Christian Business Builder

Ok, yesterday I told you that I had a seven step plan for business success. I told you that I would deliver that plan to you over the next seven days. I also told you that the creator of this plan can guarantee you success if and only if you are willing to follow the plan completely. If you fail to completely follow this plan your level of success will be effected.

So … without any further adoo, here is step number one in the seven steps to business success:

“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; …” (Proverbs 3:5a)

I know, I kown, you’ve heard this before. But wait, give me a chance and I will show you how all of these thought fit together before I am done and, if you believe God’s word, you will see how your success can be guaranteed if you are willing to work this plan.

Now, let’s look at step one.

Trust means to be confident or sure. It means to be bold and to make to trust. So, if we apply this to business success, we could say that if we are going to be successful in business, we need to be confident in the Lord; to be bold in him.

We need to trust in the Lord “with all our hearts.” Our heart is the seat of our intellect, emotion, and will.

So, when we put these definitions together, we need to be confident in the Lord with all of our intellect, our emotion, and our will. This means that the Lord needs to be our confidence when we consider the technical aspects of business and marketing, when we struggle with the emotional ups and downs owning a business can bring, and as we surrender our will for success to that of the Lord. (Remember he doesn’t always define success the same way that we do.)

It is a simple first step, but it is not an easy one. To truly trust in the Lord means that you have to always agree with him and yield yourself to his direction throughout the course of your business career. Add to this the fact that Satan battles, seeks to blind and discourage all those who trust in the Lord and you have to make a real commitment to this first step.

However, if you are willing enough and surrendered enough God will bring you to a place of real success if you trust in him with all your heart.

Tomorrow - “and lean not unto thine own understanding.”

Over the next eight days I want to outline for you a sure fire success formula that will allow you the greatest opportunity to be successful in this life! Now, I cannot guarantee anyone success, mostly because I don’t know what success looks like to you, I don’t know how closely you are walking with God, I don’t know if you are being led by the Holy Spirit, I just don’t have enough information to guarantee you success.

What I can do is lay out a plan that was written by the Creator of all that is. His plan will at least lead you to the greatest opportunity for success (guaranteed if you follow the plan without fail). But, remember as you go along, Adam and Eve were guaranteed success in their lives as well but failed to follow God’s plan. His guarantee was good while their execution left something to be desired.

This plan lays out perfectly with seven clear and distinctive parts. (Remember 7 is the number that represents perfection.) This is a perfect plan, designed by a perfect being, to provide perfect success to those who have the faith and the courage to follow it perfectly. Any deviation from the plan lessens the synergistic effect and lessens the level of success you can expect.

Success is a strange thing, God desires it for everyone, yet so few achieve it! Are you ready to take up the challenge? Come back tomorrow and we will get started!

Wax on, wax off Danielson!

When doing any business planning as a Christian we must always remember to look first to God. I have been overwhelmed with what the Psalmist said in Psalm 37.

We are told, “Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb. Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.”

This passage puts the responsibility on us to let God handle the planning of our businesses. We need to not let the world control our thinking when it comes to business. What we are to do is:

1. Trust in the LORD. God knows what our business should look like and what we can handle to bring the greatest glory to him. We need to trust the Lord in his wisdom.

2. Delight ourselves in the LORD. This simply means we need to be soft or pliable in God’s hands. As we do this, God will give (appoint, ascribe) us the desires of our hearts. In other words, when we are pliable in God’s hands he will place desires in our hearts that allow us to fulfill his will.

3. Commit our way unto the LORD. This is where the rubber meets the road. If we trust the LORD for the design of our business and we become so pliable in his hands that he can place his desires into our hearts, we then need to commit our way (the course of our lives) to him. When we commit ourselves this way, God promises to bring those desires to pass.

Business planning is important and every Christian business owner needs to have a strong business plan, but that plan needs to reflect God’s will above everything else.

