From the Lausanne Movement — Fourth Congress on World Evangelization, Incheon, September 2024
The workplace as 'holy ground'
Bible expositor Julia Garschagen told delegates that the gospel first spread through working people — the Ethiopian court official, Lydia the cloth dealer, and Paul the tentmaker (Acts 18:3) — calling the workplace a 'priestly presence' for witnessing to Jesus. She noted that 99 percent of Christians serve God through their occupations, yet the importance of workplace missionaries often goes unnoticed.
Why it matters: This is the biblical root of our name. We are not inventing something new; we are joining what the church has always done.
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From the Lausanne II Congress, Manila, 1989 — the Tentmaker Track statement
Seven commitments for tentmakers, from 1989
At Lausanne II in Manila, a dedicated tentmaker track issued seven statements: encouraging lay Christians to take cross-cultural positions for the Kingdom, producing training materials for tentmakers, involving home churches in their placement and care, and nurturing them through prayer and pastoral support. The track defined tentmakers as Christians who, in response to God's call, proclaim Christ cross-culturally while witnessing with their whole lives.
Why it matters: Decades before us, the global church already saw the tentmaker as a trained, church-supported witness — not a lone volunteer. Our training center follows that same instinct.
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From Christian Legal Aid of Los Angeles (cla-la.org)
Volunteer attorneys, free clinics, real neighbors
Christian Legal Aid of Los Angeles runs free legal clinics staffed by volunteer attorneys, law students, and paralegals, offering 60–90 minute consultations to very-low-income residents — covering immigration, family law, housing, and small business. Their stated mission is to share the love of Jesus Christ by providing free legal services and hope to those in need.
Why it matters: A living example of our exact model in a neighboring profession — Christian professionals giving their expertise free to people who cannot afford it.
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From Evangelical Focus, on the Lausanne Cape Town Commitment
'Your daily ministry is wherever God has called you to work'
Reflecting on the Cape Town Commitment's section 'Truth and the Workplace,' this article recalls Lausanne's challenge: all believers should accept their daily work as ministry, and pastors should equip their people for it — 'to equip the saints for works of service' in every part of life. It notes that most Christians say their church gives them little help in applying faith to work.
Why it matters: It names the gap we exist to fill — professionals who want their work to be ministry, and need a path to do it.
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