This is a true story from a Muslim community in North India: Each woman worked diligently on the task set before her. She cut, folded, glued, sorted, packaged, and tied each piece with precision and care. Each of the seven ladies seated around the plastic folding table were so focused on their work that they rarely even looked up. Yet at the same time, there was a spirit of freedom in the air. The ladies smiled and laughed as they worked. They chatted amongst themselves and truly seemed to enjoy their time in the production center situated right in the middle of the slum in which they live. As the work day came to a close, one young woman shared with the group that her husband was ill and she was fearful that his health would not improve. As a young mother of two, this woman knew that her work there in the center was not enough to support her family; she desperately depended upon her husband. You could see the fear in her face; she did not know where to go. The ladies in the group all consoled her but it was clear that she was seeking something more. As the room grew quiet again, the young lady asked her production manager if she would pray to Jesus and ask Him to heal her husband. At that very moment, the Father in heaven rejoiced as this sweet woman moved closer to trusting in Him. The simple request for prayer revealed that she believed Jesus was powerful enough to answer. The production manager, being a mature follower of Christ, came to the women and prayed for her family and specifically for her husband. In the weeks to come, the women of this group began to ask more and more questions about this God called Jesus. Today in this production center, Bible stories are told weekly through story telling and the women are coming closer each week to a relationship with their Creator.

In Matthew 25, Jesus says to His true followers, “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me… whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” Could we also add to this list “I was afraid and you comforted me, I was sick and you prayed for me, I was unemployed and you gave me a job.”? There are many ways that we can show the love of Jesus in our world today. CREATED strives to do this through income generating opportunities in developing countries.

“Business as Mission ” (BAM) and “Kingdom Business” are popular buzz words in the Christian community today. But what do they mean? What does a Kingdom Business really look like? CREATED is trying to answer these questions one work day at a time. CREATED strives to be a kingdom business by having a two-fold purpose and goal: 1) be a successful, profitable business that does all things with excellence (Colossians 3:23), and 2) to intentionally share the Word of God and the love of Jesus Christ with all employees and vendors (1 Chronicles 16: 23-26).

Steven and Stacey Russell moved to India for one year to seek out ways that Christian business people in America could be involved in this rapidly growing BAM movement. While they lived in India , they assisted two groups of Indian believers in setting up small businesses in the slums of Delhi . The goal of these small businesses is to offer additional employment to many who are living in poverty, and to use the business as a way to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ. During their months of working with the Christian business people, they discovered a need that surfaced with almost every Christian who started a small, kingdom business: they had no way to market and sell their products. If they could not sell their products, the businesses would not be able to grow, and if the businesses failed, the opportunity to minister in the community ended as well. CREATED was started as an answer to this problem. CREATED's mission and strategy are:

Mission: to support indigenous businesses and organizations which offer employment opportunities in developing countries for the express purpose of sharing the Word of God and the love of Jesus Christ.

Strategy: to locate Kingdom businesses in developing countries producing quality products. CREATED seeks to assist these businesses by selling their products in various markets and by offering business consulting and ministry planning so their ministry through business can grow and thrive.

CREATED is currently selling beautiful hand-made products from India. You can shop on the CREATED website for hand-made greeting cards, stationery, and gift wrap. Visit www.createdinternational.com to purchase products and to learn about the wonderful people who make them. You can also find the products for sale in the Resource Center at 121. Each product sold by CREATED offers the chance for a person living in poverty to earn extra income for their family and hear the Word of God. What a wonderful picture of how God can use every person in the body of Christ to accomplish His will!

Just last week, on a very cold December day in Delhi India, a small group of ladies gathered to their production center. They were all dressed in their best clothes, ready for their end of the year Christmas party. One woman came wearing her new shawl, the first winter shawl she had ever owned, purchased with the money she had made in the production center. There was no work this day, just a time of celebration and fun. The ladies each received a small Christmas gift from their production manager and then the story of Christ's birth, death, and resurrection was told. It was the very first time that any of the women had heard the story of Jesus's life. There is much work to be done in India and all over the world, but sometimes you have to begin one person at a time. Please pray for CREATED and the kingdom businesses it supports half way around the world.

::Stacey Russell