What is it that makes our Christian life distinctive in this world? Is it just the fact that we follow a set of “rules” that are outlined in the Bible or is there more to it? Is there more to the name of Christ than the music we listen to and the books that we read? What makes Christianity worth considering and even more worth embracing?

You see, what makes Christianity distinctive, is what will make the business owned by a Christian equally distinctive.

I think that there are three things that make Christianity distinctive among the religions of the world:

1. Christianity is built upon a personal relationship with God himself. Unlike every other world religion, Christianity is based upon the ability of the individual to have a personal relationship with God. This relationship guides the believer in every other aspect of his life. His family life, relationships with friends as well as enemies, and of course the function of his business. Only when the relationship with God is as it should be can the Christian business owner run their business as it should be run.
2. Christianity is based on the notion of love. God, we are told is love and therefore as his children we ought to be the practitioners of his love. Jesus was asked one day what the greatest command was and his answer was to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, soul, and mind. Then he went further and said the the second great commandment was to love your neighbor as yourself. He concluded the thought by saying that it was upon these two commandments that all the law and the prophets hung. Everything is God’s word leads to these two ends. Our relationship with God will lead us to love him and all those that he loves. In business we need to remember that our customers and/or clients ought to see in us the love of holy God. We should demonstrate a genuine, loving concern for them in all that we do.
3. Christianity is distinctive in that it is a religion of mutual service. Throughout the word of God, the believer is shown a pattern of service to others both by Christ himself and by the disciples he trained. Each believer is to care for the other. When this mutual concern is realized its synergy multiplies the result. The Christian business owner knows that she must look for these opportunities to benefit and serve both her customers and/or clients while also looking for ways to benefit her employees and vendors as well. As she learns to serve and bless everyone involved in the success of her business, she will succeed in more than just money.

These three distinct aspects of the Christian faith need to be seen and felt in our businesses for us to be truly a “Christian business.” God will be honored, our clients, customers, employees, and vendors will be best served and we will live under the blessed had of God himself.

In my view, there is no better way to run a business!

Have you ever wondered about why there is so much debt in America these days? Have you ever considered the shear magnitude of what debt does and the true horrors is produces in our society? Have you ever thought about who might be behind such a diabolical plan to enslave the vast majority of this countries people to the place where there is little or no room for God in their lives? As Christians, these questions must have answers and we must be settled in those answers if we are going to be living testimonies for the glory of God.

Thoughts about money, debt, and greed have been the focus of my thinking over the past couple years. I have come to some firm conclusions about these thoughts and am going to make them available to you here. There is literally too much to say in one post, so I will divide things up into several articles. I hope you will enjoy them, be challenged by them, and really consider the real battle underway through the methods of greed, covetousness, and debt.

Let me start out by saying that having money and possessions is not a sin. However, coveting money and possessions is! Covetousness and greed are among the biggest problems in America today and their ramifications reach into every one’s view of God. The poor who are covetous blame God for their lack and the wealthy who are covetous see themselves as always deserving more “blessings.” They both have wrong views of God based on their covetous and its evil twin, greed.

As Christian business owners, we certainly want to be successful. We want to honor God in this part of our lives as well as any. We know that God blesses those that work hard and we certainly are willing to work hard. However, we sometimes forget that God does not keep score by how much, but by faithful and that he distributes life’s blessings as it pleases him. Even David, the king whose heart was after God’s own heart, knew times of luxury in the palace and times of living in caves.

The Apostle Paul said, “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. ” Philippians 4:12-14

His primary concern was not how much that he had but that he had it from the Lord. He was content knowing he was serving the Lord, and he trusted God for his wealth. Paul continued this teaching when, writing to Timothy, speaking about false teachers said, “If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness;  He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings, Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself. But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.  And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.” (1 Timothy 6:3-11)

Now I know that this passage does say that the LOVE of money is the root of all evil, but how many times have you asked someone, “What do you do?” and had them answer in some other way than how they make money? How many business owners, when asked that question, say, “Well, I run my business so that I can be a blessing my church, strengthen my community, and change the world for the glory of God?”

