“My mentor gives me a chance to be a part of the solution to my own problems.”
- Handsen, New Creation Family Church entrepreneur, South Africa

Handsen sells solar operated batteries in exchange for goats in Zimbabwe. His entrepreneurial efforts have been through a fair share of challenges this year.  But no matter what happens, Handsen knows that he can turn to Paul, his mentor, for well thought-out advice, a solid prayer and a word of encouragement.

Paul is learning the art of mentoring and has come to understand that mentoring isn’t about giving all the answers, instead, it is about helping Handsen learn to discover the solutions for himself.

The next three blogs will focus on mentoring and specifically three stories of mentors and entrepreneurs coming together and changed as a result.

C.S. Lewis has a great quote that we’ve thought about during the mentoring process:

Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art…It has no survival value; rather, it is one of those things that gives value to survival.

“My mentor gives me a chance to be a part of the solution to my own problems”

- Handsen, New Creation Family Church entrepreneur.

The mentoring component of Paradigm Shift’s work continues to exceed expectations as mentors are coming alongside Paradigm Shift entrepreneurs in issues relating to business, family, personal and spiritual. The application is as varied as the participating mentors and entrepreneurs.

This is a South Africa e-newsletter called Mentor Moments (Issue No. 2). It is written for a South African audience, so if you are on the other side of the ocean please bear that in mind.

If you are interested in the mentoring component of Paradigm Shift’s work, then read the latest developments by clicking here or on the image below to download the Mentor Moments Issue No. 2 PDF.

This is a question we are asking ourselves at Paradigm Shift.

How do we measure success?

There are three main “customers” that Paradigm Shift serves: churches, entrepreneurs, and Christian schools.

I am just going to focus on one of the three: entrepreneurs.

Measuring success for a participating entrepreneur is easy when it comes to reviewing their business. We look at cash flow, current debt and liabilities, business assets, new customer acquisition, loan repayment record, business partnerships, accounting methods, profitability, etc.

These are all aspects that are pretty clear cut as we measure business success.

But what about spiritual success? How do we measure that?

Jesus puts it in perspective in Luke 12:16-21 when he says in verse 21,

“yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.”

We work with microentrepreneurs to build their business skills and give access to capital, but if they are not rich towards God then they are fools and our work at best is of limited value.

So, if people’s hearts are vastly more important than the success of their business–then measuring spiritual growth would seem a logical next step. But measuring spiritual growth is a challenge and far more complex than tracking a sales report!

Paradigm Shift is still searching for tools to access spiritual growth, so if you know of some then send us an email…

At the present, the measurements are captured in conversations. Conversations like the ones I had yesterday.

An entrepreneur said she has seen tangible differences in the way she responds with gentleness and patience to challenging situations.

Or another entrepreneur that said she has experienced love the past few month in a way that she never experienced before.

Or another entrepreneur asking a simple question, “what does Jesus mean when he says you need to be born again?”

Or another entrepreneur understanding fully that we as people are stewards and not owners. And being a steward changes perspectives on how to treat money, time, resources and people.

Or when spontaneous worship happens at the end of a weekly meeting with African dancing giving praise to God.

Or when an entrepreneur shares that he now has a new found spiritual hunger which he wants to fill with reading the New Living Bible.

Or when an entrepreneur who is going through a divorce because her husband beats here comes to the weekly meeting and feels safe and valued. This same entrepreneur is returning to God and has even started studying the Bible with her friends at her home.

Or when another entrepreneur asks where he can buy a Bible.

Or when the entrepreneur experiences tangible grace from a local church and reflects a heart of gratitude for it.

Maybe spiritual growth shouldn’t be boiled down to statistics, but rather the testimony of individuals coming into a vibrant relationship with God. At the end of the day, maybe it can only be explained rather than counted. Numbers are signs of heatlh, but people’s hearts and lives are more than what numbers can capture.

Jesus tells us that you’re a fool if your trust is in wealth. Our hope is that entrepreneurs would place their hope in Christ and success would be measured not just by their business growth, but also by their relationship with God.

A few weeks ago, Paradigm Shift volunteers from our first partner church, New Creation Family Church, trained their third round of entrepreneurs. This group was the sharpest bunch we have had so far.

Entrepreneurs that are participating come from a wide variety of businesses like a graphic designer/photographer, two hair dressers, a clothing exporter, a artist, a restaurateur, a convenience shop owner and a construction entrepreneur and others.

Pictured below is the third round of entrepreneurs holding certificates from the completion of the first 12 hours of business training.

Now, this training class has received a loan of $180 and meets weekly to repay a weekly installment, receive additional business training and study what the Bible has to say about their lives, their families and their businesses.