April 23, 2025 • 30 mins
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The modern marketplace offers Christian business owners a unique ministry opportunity that extends far beyond profit margins. Through our daily interactions with employees, customers, vendors, and communities, we carry the light of Christ into places traditional ministry might never reach.
What happens, though, when success tempts us toward pride or failure pushes us toward despair? This episode explores the critical spiritual practices that keep Christian entrepreneurs and business leaders grounded regardless of circumstances.
Drawing inspiration from Truett Cathy's profound insight that "my business grows as my faith grows," we unpack practical, biblical principles for maintaining your spiritual foundation through every business season. From the power of daily prayer that connects you to divine guidance, to strategic Bible study that provides timeless wisdom for modern challenges, to the protection found in godly counsel when facing difficult decisions – each practice creates stability in an unpredictable business world.
We spotlight Trijicon, an American optics manufacturer whose founder integrated faith directly into their products by inscribing biblical references on military-grade equipment. This compelling example demonstrates how faith can become central to company identity rather than separate from it.
Whether you're navigating the temptations of success, the discouragement of setbacks, or the constant ethical challenges of leadership, these spiritual disciplines create the unshakable foundation needed for true, lasting success. As Colossians 1:23 reminds us, we must stay "grounded and settled" rather than being "moved away" from our core beliefs.
Your business journey will inevitably include both mountain peaks and valleys. By implementing these spiritual practices, you'll maintain perspective through it all, recognizing that your ultimate success isn't measured by profits or titles, but by faithfulness to God's calling on your life and business.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to the Christian Business Concepts with
your host, harold Milby.
Christian Business Concepts isdedicated to guiding companies
and business owners in becomingeffective, efficient and
successful through God's Wordand godly principles.
Now, here's your host, haroldMilby.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
Welcome everyone to this week's Christian Business
Concepts podcast.
I'm your host, harold Milby,and each week we try to discuss
business topics and just how toapply business principles that
will help you find true godlysuccess.
You know Christian businessesare so important in our world
today and in our communities andyou know we have the
(00:41):
opportunity as business leadersand you know we have the
opportunity as business leadersto minister to so many different
people that may not beministered to if it wasn't for
us.
So, from employees to customers, to vendors, to other people.
(01:07):
I mean, you know Christianbusinesses gives us an
opportunity that we could neverhave and that opportunity is
there to let our light shine inthis world that we're in today
because we influence so manypeople as a business owner or a
Christian business leader.
And I hope that you see thatvision, that you agree with us
about that vision, and thatyou'll help us to grow the CBC
community by sharing thispodcast with four or five other
(01:28):
people.
I always say this, but again,I'm asking you to put that link
out there on your Facebook page,your LinkedIn page, and just
thanks for all that you do on aweekly basis to help us grow the
CBC ministry and podcast.
We don't take any money.
This is all funded from justpeople who want to be a part of
(01:55):
it and are helping us do that,and we're not doing it for any
other reason, but because wewant to grow the kingdom of God
and we know that God has adesire to really utilize
businesses in our world.
So I hope that you'll do thatwith us and be a part of it.
Now, before we get startedtoday, I just want to give a big
(02:16):
shout out to Minneapolis,minnesota, here in the US, for
having so many downloads thisweek.
We hope that this podcast andministry is a blessing to you.
Thank you so much for being apart and we hope that you'll
also help us to grow and comeback again Now.
I've been trying to highlightbusinesses in the last few weeks
(02:38):
that are Christian business andI'd like to share with you
about a company called Trijicon,and Trijicon is an American
optics manufacturer.
They're based in Wixom,michigan, and they're
world-renowned I mean theyreally are for their high
quality, their self-luminoussights, you know, and scopes.
(03:00):
It's used by the US military,it's used by law enforcement and
even civilians, and it wasfounded in 1981 by a man by the
name of Glenn Benden and he's adevout Christian.
The company itself has reallygained a lot of attention, not
(03:24):
only because it's reallyinnovative but also because its
unique practice of inscribingthese little biblical references
on their optics and thattradition for that company.
It just really reflectsTrijicon's deep commitment to
integrating their Christianfaith into their business
(03:46):
operations.
Glenn was born in Pretoria,south Africa, in 1937.
He immigrated here to theUnited States in the 50s and
then he earned a degree inaeronautical engineering,
founding Trajicon.
He worked on a lot of prettyimportant projects, including a
shock absorber for the Navy'sF-8U Crusader.
(04:10):
He also helped to design aspecial valve for the Apollo 13
mission.
In 1981, while he was at FordMotor Company, he launched a
company called Armson USA wherehe was really importing and
developing theseself-illuminated gun sights, and
he later renamed that companyTrijicon in 1985 because he was
(04:35):
blending the tritium, which is aradioactive isotope that's
what's used in this illuminationwith the sights and icon
meaning image, that's what iconmeans.
And so he highlighted those twothings and it became Tragicon.
And as a devout Christian,benden saw his work really as
(04:58):
just an extension of his faithand he believed that Tragicon's
tritium illuminated productswhich provide light in really
low visibility conditions, thatit resonated with biblical
themes, primarily lightovercoming darkness, and that
conviction really inspired himto engrave these subtle Bible
(05:22):
verses and these Biblereferences on their products.
And it's a practice that reallybecame a hallmark for
Trijicon's identity, and so Ijust wanted to share that with
you.
Another great company, godlycompany, founded on godly
principles, and just kind ofwanted to share that with you
(05:43):
about them.
You know, truett Cathy, thefounder of Chick-fil-A, said one
time my business grows as myfaith grows, and he truly
believed that.
And as a Christian businessleader you're going to face a
lot of challenges and a lot ofopportunities.
You're going to have a lot ofsuccess and you're going to have
(06:03):
some failures.
But you know, success can temptyou towards pride I mean, let's
be honest and then failure canlead you to despair.
