A KAIROS MOMENT FOR IT PROFESSIONALS

This August, five IT professionals from California had a rewarding experience serving as a short-term team in a Muslim country. They led a boot camp at a university where they were delighted to find the students bright and eager to learn. Their English was also good enough so that translators were not needed, and they communicated easily outside the lab.

Blessed to Be a Blessing

As Christians, we know that our education and professional training are gifts from God that the great majority of the world could only dream of. We are familiar with these words from our Lord: “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” (Lk 12:48) Beginning with Abraham, God’s people are blessed to be a blessing to others.

Great Commandment & Great Commission

As an organization founded by professionals, our vision is to mobilize Christians in tech and business to serve in emerging economies where the great majority of the people groups are unreached.

By contributing to the socioeconomic development of these nations, we live out the Great Commandment to love our neighbors (Mt 22:36-40). Through our service and friendships, we are fulfilling the Great Commission as we seek to share the good news and make disciples of all nations (Mt 28:18-20). Moreover, when reaching people in tech and business, we are working with the influencers in society.

The Tech Landscape

Beyond the university where we worked, the IT team had the opportunity to learn about the tech landscape when we met with senior administrators of the country’s high-tech park and a top coding school. A few years ago, several forward-looking professionals and businesspeople convinced the government to develop the country’s tech sector. An IT industry could create jobs and retain talent to counter the tide of brain drain, while software outsourcing would bring in foreign revenue.

A high-tech park was established. All companies registered with them could operate tax-free. The only stipulation is to give 1% of their revenue to help promote the country’s tech industry.

In a few years, hundreds of companies were launched and 2-3,000 new jobs created. In 2023, they brought in over $80M from clients around the world.

The tech industry in this country and the surrounding region is just taking off. Smart young people aspire to become IT professionals. But most university programs have disappointed them. Professionals with good skills would work for the better paying private sector instead of teach for public universities. In response to demand, many commercial coding schools have sprung up. But not everybody could afford the tuition fees.

This is a Kairos moment when we who are blessed in the US could be a blessing to young people there.

The Importance of a Graduate Ministry

In the last 50 years, student organizations in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, etc. have invested in graduate ministries to support their students’ transition from the campus to the workplace. In time, Christian teachers, health workers, businesspeople, etc. have become workplace witnesses in society and pillars of the local church.

But this has not happened in this region and most Muslim countries where Christian converts are a repressed and poor minority. We want to channel tech and business resources to help start a Christian graduate movement that would strengthen churches and local ministries, and give young people hope and dignity through their faith and work.

Reaching Young Professionals With Local Partners

A core principle of our work in missions is to collaborate with local partners and contribute to their development because they will be there long after we are gone. We will partner with this university that received our IT team this past summer, and prior to that, our entrepreneurship team. We will also work with three student organizations with vision to develop a graduate ministry.

Our city center office in the capital is well positioned for business events. Quality programs to equip IT workers with technical skills will be a first step to bringing young people together for their professional development.

Hybrid webinars featuring speakers from the US will be hosted by qualified local professionals who will facilitate live Q&A with the audience. They will be co-sponsored by the partner university as continuing education program for their alumni and by the student organizations as career development opportunities for their young graduates. The center can also host seminars on topics of interest for young people such as life planning, time management, workplace relationships and communications, teamwork, dating and marriage, etc.

Invitation to Churches

To start, we are praying for 6 churches in the U.S. to form IT mission teams to help us start a webinar series. 2-3 individuals can form a task force. Our partner university will provide assistance with curriculum and we will help with trip arrangements for those available for a short term project. A face-to-face relationship will greatly enhance the effectiveness of subsequent online follow up with personal mentoring.

Contact us at STM@goliveserve.org for 2025 short term opportunities.