My name is J-D Nel, and I live in South Africa. Most of my work involves walking alongside entrepreneurs, leaders, and universities as they seek to create ventures, build healthy organisations, and contribute meaningfully to society. While much of this happens through consulting and leadership development, I have increasingly come to realise that my real calling is much simpler: to help people become faithful stewards of what God has entrusted to them.
That is why being part of the ITL ALICT seeding enterprise programme has been such a privilege.

Over the past year, I have had the opportunity to walk alongside Levis as his coach. Like many entrepreneurs, he has faced uncertainty, setbacks, and difficult decisions. Unlike many of us, however, these challenges have been compounded by political unrest, corruption, and an environment where opportunities can disappear overnight. More than once he has had to rethink his plans, pivot his business, and begin again.
Yet every time we met, I was reminded that God is often far more interested in forming the person than in simply growing the business.

Our conversations certainly included practical matters. We explored different venture opportunities before eventually focusing on establishing his car rental business. We discussed strategy, operations, financial sustainability, customer relationships, and ethical decision-making. But those conversations were always framed by a bigger question:

“What does faithfulness look like here?”

For me, entrepreneurship is not merely about creating wealth. It is one of the ways God invites us to participate in His ongoing work of restoration. A business can create employment, restore dignity, solve real problems, strengthen families, and become a visible expression of God’s Kingdom in a community. That only happens, however, when the entrepreneur first allows God to shape their own heart.

One of the things that has encouraged me most about Levis is not simply his resilience, but his desire to remain rooted in Christ while navigating incredibly difficult circumstances. He has continued serving his local church while building his business, reminding me that our identity is never found in our ventures but in the One who calls us.

People often think coaching is about giving answers. I have found it is much more about walking together, asking better questions, listening well, praying, encouraging, and occasionally helping someone see possibilities they could not yet see themselves. Ultimately, I cannot build Levis’ business for him. But I can remind him that God is present in every decision, every disappointment, every pivot, and every small act of obedience.

Ironically, I have probably received more than I have given.

Every conversation has reminded me that the Kingdom rarely advances through spectacular moments. More often it grows through ordinary people who choose faithfulness day after day, even when no one is watching. Watching Levis persevere has challenged my own heart to trust God more deeply and to hold success more loosely.

The older I become, the less I measure fruitfulness by outcomes alone. Businesses may succeed or fail. Strategies may change. Circumstances may improve or deteriorate. But if we become more like Christ in the process—more humble, more courageous, more generous, more dependent on Him—then something far more valuable has taken place.

I have come to believe that obedience is its own reward.

If God allows me to play even a small part in encouraging entrepreneurs like Levis to faithfully steward their gifts, serve their communities, and reflect Christ through their work, then I count it a profound privilege. I am simply grateful to be invited into the work that God is already doing.

As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 3, one plants, another waters, but it is God who gives the growth. My prayer is simply to remain faithful to the small part He has entrusted to me.