Yet through all of that, yourfaith can serve as that
unshakable foundation which willgive you a lot of stability.
It gives you a greatperspective, no matter what the
(06:26):
circumstances are.
So today we're going to offersome practical, biblically-based
principles to help you reallystay grounded in your faith
through the highs and the lowsand everything in between of
your business journey.
So first let's look atColossians 1 1, verse 23.
It says if you continue in thefaith, grounded and settled, and
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be not moved away from the hopeof the gospel which you have
heard and which was preached toevery creature which is under
heaven, whereof I, paul, am madea minister.
So we have this statementthat's kind of a warning to us
to stay grounded, to staysettled in our faith and don't
(07:10):
be moved away.
The word grounded just means tolay a foundation, to make it
stable, and the word settledhere in this verse comes from a
Greek word that means firm, itmeans immovable, and then it
says not to be soon moved away.
It means to stir to a differentplace, to stir yourself and go
to another place.
(07:31):
So what he's saying here is weought to have a great foundation
, a strong foundation, and thenwe have to make that conscious
choice to be immovable, to standfirm and not to go anyplace
else.
Right, and in the LivingTranslation, the Living Bible,
it says it this way.
It says the only condition thatyou fully believe or is that
(07:54):
you fully believe the truth,standing in it steadfast and
firm, strong in the Lord,convinced of the good news that
Jesus died for you, and nevershifting from trusting him to
save you.
This is the wonderful news thatcame to each of you and is now
spreading all over the world,and I, paul, have the joy of
(08:17):
telling it to others.
So, again, it's so importantthat we stay rooted and grounded
.
So we're going to talk a littlebit about some very key
principles for staying groundedin your faith Because, again, as
I said earlier, when you havesuccess, it's easy for you to
look at that success and saylook what I did, without giving
(08:40):
God any credit for it whatsoever.
It doesn't matter what yourposition is, it doesn't matter
if you own the company.
It was God that helped you toget there, regardless.
Maybe you didn't get saved orborn again until after you
started your business, but,regardless, god had that plan
already set up for you.
And so it's easy for us to findsuccess and forget God.
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And the opposite is true too.
A lot of times we have failuresand then we want to blame God.
So we want to stay rooted andgrounded, and the first thing,
the first principle, is dailyprayer.
Daily, I said daily prayer.
And now, why does that matter?
Well, prayer keeps youconnected to God.
(09:21):
First, it's reminding you thathe not market trends or profit
margins is in control.
It's him he's in control.
James 5 and 16 in the AmplifiedBible says Therefore, confess
your sins to one another, yourfalse steps, your offenses, and
pray for one another that youmay be healed and restored.
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The heartfelt and persistentprayer of a righteous man
believer can accomplish muchwhen put into action and made
effective by God.
It is dynamic and can havetremendous power.
And that's what he said aboutprayer.
You know Soren Kierkegaard saidone time.
(10:06):
He said "'Prayer does notchange God, but it changes him
who prays'".
And I believe that you know.
Dl Moody said one time I'drather be able to pray than to
be a great preacher.
Jesus Christ never taught hisdisciples how to preach, but how
to pray, and so I think it'simportant that we pray daily.
What are some steps that we cantake?
(10:28):
Well, you need to set asidesome specific times each day for
prayer.
It can be your morning beforework, midday during a break, or
your evening time when you'rehaving some downtime for
reflection over the day.
But set some specific time topray and then keep a prayer
journal, record things that youput down that you're believing
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God for, put down issues,problems, whatever they may be
that you're believing God toanswer.
Write them down and then prayspecifically for wisdom in your
business decisions and really inall of your decisions,
especially those very importantdecisions you know James talks
about.
You know, if any man lackwisdom, let him ask of God, who
(11:14):
giveth liberally and upbraidethnot, and I believe that we ask
wisdom from God and God answersthat.
So you can imagine, maybethere's a CEO who he begins each
morning with this quiet time ofprayer and seeking God's
guidance for today's challenges,and that practice not only
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centers him spiritually but alsoprovides a lot of clarity and
peace and it enables him to leadwith a lot of wisdom and
compassion.
1 Thessalonians 5.17 says praywithout ceasing.
Now you say how do you do that?
Am I supposed to be opening mymouth and having a prayer on my
(11:54):
lips all day, continuously?
It really talks about having anattitude of prayer where it's
the first thing on your mind.
So the first thing that happensto you through the day, instead
of getting yourself allbothered, all upset about
something, your first thought isto pray, and so you pray
without ceasing.
You keep that mind of prayerall day long.
(12:17):
So the question I have for youtoday, and I'm going to ask you
a question for each of these ishow does prayer impact your
decision-making?
How do you allow it?
My suggestion would be startevery day, every morning, with
five minutes of prayer forguidance, at least that.
But you need to set time.
(12:39):
Set time for it because God'sworth it.
He's worth that.
Next is a regular Bible study.
It's important because God'sWord really provides timeless
wisdom.
I mean it does to guide you, tostrengthen you, strengthen your
faith, help you make thosedecisions.
God's Word is full ofprinciples and ideas and ways
(13:02):
that you can be helped, and soyou want to be able to read your
Bible on a regular basis.
You know, in 1868, charlesDickens wrote to his youngest
child and he was getting readyto leave.
His youngest child was leavingfor Australia and he wrote this
to him.
He said I put a New Testamentamong your books for the very
same reasons, with the very samehopes that made me write an
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easy account of it for you whenyou were a little child, because
it is the best book that everwas or will be known in the
world and because it teaches youthe best lessons by which any
human creature who tries to betruthful and faithful to duty
can possibly be guided.
So even Charles Dickensrecognized the importance of
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God's Word.
So I would encourage you, aspractical steps, to read a
chapter.
Read a chapter every day, evenif it's just 10 minutes a day.
Start there.
