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This blog is part of a series of four which link Olympic themes to that of a BAM startup.  I apologize for those who are not sports fans and appreciate your tolerance for these four weeks. —– The 2024 summer Olympics are over and as always, there are many stories of inspiration, surprising successes and […]

This blog is part of a series of four which link Olympic themes to that of a BAM startup.  I apologize for those who are not sports fans and appreciate your tolerance for these four weeks. —– Frankly, I wasn’t paying much attention to the USA Women’s soccer team in the Olympics until a few

This blog is part of a series of four which link Olympic themes to that of a BAM startup.  I apologize for those who are not sports fans and appreciate your tolerance for these four weeks. —– The sports world shares many themes with the world of work.  As we watched the various sports during

Mats Tunehag has given permission to reprint this article which Don Simmons also used recently in THE STEWARD INVESTOR.  I think we are all grateful for Mats’ leadership to the BAM movement. Larry W. Sharp, BAM Support Specialist, IBEC Ventures Larry.Sharp@ibecventures.com   —— If our sole success criterion is church planting and growth, Rwanda was

We are living in a time in history where character doesn’t seem to matter as much as it used to. We see it in politics. We see it in business. We see it in sports. We see it in education. We even see it in the church.  How can we keep it important and relevant

IBEC appreciates the pioneering great work being done by Patrice Tsague and the Nehemiah Project. We have permission to republish this article along with the 6-minute video. Larry W. Sharp, BAM Support Specialist, IBEC Ventures Larry.Sharp@ibecventures.com —— Then they said to one another, “look this dreamer is coming!” – Genesis 37:19 (NKJV) Are you aware

This week’s blog is similar to last week, July 15, 2024 as we think about what makes our startup fail or even brings us down some years into it.  Toby Miles* has written about the seven reasons why missional businesses fail, and I have expanded on them here. Think about it – are you at

I recently realized that sometimes, business owners seem oblivious to economic, social and planning factors, which can bring them down.  I have been the board chair of an association of businesses committed to a wonderful social cause, but I have been increasingly concerned that some feel that their social enterprise will somehow survive because of

IBEC has received permission to reprint this story set in country that is unfriendly to mission workers and Jesus followers. I am grateful to know Brandon and cross paths with him occasionally. A segment of his journey is told in the book, “Missions Disrupted” 2022. Larry W. Sharp, BAM Support Specialist, IBEC Ventures Larry.Sharp@ibecventures.com —–

This week, Americans celebrate Independence Day; a term used by many other countries which celebrate their freedom from colonial powers. Some other countries call it National Day like Spain and Thailand do; but what does it mean to be independent? Independent from what? What does it mean?  How about freedom? Is freedom absolute or conditional?