Business Alpha is the Alpha Course compacted in content and run in a workplace/business setting. See www.businessalpha.org.au for details. Make sure that you click on “More” on the front screen to see the scroll down menu. Tabs show the latest Course Dates and Events.

Continental Venture Capital – the pioneer

Business Alpha in Australia had its official start in Sydney July 2001, when Continental Venture Capital, headed up by Chairman, Vanda Gould, hosted Business Alpha in the company’s offices on level 40, 50 Bridge Street . A number of people in business, including professionals of all ages, as well as some senior managers, attended. People attended a night on the Holy Spirit at a nearby church and this drew them closer to God. This course, as with many others since conducted, can account for at least one salvation although quite a few other participants in the course have grown in their awareness of God and the claims of Christ.

Vanda Gould, himself a very committed Christian, said that running Business Alpha had brought a sense of God’s blessing upon the firm and that he was absolutely thrilled to see the impact that the first course had made upon the members of the firm who attended.

Other Companies Follow Suit

From there we commenced Business Alpha in Austral Mercantile, ING, AM Corporation (hosted by Chairman David Smith), Macquarie Bank (hosted by Senior Banking Manager Jim Douglass) and then back to Continental Capital, concluding in July 2003. Leanne Shepherd (HR Manager from Optus) held two courses in North Sydney for Optus employees with very good results. Recently Ivan Ang, from Monitor Money held a course in Chatswood.

One of the great things about Business Alpha is to see Christians mobilise to invite their non-Christian friends to come to the sessions. Significant conversions have taken place. Probably as important has been the fact that Christians in Macquarie Bank, and elsewhere, have been prepared to have their e-mails published throughout the company on the notice boards on every floor in order to encourage others to come. You might say they have been prepared to align their names publicly with Jesus. This particularly is a great joy.

Meanwhile in Melbourne, under the guidance of Richard Kasperczyk (RTK Corporate) and Dr Peter Chandra and executives from AXA and BHP Billiton a number of courses have been run throughout 2002.

In late 2002, Tony McLennan, was asked by Alpha Australia’s National Director to become the National Co-ordinator to encourage the development and the running of Business Alpha throughout Australia.

Just when Tony was wondering how this was going to be achieved he was contacted by an old friend, Jeff Penny, National Director of Business Generation Ministry International (BGMI), who asked Tony to become BGMI’s National Co-ordinator of Business Alpha. Jeff had immediately had the witness of the Holy Spirit that Business Alpha could work in perfectly with the BGMI sponsored cell group concept called Business Life. 

Chairman and Founder of BGMI, Peter Harris, has become involved by promoting Business Alpha and supporting this work wherever his organisation can. Peter’s Vision of Billions of Dollars for Millions of Souls is awakening business people everywhere to the fact that their businesses can be a channel for God’s blessing to others. Other sponsors are acknowledged in  the website.

Tony received a word from God from Numbers 35:13 “six cities shall ye have for refuge”, to take Business Alpha to six cities throughout Australia . Facilitator training has been undertaken under the sponsorship of BGMI throughout five national cities so far, namely, Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne and Perth as well as Sydney. More training has yet to be done but there has been strong response, thanks to help from the Lord, in most locations with as many as 26 business people being developed as facilitators of this simple presentation of the Alpha Course in Perth recently.

And there are already pleasing signs that there are results from this training … in Adelaide Peter Wray and David Turrell commenced Business Alpha at the offices of Magarey Farlam, Lawyers in King William Street. There has also been a course run at Santos . Brisbane is still working on the process and Perth is forming a Business Life group to mastermind the development of Business Alpha. One business owner, Daniel Tan, is already setting up to run Business Alpha in Perth with the help of BGMI contact Jon Seeley from JB Were.

We also gratefully acknowledge the support of John Graham, Alpha Victoria State Co-ordinator and Alpha Australia National Chairman, Chris Sadler, for their help and encouragement in promoting Business Alpha as a platform to reach business executives and professionals in the Melbourne CBD. Also in Melbourne we are grateful for the support of Peter Kentley from CBMC (Christian Business and Marketplace Connections).

Back in Sydney (hosted by Hardel Consulting in Bligh Street ) we are running a Business Life group largely made up of graduates from Business Alpha and their guests. Together we are exploring the next step “Becoming a Disciple of Jesus”. This material was developed as a follow up to Alpha and was field tested in North Shore Christian Centre, Chatswood over the last 5 years under the title of  Alpha + Plus. This church, led by Senior Minister John Luliano, has supplied support to Business Alpha in a very unselfish way, seeking only to see the Kingdom of God extended.

It has been particularly pleasing to see that Business Alpha and Business Life work in concert. People can enter into Life with Christ through Alpha and then go on to grow in His Love, His Word and His Strength. It is great to see how God is using these initiatives of the Holy Spirit to bring people to know Jesus, Our Wonderful Lord.

The Best Recommendation

The best recommendation for Business Alpha and the Alpha Course is to see just some of the fruit over the last six years or so. When we take note of the people who have come to Christ through Business Alpha we can get a glimpse of what our loving heavenly Father is doing to show His great mercy to men and women. This is an evidence of how the “zeal of the Lord will do this swiftly in its time.” Isaiah 60:22

How to Find Out More

If you would like to get started just drop an e-mail to tony@businessalpha.org.au  or consult the website. We can e-mail a copy of the latest Business Alpha Leader’s Manual.

The next Business Alpha starts in Melbourne on October 15th. Email Ray Walker or phone: (03) 9642-4555.

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