You might want to join a Biblestudy group or get around some
other business leaders for Biblediscussions and accountability
(14:09):
and be a part of that group.
But apply the biblicalprinciples that we talk about
here on this podcast and whatyou learn, and apply those
principles directly to thosebusiness challenges that maybe
you face.
And I think, with regard toyour integrity and stewardship
(14:30):
and honesty, compassion, applythe biblical principles that
apply to those things you know.
Consider a manager whoregularly studies Proverbs for
wisdom on his leadership and youknow he applies those biblical
principles to even hismanagement style.
Just think about that, becauseit would foster this workplace
(14:54):
culture of respect and integrity.
Or maybe there's a marketingdirector and maybe he's
preparing for a big, importantcampaign and he looks at
Philippians 4.13, and it says Ican do all things through Christ
, who strengthens me, and hegets this renewed confidence and
puts together a great marketingcampaign and it's very
(15:16):
successful.
So the Word of God says inPsalms 119, 105,.
It says your word is a lamp tomy feet and a light to my path,
and I believe that.
I truly, truly believe that.
So I'll ask you a question andyou answer this.
You know what biblical accountreally resonates with you in
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your current business situation?
What really resonates with you?
Think about that, but read onechapter and if that's all, you
can start with, read a chapterof Proverbs every day.
There's 31 books in the book ofProverbs.
So on a certain day of themonth, read that particular
chapter of Proverbs and you'llread through the whole book in a
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month and really, really payattention to it.
Don't just read it, but reallythink about it.
And then the next thing that youcan do to stay rooted and
grounded is to seek godlycounsel.
Now, why does that matter?
Well, you know, when you havewise and faith-filled people
around you that can help younavigate we'll say it that way
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navigate tough decisions andeven help you avoid a lot of
mistakes.
Let me tell you something.
It's worth a lot.
It's worth a lot.
You know.
Socrates even said the onlytrue wisdom is in knowing.
You know nothing.
So all I'm saying is thatyou're not the smartest guy in
the world or lady in the world,and none of us should think that
(16:46):
we should always be willing tolearn from others, especially
other godly people.
So I think that's important.
So I think that's important.
Maybe some good steps would beto find, maybe, a mentor who
really is good at giving goodgodly advice.
Maybe join a Christian businessnetwork or a group for good
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support.
Maybe you want to consult withyour pastor or some kind of a
spiritual advisor on majordecisions.
So I think those things arevery, very, very important.
You know, the Word of God saysin Proverbs 11 and 14,.
It says when there is noguidance, a people fails, but in
an abundance of counselorsthere is safety.
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So let me ask you a question whoin your network of people that
you know can provide you goodgodly wisdom?
Do you have somebody?
Because, if not, you need to gofind somebody, because it's
that important.
So you need to today schedule ameeting with that person, with
that mentor, with that personyou trust, or join a Christian
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business group.
Do it today, don't put it off.
And then the next thing youcould do to stay rooted and
grounded is to be a part of afaith community.
Now, why does that matter.
Well, a faith community reallyoffers encouragement.
It also offers a lot ofaccountability and just a
reminder that you're just asmall part of a larger purpose.
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It doesn't matter how big youare, how big your company is.
You know Howard Schultz, theformer CEO of Starbucks.
He said this.
He said, though not alwayspublic about it my faith
community has been a source ofstrength and clarity.
It's where I learned theimportance of servant leadership
, which has guided my approachto business.
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So, you know, even HowardSchultz was a part of a faith
community and he had people thathe met with, that he learned
from and that encouraged him.
So, you know, either attend somechurch services on a regular
basis I encourage you you shouldbe involved in a local church,
even when you're busy sometimesthat's the most important time
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and then maybe you canparticipate in some small group
or something, or serve inministry within the church and
build some relationships.
You know, you can just imagine.
I'll give you this illustration, you know, maybe imagine a
retail owner, retail businessowner, and he's just overwhelmed
by, maybe, supply chaindisruptions.
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You know, that's his life'sblood, right.
If he doesn't have the product,he can't sell it.
And so their church grouporganizes this brainstorming
session with him and offers himsome really practical ideas and
a lot of great supportemotionally, spiritually and it
really inspires him to figureout how to create a workaround
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through these problems and itreally helps him keep his
business afloat.
That's something that canhappen.
In Hebrews 10, 24 and 25, itsays "'And let us consider how
to stir up one another "'to loveand good works, not neglecting
to meet together'".
It's important.
It's important.
So let me ask you this questionhow does your church support
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you professionally in life?
Does it?
Maybe?
If it doesn't, maybe God'scalling you to do that.
Maybe he's wanting you to helpstart something within your
church.
So what I would ask you to dois an action, step, commit, make
a commitment to attending asmall group or serving in a
ministry this month.
So we got to figure out how tohandle the successes and
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failures.
As I said, success could bereally dangerous, and I know
failure can too.
But success can really blindyou and I think it's important
that we understand Ken Blanchard.
He's an author, he's amanagement expert.
He said that success can be acatalyst for failure if it leads
to complacency and a lack ofhumility.
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Keep your eyes on God, not onyour accomplishments.
Let me say it again, I thinkthis is a great quote Keep your
eyes on God and not on youraccomplishments.
So the challenge that you have,it's just pride, it's
self-reliance, and that doesn'tjust hit you all of a sudden, it
just kind of creeps in.
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It just kind of slowly creepsin and before you know it, you
start distancing yourself fromGod because of it.
So make sure that you givecredit to God for your
achievements and you do thatwith gratitude and humility, and
use your success to bless otherpeople.
Maybe some charitable giving,mentoring other leaders, but use
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your success to bless others.
That'll help you stay grounded,trust me.
And then I would ask you how doyou acknowledge God's role in
your achievements?
How do you do that?
What are you doing now?
Nothing.
I would encourage you to writethis list.
Write a list for things thatyou're grateful for, for a lot
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of your recent successes,whatever.
