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We are one day into a seven week HOPE trip to Hong Kong. We survived the 24-hour travel day and are thus far surviving the swip-swap of our nights and days. And we’re absolutely tickled with our apartment, a 500 square foot one-bedroom that packs a lot of punch in its diminutive size. The four of us are cozy, not cramped and we are grateful for the generous HOPE donor (from Hong Kong) who provided it for us.
The logical question I’ve heard most over the past month is one I hope to answer here: Why exactly are we in Hong Kong for seven weeks?
We’re here to support Nathan de Lyster, our new executive director, in launching HOPE’s first non-US support office. Over the next two months, we’ll meet with current and potential givers, finalize the legal registration of HOPE Hong Kong, and hopefully build a strong foundation for this entity.
It’s a fun challenge for many reasons. And a compelling opportunity for a host of reasons. We glean energy for this launch from the energy of the city. Hong Kong does not rest. Throngs of the city’s residents churn in and out of the subway system and up and down the expansive skyscrapers.
It’s a city of bright lights amidst remarkable natural beauty. The steel and glass stand in sharp contrast to the lush wooded hills surrounded by blue seas. Hong Kong is the world’s largest port city and a place that typifies the change in the East.
Just fifty years ago, Hong Kong stood on the brink of economic collapse. Today, nearly 10% of Hong Kong’s residents are millionaires and it’s the world’s sixth-best place for entrepreneurship and opportunity. Hong Kong is a city where Christians are actively standing for justice and freedom for all its residents, in the face of those who seek to constrain it. These dynamic economic and spiritual realities reverberate across the Asia Pacific.
South Korea is now second only to the United States in sending missionaries abroad. The Pew Research Center projects that by 2030, China will be home to the largest Christian population in the world. The refrain recounted in The Economist aptly describes the shifting momentum in the world: “The Mediterranean is the ocean of the past, the Atlantic is the ocean of the present and the Pacific is the ocean of the future.”
Hong Kong (credit: Wikipedia commons)
Hong Kong’s story is mirrored across the Pacific Rim. In Seoul, Singapore and Shanghai, the region has experienced unprecedented economic prosperity and growth of the Church. It’s this combination—the vibrant evangelical Church and the surge in financial prosperity—that has created just the right medium for our first international support office.
Across the United States, HOPE manages regional support offices in cities like Dallas, Minneapolis and Durham. In seventeen countries globally, HOPE and our partners manage program offices. But this month, Hong Kong became our first support office outside the United States. We’re excited about this expansion for many reasons. Here are the top three:

  1. Pull Not Push

One of our convictions with launching new microfinance programs is this: we’ll only expand into places where we are invited. As the saying goes, it’s difficult to push a string. Likewise, while we’ve had internal interest in planting support offices in places like Canada, England and Australia; we’ve had the doors thrown open for our expansion into Hong Kong. A small group of generous HOPE donors with Hong Kong connections have proactively encouraged and funded our exploratory efforts in this exciting city. The mind of man plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps (Proverbs 16:9). And God has orchestrated all the steps for us to expand into Hong Kong.

  1. Gateway to the East

Hong Kong provides a door into other places in the East. Already, generous supporters from Singapore, Malaysia and South Korea give financially to HOPE. A hub in Hong Kong allows us to better serve the supporters in these and surrounding countries. For fundraising, recruiting and church partnerships, Hong Kong is the perfect place to fuel our growth.
It’s also a gateway to our programs in the East. HOPE has served in Asian communities for over a decade by investing in the dreams of grassroots entrepreneurs in the Philippines and two other countries (names withheld for security). The donors propelling our expansion into Hong Kong believe, and we concur, that it’s a beautiful vision to imagine donors from Asia supporting HOPE’s Asian workers and clients.

  1. Bankers for Bankers

Hong Kong is a global banking center. It’s a hub for some of the largest financial institutions in the world, drawing like a magnet some of the most talented bankers and influential banks. There’s a beautiful connection between the prestige and power of Hong Kong’s financial prowess and the life-changing financial services HOPE provides to vulnerable people in slums and rural communities throughout the world. We are missionary bankers and are thrilled to introduce Christ-centered microfinance to Hong Kong’s wealthy Christian business community.
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The reasons extend well beyond these three. When HOPE’s board looked at the pros and cons of this endeavor, they gave it their wholehearted endorsement.They felt, like me and HOPE’s donors from Hong Kong, that expanding into this city was a compelling opportunity. It’s a massive risk, of course, but we’re here to give this new venture its best chance of success.