I will leave you with that thought for now … Remember, Greed Kills!

I want to start this post by asking a question: “How do the concepts of Christianity mesh with the ideals of capitalism?” In other words, “Can a faith-filled and serving believer in Christ also effectively own and operate a successful business in an age of rampant greed and corporate corruption?”

Let’s face the facts. A very large number of “home-based” business opportunities are scams designed to make a privileged few a lot of money and the real backbone of the company (the field-force) very little. The intent of most “brick and mortar” businesses is to make the most money for the owners while paying  the employees the least amount possible to keep them at their jobs. Add this to the stress of a bad national economy and what is a Christian to do?

First, let me say without doubt that I believe that a person who is a life-altering servant of the living God can and really should be actively involved in the marketplace. What I think we need to consider though, is not should we run successful businesses, but how should those businesses look and what should those businesses promote and do?

The answer to these questions will not only define our business models but will also testify of the practicality of our faith. Ghandi once said that he would be a Christian except it be for Christians. He said that he had read the Bible and agreed with much of what Jesus taught. However, what had kept him from accepting Jesus’ teachings was the lack of a testimony of the power of those teachings in lives of professed believers.

If we then, as believers, want to build successful businesses while advancing the cause of Christ, what should we do?

1. We should remember that we are Christ-followers before we are business owners. If we would simply treat those in our businesses with the love and wisdom of Christ, we would be well on our way to a successful business model.
2. We should establish biblical principles in every phase of our operations. From the training of our sales-force to the way we pay our debtors, we should use biblical principles as our sole guide for success.
3. As our business grows and gains profitability we ought to look for ways to reach out to our communities and their needs. Christian business owners ought to be out front in looking for real solutions in our troubled neighborhoods. We ought to be the ones who will look at every possibility to provide opportunity for hard working and willing people to get ahead and make their own way in this world. So much talent is lost in the cracks of society when people are left to themselves. We, as Christians who also own businesses, ought to work with those in the cracks (and churches that are willing to get out into the communities) to teach a new generation the benefits and blessings of a Godly worldview.

Just a week or so ago we were all saddened (and hopefully righteously indignant) over the video of the honor student who was beaten to death on that street in Chicago. If Christian business owners would band together and re-take these streets, tragedies like this one might well be avoided. We must not just see folks as clients, potential sales, and the like, but as souls bound for eternity. Christ came to give life and when we abandon the streets to Satan, we fail to serve our God. Like Ghandi those who struggle in this life might well say, “I would be a Christian, except it be for Christians.”

Will we choose to establish our businesses with a greater vision in mind? One that includes not only profits for us, but also considering how our companies reflect the testimony of Christ as well.

The Jesus Model - Part 4

In this post we are going to look at the fourth principle that we see in the life and ministry of Jesus. This fourth principle is that: Jesus lived in an environment of prayer.

In Matthew 14:22-25 Jesus had spent a day laboring in a dessert place. He had taught and then fed a large crowd of people and when he sent them away, he headed into the mountain alone for a time of prayer with his Father. It was after this time alone with God the Father that he taught the disciples the lesson of faith by walking to them on the water.

Jesus prayed before he named the twelve, he prayed to the Father for blessings on his disciples and those who would get saved throughout the ages to come, and he prayed for God’s will to be done in the garden before he went to the cross.

How about us? Do we bath our businesses in prayer? Do we seek God’s guidance in who we bring on to our teams? Do we pray about the needs and direction of our businesses? Is prayer a principle element of our business growth?

I know for me it has not always been so. I got into network marketing without much prayer and worked to grow my business through the counsel of my upline leaders. (Again without much time with the Lord.) When I was the most successful I was praying much more and when I struggled I was “doing everything I was told to do” by my upline.