Share it with your team members, share it with your leadership
team, but write this list Now.
The other challenge that youhave is failure.
We talked about that.
It really kind of createsdespair.
It can create doubt in yourmind.
It can really shake yourconfidence in God and even in
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his plan for you.
So what you have to do is youhave to reframe that failure as
a chance to learn and grow.
That's what you've got to doand you've got to lean on God's
promises.
You just got to trust histiming, trust his purpose.
I'm not saying I've never failed.
I failed many times.
I have failed many, many times.
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I have failed at startingbusinesses in the past, which is
what led me to understand thatone of my key roles in my life
and purpose in my life was to bea great number two person, and
that's where I excelled.
That's what I was good at, agood number two person, and that
was my ministry, even though Iwas in the business world.
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That's how I saw it as aministry, and so it's important.
It's so very, very importantthat you trust God's timing and
his purposes.
You know, picture a restaurantowner, right, and he's got a new
location that he opens and itjust becomes a complete failure.
It's just a complete flop, andsome of it maybe is because of
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zoning issues he didn't see.
But then what they do?
They get discouraged.
But then he turns to the bookof Romans, and after chapter 8
and verse 28, and then he justkind of gets together with his
team and they pivot theirbusiness model.
Maybe the Lord leads him tomaybe go to a delivery type
model and yet that unexpectedlydoubles his revenue.
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You know those are the kind ofthings that can happen.
You know I mentioned Romans 8and 28, what it says?
And we know that all thingswork together for good to them
who are called according to hispurpose and love God.
So all things work together forgood.
You just don't know.
You have to look at yourfailures and reframe them.
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So I would encourage you thatafter your next failure, after
the next time you have maybe asetback or something, get your
team together for prayerfuldebrief.
Again, you can't force peopleto pray, but you can pray as a
business owner.
That is protected under theConstitution of the United
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States here in our country.
So what do you need to do?
We got to really be carefulabout some temptations and
you've got to overcome.
Let me just give you a fewcommon temptations Right now
compromising your ethics forjust profit that's a big, big
temptation.
But you need to make sure youhave good, clear ethical
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guidelines and these guidelinesare rooted in biblical values
like honesty and fairness.
Make sure that when you'remaking decisions, you check them
.
You check those decisionsagainst these standards that you
have.
Even when it costs you, it'sworth it.
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Trust me.
You can envision a real estatedeveloper who's offered a bribe
to expedite permits bad decision, you know.
Or maybe it's on the other foot.
Maybe it is the person who'sdoing the permits, he's offered
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a bribe, and so you know.
You just have to be carefulbecause those things can happen
and you've got to watch yourself.
You know.
The Bible says in Proverbs 16and 8, better is a little with
righteousness than greatrevenues with injustice.
It's a warning to us.
It's important for us to berighteous, godly people.
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So let me ask you this whatethical challenges do you face
on a regular basis?
What is it that really causesyou to be challenged, to be
tempted?
And you answer that question,but I would encourage you to
create a personal code of ethicsbased on biblical principles
that you live by.
I would encourage you to writethose down.
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And then another temptationthat you may have is to really
to prioritize your work and yourjob, your company, over your
family, or company over yourfamily, or even over your
spiritual life.
I got to tell you you've got toset some boundaries.
We've talked about that in oneof our other podcasts.
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But you've got to setboundaries.
You've got to end work at aspecific time each day.
Now, sometimes I know thatcan't work, it's not exact, but
set it anyway.
Make it a rule.
If you have to break the rulefrom time to time, it's okay,
but set the rule and make surethat you make intentional time.
Set and schedule intentionaltime for your family, for
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spiritual growth, and make thatone of these things in your life
.
That's non-negotiable right.
Very, very important.
You know, matthew 6.33 says butseek ye first the kingdom of
God and his righteousness, andthen all these other things will
be added to you.
So how can you get better?
How can you get better to havea better balance with your work
and your personal life?
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How can you do that?
Answer that question and Iwould encourage you to set up a
specific time each week to dothat.
Well, let me give you someresources to help you, to stay
grounded, to support you on thisjourney.
I'll call it.
I think life is a journey, butconsider these tools, because I
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think these are modern tools.
They're good resources, butthere's a lot of great apps out
there.
There's one called YouVersionBible app.
It's great for daily devotions.
It's got great reading plans.
It's one called YouVersionBible App.
It's great for daily devotions,got great reading plans.
It's right on your phone.
There's podcasts.
Of course you're listening tothis podcast, so that's great.
But there's other greatpodcasts out there and I
encourage you to look for those.
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Then there's some great books.
There's God Owns my Business byStanley Tam Great book.
My Business by Stanley TamGreat book.
It's the story of this guy whosurrendered his company to God
to let God be the owner.
So let me just say you know,staying grounded in faith as a
Christian business leaderrequires us to intentionally,
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intentionally, be disciplined topractice daily prayer, to
practice reading the scripturesdaily, to seek God's counsel and
other counsel of godly peopleand engaging with your community
, your faith community, and Ibelieve that when you do that, I
believe you can get through allthese unpredictable things that
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happen in business and yet keepChrist in the very center of it
.
Remember, your ultimate successisn't defined by your prophets,
it's not defined by your titles.
It's defined by yourfaithfulness to God's calling.
You know, proverbs 3, 5 through6 says Trust in the Lord with
all of your heart and lean notto your own understanding.
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In all your ways, submit to himand he will make your path
straight.
All your ways, submit to himand he will make your path
straight.
This week, I want to encourageyou to commit one new principle
that we talked about here today.
Whether it's starting a prayerroutine, or maybe reaching out
to somebody that can be a mentorto you, or maybe seeking
guidance in every businessdecision for this week, just
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trusting him to lead you throughevery success, every failure
and every moment in between.
Father, I thank you for thosewho have listened to this
podcast.
