From reflection to action: Managing Director, Bob Bush, reviews 2025 at IBEC and calls believers to deeper marketplace impact in 2026.
Larry W. Sharp, BAM Support Specialist, IBEC Ventures
Larry.Sharp@ibecventures.com
—–
As we look forward to another year, let’s not forget what God has done in 2025. Here at IBEC Ventures, He has impacted us in so many ways. Whether it means working with Kingdom businesses in search of significant capital or startups that have nowhere to turn, we have had the distinct privilege to come alongside amazing businesses of all sizes. Although their balance sheets may be totally different, these organizations share a common thread that knits us all together while we build these businesses for Him.
Striving for a profitable business that creates jobs and makes disciples for Christ is why we do what we do. However, doing so in the areas we operate in continues to get more and more difficult. Many countries are becoming extremely hostile toward Christians, so how are we going to carry out the Great Commission when the playing field is filled with potential land mines? Does this mean that we at IBEC Ventures will be forced to abandon our desire to go into the least-reached areas of the world to make disciples of Jesus? The answer is a resounding “no”, but how are we going to push forward when all the odds are stacked against us? Let me provide a handful of ways we can make this happen…
1. Pray – God has always connected us with practitioners who truly believe their businesses are their ministries. Our willingness to team up with these individuals on the front end alleviates potential problems down the road. May God continue to connect us with those practitioners who desire to build their businesses the right way.
2. Create sustainable businesses that transform communities – This may be the most difficult thing we do because some of the local markets surrounding these businesses barely exist. In these cases, our ability to integrate a supply chain strategy that gets the product or service to the right market is key. Sustainable businesses create jobs, change lives, and pay taxes. They do business the right way.
3. Practitioners in the BAM space are typically extremely gifted in the area of strategy, but the execution of the plan can be a real challenge – IBEC’s experience in developing a plan that works is critical to the success of the business. Without an effective tactical plan, the vision of the entrepreneur may never reach its potential.
4. IBEC Ventures is now in its 20th year providing coaching expertise in the BAM space – Networking is our lifeblood, and it provides strong contacts for practitioners all over the world. There is nothing more detrimental to a business than a practitioner trying to do this alone. IBEC can make sure this doesn’t happen to you!
5. Everything we do needs to be focused on Jesus – The acknowledgement right up front that these businesses are His should be the first step for every practitioner. If we truly believe this, then our businesses should be better than those in the secular world. Operating with this mindset will ensure that excellence is what we strive for in all facets of the business.
While the landscape we operate in is changing very quickly, our belief at IBEC Ventures heading into 2026 is that we need to stay focused on making disciples in all parts of the world. Building sustainable businesses that create jobs may be the point-of-entry we need in order to effectively carry out the Great Commission. We will never shy away from the difficult, unreached areas of the world because this is where God wants us to be. For many, a newly-created job can in fact be the first step to salvation. When we operate with the belief that the business is the ministry, we can do amazing things for Christ. In 2026, this is our calling…to build sustainable businesses that glorify Him in every way.
Our passion is for Christ. Our passion is for People. Our passion is to build excellent businesses that reflect Him. For IBEC Ventures in 2026 and beyond…these things will never change.
***The image that accompanies this blog post is a generated visual representation of our mission and vision, created to illustrate our commitment to the Great Commission through Business as Mission.***
Robert.Bush@ibecventures.com