maintain this journey despite hardships. Yoseph also was instrumental and helping me to personally blend my education and ministry goals and to use all that God had provided thus far along this path.

Yoseph’s son, Dr. Tamene Mena, and his wife, Tigist, have been mentors, friends, and an ongoing source of encouragement. Tamene and Tigist have struggled through multiple hardships during their lives and their continuing trust in God’s providence helped Jennifer and me during our own periods of struggle. Further, Tamene and Tigist have been willing readers of this book from the earliest writings; they spurred my efforts onward with their insights and reassurances.

Dr. Fekadu Tedasse and Dr. Kebede Gonfa have been faithful partners of mine for over fifteen years and helped to build a long-standing US-Ethiopia church-to-church relationship. The work we have done collectively stands as a model of love, encouragement, and true Christlike brotherhood—exactly what the family of God was intended to be. These faithful men, though across the world, have served as diligent prayer partners. Both inspired much of this work and challenged me in many areas. Their input into this project at multiple stages was indispensable.

Pastor Brian Benson from Chino Valley Community Church (CVCC) has supported my growth and efforts as a leader in our church’s missions-related efforts for many years. CVCC willingly provided personal and financial support for new and varied missions efforts and continuously graced me with high trust in new initiatives. Their care and shepherding of our family made CVCC the needed village in which to raise our unique family.

On the academic front, Dr. Larry Peabody has been a faithful mentor, guide, and editor of Planting Mangoes in the Church. Larry was instrumental in helping to develop a voice from which to write the book, and his skill with the written word has developed and pushed me onward as a writer. As a leader in theology of work thought, education, and published material, Larry provided me the confidence with which this effort could be done.

Finally, and most importantly, my wife, Jennifer, to whom this book is dedicated, has faithfully stood by my side through the creation and managing of our family, two academic degree programs, and years of study and effort with missions-related projects and this work in particular. She has been a model of unselfish service and continued motivation; she is the glue that holds our family together and that often holds me together. Her commitment to the calling of Christ internally and externally to the world has been unfailing; without her support, this effort would not have been completed.

Introduction

A mango rolled between the aisles of the church. No one noticed. Their eyes were focused toward the front. The mango stopped as it bumped the foot of a boy whose feet didn’t reach the ground. The bump startled him and he jumped. His mother poked him with her elbow.

What was that? he wondered. He wanted to look under the seat but didn’t want to get into trouble. He carefully looked to the left and then to the right. When he turned around to look behind him, he thought he saw an old man watching. Just as he saw the old man, his mother pinched his leg. He turned around and sat up straight. He thought maybe he had imagined the whole thing, until he swung his foot and it kicked the mango. He looked down and there it was, right in front of him. As the congregation stood to sing, the boy snatched up the mango and tucked it under his shirt.

Thank you, God, for this mango! he said silently, for he was hungry. He wondered where the mango had come from, but more importantly, what was he going to do with it? He carefully kept it hidden under his shirt for the rest of the church service. He was small and no one paid attention to the large bump under his crossed arms. After the final prayer, the boy paused for a minute to see if anyone was looking for a lost mango. He counted to ten but no one came for the fruit. As the adults started talking, the boy quickly took his treasure outside, walking a little bent over. He kept the mango hidden and stayed at the edge of the group of people.

Are you sick or hiding something? The voice came from the shade of the church building. The boy, shocked, turned around to see an old man looking right at him. The boy revealed the mango.

Where did you get that beautiful mango? the old man said.

The boy pointed to the church.

You found a mango in the church? the old man said.

The boy nodded. It hit my foot, the boy said.

Maybe next time God will drop a banana on your head! the man said as he laughed. What will you do with the mango?

Share it with my family, the boy said with a serious look.

That is what I thought, the man said, equally serious. Enjoy the mango. It is a gift from God and me. The old man stepped out of the shade and into the sunlight and bent to bring his face to the boy’s level. The boy’s eyes opened wide as he realized the old man was one of the original church members.

But plant the seed wisely. You never know what God will do. Then he laughed and said, Maybe one day we should plant mangoes in the church for everyone to share? Think about that!

The boy’s family enjoyed the delicious mango, and he saved the seed until he found just the right spot to plant it. Year by year, with care, the mango tree and the boy grew tall and strong. One by one, he planted new seedlings in a row, and step-by-step, a large orchard was created. Not every season was successful, but he took advantage of each success and tried to learn from his mistakes. His family grew too. He got married and had children and grandchildren. The orchard brought sweet fruit and blessing to the man, his family, his church, and his community. And it had all started with the gift of one mango in the church.

But one thing stayed in his mind over the years: the old man’s question about planting mangoes in the church. What did that mean?

Stories can tell deep messages in memorable packages. Words may pass through our minds, but stories tend to stick with us and cause us to think. Jesus often taught with stories and parables for this very reason. This book speaks about mangoes, the church, and work. Mangoes were chosen because they are one of the most popular fruits in the world and likely you have never met someone who did not like a fresh, sweet mango. By the end of this book, you may not only know more about mangoes but ideally about work and how the church can gather together to bring the peace of God to our communities through businesses that help people to care for themselves, their family, and their community.

This book started with an opportunity and an idea. The opportunity is based on the fact that one of the largest networks of people is the Christian church—and the church is growing quickly in many places around the world. But many in the church globally live in difficult economic conditions. The idea is this: what if local church congregations gathered to develop and support business efforts