Lord, I ask that you bring themyour success, lord, success in
every area of their lives.
Lord, I ask you to help them toguard their lives so that,
whether they have greatsuccesses or great failures in
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their business, their career ortheir personal lives, that they
will stay rooted and grounded,lord, in their life, with you
and Lord.
I ask it in the name of Jesus,amen.
Well, thanks again for being apart of Christian Business
Concepts.
I appreciate that I am sothankful for you, business
(30:14):
Concepts.
I appreciate that I am sothankful for you.
Help us to grow the CBCcommunity by sharing this
podcast with four or five otherpeople this week.
Well, that's all the time wehave for today, so until next
time, remember Jesus is Lord andhe wants you blessed.
Speaker 1 (30:27):
Thank you for tuning into this week's Christian
Business Concepts podcast.
Go tochristianbusinessconceptscom for
more information and resources.
Be sure to check out otherpodcasts that will help you take
your business and your personallife to a whole new level of
success.
Welcome to the Christian Business Concepts with
your host, harold Milby.
Christian Business Concepts isdedicated to guiding companies
and business owners in becomingeffective, efficient and
successful through God's Wordand godly principles.
Now, here's your host, haroldMilby.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
Welcome everyone to this week's Christian Business
Concepts podcast.
I'm your host, harold Milby,and each week we try to discuss
business topics and just how toapply business principles that
will help you find true godlysuccess.
You know Christian businessesare so important in our world
today and in our communities andyou know we have the
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opportunity as business leadersand you know we have the
opportunity as business leadersto minister to so many different
people that may not beministered to if it wasn't for
us.
So, from employees to customers, to vendors, to other people.
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I mean, you know Christianbusinesses gives us an
opportunity that we could neverhave and that opportunity is
there to let our light shine inthis world that we're in today
because we influence so manypeople as a business owner or a
Christian business leader.
And I hope that you see thatvision, that you agree with us
about that vision, and thatyou'll help us to grow the CBC
community by sharing thispodcast with four or five other
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people.
I always say this, but again,I'm asking you to put that link
out there on your Facebook page,your LinkedIn page, and just
thanks for all that you do on aweekly basis to help us grow the
CBC ministry and podcast.
We don't take any money.
This is all funded from justpeople who want to be a part of
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it and are helping us do that,and we're not doing it for any
other reason, but because wewant to grow the kingdom of God
and we know that God has adesire to really utilize
businesses in our world.
So I hope that you'll do thatwith us and be a part of it.
Now, before we get startedtoday, I just want to give a big
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shout out to Minneapolis,minnesota, here in the US, for
having so many downloads thisweek.
We hope that this podcast andministry is a blessing to you.
Thank you so much for being apart and we hope that you'll
also help us to grow and comeback again Now.
I've been trying to highlightbusinesses in the last few weeks
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that are Christian business andI'd like to share with you
about a company called Trijicon,and Trijicon is an American
optics manufacturer.
They're based in Wixom,michigan, and they're
world-renowned I mean theyreally are for their high
quality, their self-luminoussights, you know, and scopes.
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It's used by the US military,it's used by law enforcement and
even civilians, and it wasfounded in 1981 by a man by the
name of Glenn Benden and he's adevout Christian.
The company itself has reallygained a lot of attention, not
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only because it's reallyinnovative but also because its
unique practice of inscribingthese little biblical references
on their optics and thattradition for that company.
It just really reflectsTrijicon's deep commitment to
integrating their Christianfaith into their business
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operations.
Glenn was born in Pretoria,south Africa, in 1937.
He immigrated here to theUnited States in the 50s and
then he earned a degree inaeronautical engineering,
founding Trajicon.
He worked on a lot of prettyimportant projects, including a
shock absorber for the Navy'sF-8U Crusader.
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He also helped to design aspecial valve for the Apollo 13
mission.
In 1981, while he was at FordMotor Company, he launched a
company called Armson USA wherehe was really importing and
developing theseself-illuminated gun sights, and
he later renamed that companyTrijicon in 1985 because he was
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blending the tritium, which is aradioactive isotope that's
what's used in this illuminationwith the sights and icon
meaning image, that's what iconmeans.
And so he highlighted those twothings and it became Tragicon.
And as a devout Christian,benden saw his work really as
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just an extension of his faithand he believed that Tragicon's
tritium illuminated productswhich provide light in really
low visibility conditions, thatit resonated with biblical
themes, primarily lightovercoming darkness, and that
conviction really inspired himto engrave these subtle Bible
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verses and these Biblereferences on their products.
And it's a practice that reallybecame a hallmark for
Trijicon's identity, and so Ijust wanted to share that with
you.
Another great company, godlycompany, founded on godly
principles, and just kind ofwanted to share that with you
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about them.
You know, truett Cathy, thefounder of Chick-fil-A, said one
time my business grows as myfaith grows, and he truly
believed that.
And as a Christian businessleader you're going to face a
lot of challenges and a lot ofopportunities.
You're going to have a lot ofsuccess and you're going to have
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some failures.
But you know, success can temptyou towards pride I mean, let's
be honest and then failure canlead you to despair.
Yet through all of that, yourfaith can serve as that
unshakable foundation which willgive you a lot of stability.
It gives you a greatperspective, no matter what the
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circumstances are.
So today we're going to offersome practical, biblically-based
principles to help you reallystay grounded in your faith
through the highs and the lowsand everything in between of
your business journey.
So first let's look atColossians 1 1, verse 23.
It says if you continue in thefaith, grounded and settled, and
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be not moved away from the hopeof the gospel which you have
heard and which was preached toevery creature which is under
heaven, whereof I, paul, am madea minister.
So we have this statementthat's kind of a warning to us
to stay grounded, to staysettled in our faith and don't
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be moved away.
The word grounded just means tolay a foundation, to make it
stable, and the word settledhere in this verse comes from a
Greek word that means firm, itmeans immovable, and then it
says not to be soon moved away.
