Archive for September, 2008
External Manifestations of Internal Realities
September 25th, 2008 Categories: Christian Business Blog
“Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.” (3 John 1:2)
I don’t know of a single Christian Business person who doesn’t want a prosperous business. In fact, most that I know devote their entire lives to operating their business in such a way that it will bring glory to God. I’d like to point out a small but important principle that may help.
Internal realities always become external realities. Whatever a man holds dear in his heart is what will manifest in his life. That’s why the scripture above makes the connection between the prosperity of the soul and the outward manifestation of prosperity.
Do you have a prosperous soul? Do you spend as much time developing your spirit man as you spend developing your business plan? It’s food for thought.
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Nice is a Niche for Christian Businesses
September 23rd, 2008 Categories: Christian Business Blog
I was reading this article on Seth Godin’s site today when the thought occurred to me that this is effectively a niche market that can be exploited by the Christian business community. We should be so overjoyed at the prospect of living another day in God’s graces that the world can’t help but notice our “niceness.”
Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:16
The fruit of the spirit are often described as the nine visible attributes of a true Christian life. They are love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance. (Galations 5:22-23) These attributes sound like exactly what Seth was looking for when he wrote his post. And, since you can hardly separate a life of devotion to the Lord and these attribues, your Christian business should have them in spades.
Are you leveraging the fruit of the spirit in your marketing efforts?
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Resting While You Work
September 18th, 2008 Categories: Christian Business Blog
As Christian business people, we sometimes view the terms “rest” and “work” as contradictory in nature. I believe this mindset comes as a result of a fundamental misunderstanding of the concept of rest. Rest is not the absence of work, but rather the presence of Him who sets you forth to labor.
9) So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God.
10) For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His.
11) Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest, so that no one will fall, through following the same example of disobedience. (Hebrews 4: 9-12)
The King James version actually exhorts us to labor to enter that rest, which is an amazing and seemingly contradictory statement. Work hard to not work. Put in effort to be effortless.
What we’re actually being encouraged to do is abandon our striving, approval-seeking laborious behavior and operate our Christian businesses from the perspective that we are loved, accepted, and highly regarded by God despite the success or stature of our business. That revelation doesn’t make me want to do nothing; it makes me want to do everything. The difference is that I’m not performing in order to earn His approval or provide for my own substinence, but rather to honor Him who equipped me for business in the first place.
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