USING BUSINESS TO CREATE LEADERS FOR CHRIST
Oil of Joy, centered around the production of virgin coconut oil, is the “business as ministry” component of Village of Hope Ministries. Established in 2014 to bring jobs to the community and to share the love of Christ through our business, Oil of Joy aims to disciple employees and help meet tangible needs of Toch Village. We feel that while ministry is an excellent God-honoring vocation, it is not the only work that can be glorifying to God. Oil of Joy, while associated with Village of Hope Ministries, is a business aiming to serve, show Christ, and be honorable to our employees, customers, and community.
Why Virgin Coconut Oil?
In recent years, the popularity of virgin coconut oil has soared after being linked to a tremendous number of health benefits. Being high in healthy saturated fats, coconut oil has been reported to boost fat-burning abilities, increase energy levels, strengthen the immune system, help prevent heart, liver, and kidney disease, help control dementia and Alzheimer’s, and as a healthy natural alternative for hair and skin care. Below you will find out how virgin coconut oil can impact the Kingdom of God spiritually, economically, and environmentally.
KINGDOM IMPACT
SPIRITUAL – Our main focus is using our business as a way to share Christ’s love with Toch Village. We strive to create community and concentrate on the discipleship of our employees. We want our work environment grounded in Christ and to be a place where people desire to come to work because of the great joy and hope that fills Oil of Joy’s atmosphere. We aspire to know each of our employees individually as a direct reflection of how God pursues meaningful, unique relationships with each of us personally. Our greatest hope for our staff is for them to discover a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and live confidently in the hope, love, and freedom he gives us so freely.
ECONOMIC – Our income provides a steady salary to our employees who otherwise might have a difficult time finding employment and/or financial security for their families. Our focus is on supplying jobs to middle-aged and elderly members of our community. Our heart is to give opportunities to those who don’t have an education or the ability to work at a factory, to create financial security, and to further opportunities for their families. Also, Oil of Joy looks to create part-time positions for high school students so that they can more easily afford school and university fees. As a non-profit, our surplus funds will be used to sustain all other ministries of Village of Hope. Our hope is that our business will continue enhancing the environment, generating job opportunities, and boosting the economy in Toch Village. Oil of Joy hopes to increase the number of employees from 20 to 100 by creating 80 new jobs in the future. That would mean the company would employ roughly 5% of the population of Toch Village. According to research done by The Joshua Project, if a population reaches 5% Christianity, it is considered a “reached people group,” meaning the Gospel is able to internally spread without outside help. This is the desired correlation between the economic and spiritual impact of business as ministry.
ENVIRONMENTAL – Oil of Joy believes the earth to be God’s precious creation and a direct reflection of his glory. As followers we feel it is important and God-honoring to preserve and take care of the environment around us. To do our part in protecting the earth, we use a specialized production process that aspires to generate zero waste. Out of all the consumable oils that are sold globally, virgin coconut oil promotes the least deforestation. It has the best carbon footprint out of all the oils in production. This makes coconuts the perfect natural product for our business.
YDC Kampot 