It means to stir to a differentplace, to stir yourself and go
to another place.
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So what he's saying here is weought to have a great foundation
, a strong foundation, and thenwe have to make that conscious
choice to be immovable, to standfirm and not to go anyplace
else.
Right, and in the LivingTranslation, the Living Bible,
it says it this way.
It says the only condition thatyou fully believe or is that
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you fully believe the truth,standing in it steadfast and
firm, strong in the Lord,convinced of the good news that
Jesus died for you, and nevershifting from trusting him to
save you.
This is the wonderful news thatcame to each of you and is now
spreading all over the world,and I, paul, have the joy of
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telling it to others.
So, again, it's so importantthat we stay rooted and grounded
.
So we're going to talk a littlebit about some very key
principles for staying groundedin your faith Because, again, as
I said earlier, when you havesuccess, it's easy for you to
look at that success and saylook what I did, without giving
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God any credit for it whatsoever.
It doesn't matter what yourposition is, it doesn't matter
if you own the company.
It was God that helped you toget there, regardless.
Maybe you didn't get saved orborn again until after you
started your business, but,regardless, god had that plan
already set up for you.
And so it's easy for us to findsuccess and forget God.
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And the opposite is true too.
A lot of times we have failuresand then we want to blame God.
So we want to stay rooted andgrounded, and the first thing,
the first principle, is dailyprayer.
Daily, I said daily prayer.
And now, why does that matter?
Well, prayer keeps youconnected to God.
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First, it's reminding you thathe not market trends or profit
margins is in control.
It's him he's in control.
James 5 and 16 in the AmplifiedBible says Therefore, confess
your sins to one another, yourfalse steps, your offenses, and
pray for one another that youmay be healed and restored.
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The heartfelt and persistentprayer of a righteous man
believer can accomplish muchwhen put into action and made
effective by God.
It is dynamic and can havetremendous power.
And that's what he said aboutprayer.
You know Soren Kierkegaard saidone time.
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He said "'Prayer does notchange God, but it changes him
who prays'".
And I believe that you know.
Dl Moody said one time I'drather be able to pray than to
be a great preacher.
Jesus Christ never taught hisdisciples how to preach, but how
to pray, and so I think it'simportant that we pray daily.
What are some steps that we cantake?
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Well, you need to set asidesome specific times each day for
prayer.
It can be your morning beforework, midday during a break, or
your evening time when you'rehaving some downtime for
reflection over the day.
But set some specific time topray and then keep a prayer
journal, record things that youput down that you're believing
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God for, put down issues,problems, whatever they may be
that you're believing God toanswer.
Write them down and then prayspecifically for wisdom in your
business decisions and really inall of your decisions,
especially those very importantdecisions you know James talks
about.
You know, if any man lackwisdom, let him ask of God, who
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giveth liberally and upbraidethnot, and I believe that we ask
wisdom from God and God answersthat.
So you can imagine, maybethere's a CEO who he begins each
morning with this quiet time ofprayer and seeking God's
guidance for today's challenges,and that practice not only
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centers him spiritually but alsoprovides a lot of clarity and
peace and it enables him to leadwith a lot of wisdom and
compassion.
1 Thessalonians 5.17 says praywithout ceasing.
Now you say how do you do that?
Am I supposed to be opening mymouth and having a prayer on my
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lips all day, continuously?
It really talks about having anattitude of prayer where it's
the first thing on your mind.
So the first thing that happensto you through the day, instead
of getting yourself allbothered, all upset about
something, your first thought isto pray, and so you pray
without ceasing.
You keep that mind of prayerall day long.
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So the question I have for youtoday, and I'm going to ask you
a question for each of these ishow does prayer impact your
decision-making?
How do you allow it?
My suggestion would be startevery day, every morning, with
five minutes of prayer forguidance, at least that.
But you need to set time.
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Set time for it because God'sworth it.
He's worth that.
Next is a regular Bible study.
It's important because God'sWord really provides timeless
wisdom.
I mean it does to guide you, tostrengthen you, strengthen your
faith, help you make thosedecisions.
God's Word is full ofprinciples and ideas and ways
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that you can be helped, and soyou want to be able to read your
Bible on a regular basis.
You know, in 1868, charlesDickens wrote to his youngest
child and he was getting readyto leave.
His youngest child was leavingfor Australia and he wrote this
to him.
He said I put a New Testamentamong your books for the very
same reasons, with the very samehopes that made me write an
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easy account of it for you whenyou were a little child, because
it is the best book that everwas or will be known in the
world and because it teaches youthe best lessons by which any
human creature who tries to betruthful and faithful to duty
can possibly be guided.
So even Charles Dickensrecognized the importance of
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God's Word.
So I would encourage you, aspractical steps, to read a
chapter.
Read a chapter every day, evenif it's just 10 minutes a day.
Start there.
You might want to join a Biblestudy group or get around some
other business leaders for Biblediscussions and accountability
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and be a part of that group.
But apply the biblicalprinciples that we talk about
here on this podcast and whatyou learn, and apply those
principles directly to thosebusiness challenges that maybe
you face.
And I think, with regard toyour integrity and stewardship
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and honesty, compassion, applythe biblical principles that
apply to those things you know.
Consider a manager whoregularly studies Proverbs for
wisdom on his leadership and youknow he applies those biblical
principles to even hismanagement style.
Just think about that, becauseit would foster this workplace
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culture of respect and integrity.
Or maybe there's a marketingdirector and maybe he's
preparing for a big, importantcampaign and he looks at
Philippians 4.13, and it says Ican do all things through Christ
, who strengthens me, and hegets this renewed confidence and
puts together a great marketingcampaign and it's very
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successful.
So the Word of God says inPsalms 119, 105,.
It says your word is a lamp tomy feet and a light to my path,
and I believe that.
I truly, truly believe that.
