When talking about sustainability, you’ll frequently hear: “Give a man a fish, and he eats for a day; teach a man to fish, and he eats for a lifetime.”

What if we go a step beyond that? “Equip a man to teach others to fish, and an entire community is fed and prospers.”

That’s what Global Disciples does through small business development training. We equip men and women to develop sustainability—for themselves and for their neighbors, their community, and future generations.

Initially, Global Disciples trained church planters directly to use the skills and resources God put in their hands to develop a business which provided an identity and support as they went out with the Good News of Jesus.

The next step was training men and women to equip others in small business development. Small business training in conjunction with discipleship-mission training accelerates church planting and sustainability.

When Unnat came to Christ in Nepal, he was discipled by a local pastor who had a community clinic as his small business. Unnat saw ministry and business modeled effectively. He gained a pharmacy certification and dreamed of his own business.

“One day, my church nominated me to attend a Global Disciples small business development training,” Unnat said. “I learned how to do business, and to do ministry at the same time.” This training equipped Unnat to successfully start a pharmacy. It also equipped him to direct small business development training for his church cluster. 

Unnat said, “Those who attended the training are sharing the Good News and planting churches as they do business.” One works with cattle, another raises pigs, and one family runs a small shop.

When Unnat saw a community where the people do not know Jesus, he relocated. “God’s work needed to be done in that place,” Unnat said. “So, I moved my pharmacy. I’m sharing the Gospel and now a church has started, and we are having regular fellowship.” 

Half a world away, in northern Cameroon, a church cluster equipped several church planters with small business development. They went to a village where people had little knowledge of Jesus Christ. Not content to only support themselves, they’re sharing their business development knowledge with the community.

“There was a rural exodus, people were leaving this poor, undeveloped place,” one leader reported. “Now the whole village is benefiting—they see the example of the church planters and they are learning from them.” One church planter is helping develop an agricultural association or cooperative. Another is working to improve local livestock.

Their creativity and examples are boosting the local economy. Instead of leaving in search of better things, people are choosing to stay and develop their own opportunities. Even the local chiefs are happy, and it’s changed how they relate to their people. It is also creating a greater openness to the Gospel in this mainly Muslim area. Teaching a man to fish is rewarding, but equipping God’s people to equip others—that can change the world!