This principle ought to cause us all to think a bit, and maybe even to reevaluate our current business practices. Without clear guidence from the Lord we are just really throwing darts in the dark.

Following the principles of  The Jesus Model will always place us in the best place possible to give God the greatest glory in our bodies and our spirits, which are his!

Just my thoughts ….

This is the third post in a five part series entitled The Jesus Model. In this post we are going to look at the third principle in The Jesus Model:

Jesus Penetrated the Culture of His Day

In Matthew 9:10-13 Jesus is questioned about the time he was spending eating with the Publicans and Sinners. Jesus declares to his detractors that those who are whole don’t need a physician, but those who are sick do! While I understand and agree that Jesus is speaking primarily about the salvation of those he dined with, I also think that a principle is evident here as well.

I recently heard a preacher on the radio say that the most amazing thing was not that Jesus ate with sinners, but that sinners wanted to eat with Jesus. Throughout his life Jesus made himself available to everyone who wanted to spend time with him. He never condoned the sinners sin, but he always treated them with respect. His very presence caused sinners to look up and to pay attention. While not all of those he ate with accepted him as their Saviour, it is apparent that his life and words effected them all!

As Christian networkers the question is can we penentrate the “ultra-hype rich” network marketing industry and have a positive effect on it without being tainted by it? Can we be “in it but not of it?” I for one believe we can!

If we are going to follow this principle lived out in the life and ministry of Jesus we are going to have to do three things:

1. We are going to have to be sure why we are in this industry. If you go back to the beginnings of the network marketing industry, it was designed to allow compassionate people the opportunity to reach out and help others build successful businesses from the comfort of their own homes. The key ingredient to this kind of compassion should be our love for God and the desire to express that love to those he puts us in contact with. Jesus did not find the sin that permeated the life of those he dined with pleasant, but he loved them just the same. His love for the sinners allowed him to fulfill God’s will among them.

2. We are going to have to avoid the temptation to isolate ourselves. By eating with these sinner Jesus taught us that while he did not agree with the life-style of the sinner, he still understood that they needed what he had to offer. He maintained his personal testimony and integrity while making sure the sinners understood his love for them. Jesus insulated himself from the sin around him while not isolating himself from the sinner.

3. We are going to have to endure the rebuke that may come our way. Jesus was rebuked by the religious crowd of his day. He quickly and without a doubt let them know that he was here for anyone who recognized their need and sought him. Many Christians in this industry want to work only with other believers (I like working with like-minded believers as well). However, Jesus was willing to go where the doors were opened to him and deal with those he found with both love and respect. In doing so, lost people were saved and those who rejected were made to be “without excuse.”

I would love for my organization to be filled with Christian people who were so committed in their service t the Lord Jesus that they would work with everyone God brought their way. That they would show the same commitment to thoe who don’t know Christ as they do to those who do. With this kind of organization we would see lost people come to Christ and God glorified in all that we do.

Just a thought ….

In this post we are going to be looking at the second principle in The Jesus Model.

The second principle is:
Jesus presented himself in service to God the Father.

What this means to our business practices is that we need to build our businesses as a part of our service to God the Father.

When Jesus prayed to God the Father in the garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-45) he said, “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.”

In that statement Jesus presented himself in the ultimate way in service to God the Father. Remember that God was going to pour out his wrath on Christ while he hung on the cross. He was also going to forsake God the Son while he became sin for us who knew no sin.

Knowing all of what lay before him, Jesus still presented himself for service.

God had not asked the same level of service from anyone before nor has he since. That being so, he still wants us to be living sacrifices for him in this world (Romans 12:1-2).

This level of service is not just about us being “spiritual.” It is about our overall testimony in life. This includes our business model and philosophy.

Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31)

Again to the Corinthians Paul says, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 6:20)

Our business is a part of our relationship with the Lord. Since it is, we need to yield it to him and follow after him as he leads. Just like Jesus was willing to follow God’s lead even if it meant he would suffer greatly for his service, we should be willing to “look unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.” (Hebrews 12)

When the great God of the universe is in full charge of all our lives (our business included) and we serve him with his glory in mind, he will provide us with the wisdom and understanding necessary to be successful.

Does your business function as a method of your service to the Lord?

Just a thought ….

Dave

Jesus Model - Part One
Building a Business with Purpose
Hebrews 12:1-2

While considering the coming of the new year, I was struck by the need to evaluate again the business that I believe that God has burdened me to start. I began this evaluation by looking at the different business models that I could find both on and offline.

However, it seemed that the more I looked at what was out there and what other people were doing, I was drawn to the conclusion that I was not right for any of the models I had discovered. So, I began to prayerfully consider what God wanted me to do. After all, if he had really called me to build a successful business then he would surely have a model in mind for my doing it.

I was looking through some sermon outlines that I had prepared over the years and came across one entitled, “The Jesus Model.” When I read through the outline, it was as God himself was shouting from the portal of heaven, “This is how you should build your business!”

As I read through the outline again and studied the key texts, He was right (like that’s any big suprise!) This meant that I would have to start over (remember my “Hard Rest” post) and that I would have to build a whole new team. However, I now have a plan in mind and a direction to travel. What a wonderful feeling.

In these articles I would like to share the basics of that plan with you. Not so that you would necessarily join me (I am leaving the “who” of my team up to God!) Rather, I hope that, as you plan your 2009, the basics of this plan spark as much hope, excitement, and confidence in you as it has in me. May God bless us all as we work to honor him in this very important aspect of our lives and service to Him.

The first aspect of the Jesus Model is seen in the fact that Jesus lived every day of his life in a purposeful way. What I mean by this is that Jesus saw each day of his life as an expression of his relationship with God the Father.

In John 4:31 - 38 Jesus teaches his disciples a great lesson:

“In the mean while his disciples prayed him, saying, Master, eat. But he said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know not of. Therefore said the disciples one to another, Hath any man brought him ought to eat? Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work. Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest. And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal: that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together. And herein is that saying true, One soweth, and another reapeth. I sent you to reap that whereon ye bestowed no labour: other men laboured, and ye are entered into their labours. “

Notice the phrase: “My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.” First of all we need to understand the old english word meat. It literally means that which sustains life.

Jesus was telling his disciples (who were trying to get him to eat) that his life was not sustained by what he had to eat but rather by two more important things: 1. To do the will of he who had sent him, and 2. To finish his God’s (the one who sent him) work.

The disciples didn’t understand what Jesus was talking about, because their minds were almost always on temporal things. They nearly always saw things through the eyes of their flesh rather than from an eternal view.

Christian network marketers can be the same way. We listen to the conference calls and the annual convention speaches and get all fired up about what a successful business can do for us. We often times forget to consider why God has us in the business in the first place. What does God want to accomplish by our being in network marketing to begin with?

When we don’t approach our business as an expression of our relationship with God the Father, we are opening ourselves up (like the disciples did here) to only seeing things from a temporal view.

God would have us understand three things if our businesses are really going to have an eternal perspective and are going to be built with purpose:

1. Everything we do in life should be about God the Father. This relationship with the Father is what sustained Jesus’ life and ministry.

2. Every attempt we make to build and grow our business should also have an eternal purpose. This is why it is important who we sponsor and why we sponsor them.

3. Every moment we spend in our business will testify of our relationship with God the Father. People who work with us will either see a wonderful relationship between us and the Father or they will see that what we may speak and what we do indicate a disconnect between us and God the Father.

So … how are you going to build this year? Who are you going to build with? How are you going to conduct yourself in the world of your business? With purpose? As a witness of your relationship with God the Father (through Jesus Christ)? Will Eternity matter as you build this year?

Just a thought …. we’ll talk again soon!

Dave