So I'll ask you a question andyou answer this.
You know what biblical accountreally resonates with you in
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your current business situation?
What really resonates with you?
Think about that, but read onechapter and if that's all, you
can start with, read a chapterof Proverbs every day.
There's 31 books in the book ofProverbs.
So on a certain day of themonth, read that particular
chapter of Proverbs and you'llread through the whole book in a
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month and really, really payattention to it.
Don't just read it, but reallythink about it.
And then the next thing that youcan do to stay rooted and
grounded is to seek godlycounsel.
Now, why does that matter?
Well, you know, when you havewise and faith-filled people
around you that can help younavigate we'll say it that way
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navigate tough decisions andeven help you avoid a lot of
mistakes.
Let me tell you something.
It's worth a lot.
It's worth a lot.
You know.
Socrates even said the onlytrue wisdom is in knowing.
You know nothing.
So all I'm saying is thatyou're not the smartest guy in
the world or lady in the world,and none of us should think that
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we should always be willing tolearn from others, especially
other godly people.
So I think that's important.
So I think that's important.
Maybe some good steps would beto find, maybe, a mentor who
really is good at giving goodgodly advice.
Maybe join a Christian businessnetwork or a group for good
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support.
Maybe you want to consult withyour pastor or some kind of a
spiritual advisor on majordecisions.
So I think those things arevery, very, very important.
You know, the Word of God saysin Proverbs 11 and 14,.
It says when there is noguidance, a people fails, but in
an abundance of counselorsthere is safety.
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So let me ask you a question whoin your network of people that
you know can provide you goodgodly wisdom?
Do you have somebody?
Because, if not, you need to gofind somebody, because it's
that important.
So you need to today schedule ameeting with that person, with
that mentor, with that personyou trust, or join a Christian
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business group.
Do it today, don't put it off.
And then the next thing youcould do to stay rooted and
grounded is to be a part of afaith community.
Now, why does that matter.
Well, a faith community reallyoffers encouragement.
It also offers a lot ofaccountability and just a
reminder that you're just asmall part of a larger purpose.
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It doesn't matter how big youare, how big your company is.
You know Howard Schultz, theformer CEO of Starbucks.
He said this.
He said, though not alwayspublic about it my faith
community has been a source ofstrength and clarity.
It's where I learned theimportance of servant leadership
, which has guided my approachto business.
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So, you know, even HowardSchultz was a part of a faith
community and he had people thathe met with, that he learned
from and that encouraged him.
So, you know, either attend somechurch services on a regular
basis I encourage you you shouldbe involved in a local church,
even when you're busy sometimesthat's the most important time
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and then maybe you canparticipate in some small group
or something, or serve inministry within the church and
build some relationships.
You know, you can just imagine.
I'll give you this illustration, you know, maybe imagine a
retail owner, retail businessowner, and he's just overwhelmed
by, maybe, supply chaindisruptions.
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You know, that's his life'sblood, right.
If he doesn't have the product,he can't sell it.
And so their church grouporganizes this brainstorming
session with him and offers himsome really practical ideas and
a lot of great supportemotionally, spiritually and it
really inspires him to figureout how to create a workaround
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through these problems and itreally helps him keep his
business afloat.
That's something that canhappen.
In Hebrews 10, 24 and 25, itsays "'And let us consider how
to stir up one another "'to loveand good works, not neglecting
to meet together'".
It's important.
It's important.
So let me ask you this questionhow does your church support
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you professionally in life?
Does it?
Maybe?
If it doesn't, maybe God'scalling you to do that.
Maybe he's wanting you to helpstart something within your
church.
So what I would ask you to dois an action, step, commit, make
a commitment to attending asmall group or serving in a
ministry this month.
So we got to figure out how tohandle the successes and
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failures.
As I said, success could bereally dangerous, and I know
failure can too.
But success can really blindyou and I think it's important
that we understand Ken Blanchard.
He's an author, he's amanagement expert.
He said that success can be acatalyst for failure if it leads
to complacency and a lack ofhumility.
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Keep your eyes on God, not onyour accomplishments.
Let me say it again, I thinkthis is a great quote Keep your
eyes on God and not on youraccomplishments.
So the challenge that you have,it's just pride, it's
self-reliance, and that doesn'tjust hit you all of a sudden, it
just kind of creeps in.
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It just kind of slowly creepsin and before you know it, you
start distancing yourself fromGod because of it.
So make sure that you givecredit to God for your
achievements and you do thatwith gratitude and humility, and
use your success to bless otherpeople.
Maybe some charitable giving,mentoring other leaders, but use
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your success to bless others.
That'll help you stay grounded,trust me.
And then I would ask you how doyou acknowledge God's role in
your achievements?
How do you do that?
What are you doing now?
Nothing.
I would encourage you to writethis list.
Write a list for things thatyou're grateful for, for a lot
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of your recent successes,whatever.
Share it with your team members, share it with your leadership
team, but write this list Now.
The other challenge that youhave is failure.
We talked about that.
It really kind of createsdespair.
It can create doubt in yourmind.
It can really shake yourconfidence in God and even in
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his plan for you.
So what you have to do is youhave to reframe that failure as
a chance to learn and grow.
That's what you've got to doand you've got to lean on God's
promises.
You just got to trust histiming, trust his purpose.
I'm not saying I've never failed.
I failed many times.
I have failed many, many times.
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I have failed at startingbusinesses in the past, which is
what led me to understand thatone of my key roles in my life
and purpose in my life was to bea great number two person, and
that's where I excelled.
That's what I was good at, agood number two person, and that
was my ministry, even though Iwas in the business world.
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That's how I saw it as aministry, and so it's important.
It's so very, very importantthat you trust God's timing and
his purposes.
You know, picture a restaurantowner, right, and he's got a new
location that he opens and itjust becomes a complete failure.
It's just a complete flop, andsome of it maybe is because of
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zoning issues he didn't see.
But then what they do?
They get discouraged.
But then he turns to the bookof Romans, and after chapter 8
and verse 28, and then he justkind of gets together with his
team and they pivot theirbusiness model.
Maybe the Lord leads him tomaybe go to a delivery type
model and yet that unexpectedlydoubles his revenue.
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You know those are the kind ofthings that can happen.
You know I mentioned Romans 8and 28, what it says?
And we know that all thingswork together for good to them
who are called according to hispurpose and love God.
So all things work together forgood.
You just don't know.
You have to look at yourfailures and reframe them.
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So I would encourage you thatafter your next failure, after
the next time you have maybe asetback or something, get your
team together for prayerfuldebrief.
Again, you can't force peopleto pray, but you can pray as a
business owner.
That is protected under theConstitution of the United
(24:31):
States here in our country.
So what do you need to do?
We got to really be carefulabout some temptations and
you've got to overcome.
Let me just give you a fewcommon temptations Right now
compromising your ethics forjust profit that's a big, big
temptation.
But you need to make sure youhave good, clear ethical
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guidelines and these guidelinesare rooted in biblical values
like honesty and fairness.
Make sure that when you'remaking decisions, you check them
.
You check those decisionsagainst these standards that you
have.
Even when it costs you, it'sworth it.
(25:14):
Trust me.
You can envision a real estatedeveloper who's offered a bribe
to expedite permits bad decision, you know.
Or maybe it's on the other foot.
Maybe it is the person who'sdoing the permits, he's offered
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a bribe, and so you know.
You just have to be carefulbecause those things can happen
and you've got to watch yourself.
You know.
The Bible says in Proverbs 16and 8, better is a little with
righteousness than greatrevenues with injustice.
It's a warning to us.
It's important for us to berighteous, godly people.
(25:58):
So let me ask you this whatethical challenges do you face
on a regular basis?
What is it that really causesyou to be challenged, to be
tempted?
And you answer that question,but I would encourage you to
create a personal code of ethicsbased on biblical principles
that you live by.
I would encourage you to writethose down.
(26:18):
And then another temptationthat you may have is to really
to prioritize your work and yourjob, your company, over your
family, or company over yourfamily, or even over your
spiritual life.
I got to tell you you've got toset some boundaries.
We've talked about that in oneof our other podcasts.
(26:39):
But you've got to setboundaries.
You've got to end work at aspecific time each day.
Now, sometimes I know thatcan't work, it's not exact, but
set it anyway.
Make it a rule.
If you have to break the rulefrom time to time, it's okay,
but set the rule and make surethat you make intentional time.
Set and schedule intentionaltime for your family, for
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spiritual growth, and make thatone of these things in your life
.
That's non-negotiable right.
Very, very important.
You know, matthew 6.33 says butseek ye first the kingdom of
God and his righteousness, andthen all these other things will
be added to you.
So how can you get better?
How can you get better to havea better balance with your work
and your personal life?
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How can you do that?
Answer that question and Iwould encourage you to set up a
specific time each week to dothat.
Well, let me give you someresources to help you, to stay
grounded, to support you on thisjourney.
I'll call it.
I think life is a journey, butconsider these tools, because I
(27:43):
think these are modern tools.
They're good resources, butthere's a lot of great apps out
there.
There's one called YouVersionBible app.
It's great for daily devotions.
It's got great reading plans.
It's one called YouVersionBible App.
It's great for daily devotions,got great reading plans.
It's right on your phone.
There's podcasts.
Of course you're listening tothis podcast, so that's great.
But there's other greatpodcasts out there and I
encourage you to look for those.
(28:04):
Then there's some great books.
There's God Owns my Business byStanley Tam Great book.
My Business by Stanley TamGreat book.
It's the story of this guy whosurrendered his company to God
to let God be the owner.
So let me just say you know,staying grounded in faith as a
Christian business leaderrequires us to intentionally,
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intentionally, be disciplined topractice daily prayer, to
practice reading the scripturesdaily, to seek God's counsel and
other counsel of godly peopleand engaging with your community
, your faith community, and Ibelieve that when you do that, I
believe you can get through allthese unpredictable things that
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happen in business and yet keepChrist in the very center of it
.
Remember, your ultimate successisn't defined by your prophets,
it's not defined by your titles.
It's defined by yourfaithfulness to God's calling.
You know, proverbs 3, 5 through6 says Trust in the Lord with
all of your heart and lean notto your own understanding.
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In all your ways, submit to himand he will make your path
straight.
All your ways, submit to himand he will make your path
straight.
This week, I want to encourageyou to commit one new principle
that we talked about here today.
Whether it's starting a prayerroutine, or maybe reaching out
to somebody that can be a mentorto you, or maybe seeking
guidance in every businessdecision for this week, just
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trusting him to lead you throughevery success, every failure
and every moment in between.
Father, I thank you for thosewho have listened to this
podcast.
Lord, I ask that you bring themyour success, lord, success in
every area of their lives.
Lord, I ask you to help them toguard their lives so that,
whether they have greatsuccesses or great failures in
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their business, their career ortheir personal lives, that they
will stay rooted and grounded,lord, in their life, with you
and Lord.
I ask it in the name of Jesus,amen.
Well, thanks again for being apart of Christian Business
Concepts.
I appreciate that I am sothankful for you, business
(30:14):
Concepts.
I appreciate that I am sothankful for you.
Help us to grow the CBCcommunity by sharing this
podcast with four or five otherpeople this week.
Well, that's all the time wehave for today, so until next
time, remember Jesus is Lord andhe wants you blessed.
Speaker 1 (30:27):
Thank you for tuning into this week's Christian
Business Concepts podcast.
Go tochristianbusinessconceptscom for
more information and resources.
Be sure to check out otherpodcasts that will help you take
your business and your personallife to a whole new level of
success.
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On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!