I had a conversation recently with someone who asked me when I was called to do business as ministry. Like most people, he understood that there would be a “lightning bolt” type moment when God will speak to you and “call” you into ministry. While I am sure there are those who could argue both sides of the theology of that idea, my intent is to go in a different direction.
Have you ever thought about actually winning the lottery? Have you allowed your mind to wander into the thoughts about what you would do with the money? In my last post, I posed the question, “What if you won the lottery?”. In discussing the answer to that question, we looked at all of the various ways we could use the money. Today, I will show you HOW to win!
Without taking the time for the necessary drumroll or hoopla, I will dive right in and tell you how you can win the lottery. Wherever you are and whatever you are doing, I want you to stop right now and follow these two steps:
1.) Close your eyes.
2.) Open your eyes.
Presto! You are now a lottery winner!
Don’t believe me? Take a look around. If you are reading this blog right now, you are among the top 34% of the world population simply because you have access to the internet. Not good enough for you?
Let’s look a little further. While there are certainly exceptions, I am going to assume you have an annual income of more than $10,000 per year. If so, you are among the world’s top 15% richest. Let that sink in.
If you make more than $25,000 a year, that ranking jumps you to the top 2% of the world’s richest! That means 98% of the world’s population makes less money per year than you do! No kidding. (Go to http://www.globalrichlist.com to see your own income ranked! )
So, please tell me how it is that you think you have not already won the lottery?
Clearly, virtually everyone reading this post has huge wealth advantages over the vast majority of the rest of the world. There really is no way to argue that. So now, let’s go back and review some of our thoughts from the last post.
We agreed that many of us have made some of the following statements about what we would do if we won the lottery. How do these statements look now…?
I would tithe on the income!
I would give away a huge portion of the income!
I would not have any debt!
If I could not afford it with the lottery income, then I would not buy it!
My expenses would never outrun my income!
I would carve out a portion for savings for those unexpected expenses!
I would not fall into the trap of trying to keep up with the Jones’!
I would set aside a portion to help those around me in crisis!
What are your thoughts now? Do you see any hypocrisy in the above statements or do you feel good about how you are handling your wealth? I have to admit to having bruised toes myself.
So, what should we do? What does the Bible say about how we should handle our wealth? Good question. Let’s look.
Instruct those who are rich in the present age not to be arrogant or to set their hope on the uncertainty of wealth, but on God, who richly provides us with all things to enjoy. Instruct them to do what is good, to be rich in good works, to be generous, willing to share, storing up for themselves a good reserve for the age to come, so that they may take hold of life that is real.
1 Timothy 6:17-19
Folks, If you have read this passage before and not realized it was talking directly to you, then you are not alone. Typically, when we read this, we think of all those people that are richer than we are.
However, as we see in the statistics above, we ARE those who are “rich in this present age.” So, what are we doing with that wealth? What are we doing with the businesses we own or operate?
Are we “rich in good works”? Are we “generous, willing to share”?
Are we “storing up for ourselves a good reserve for the age to come”?
When you read that last question, what comes to mind for you? For me, it is the following verses that I have used frequently on this site. Take a look:
If anyone’s work that he has built survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned up, it will be lost, but he will be saved; yet it will be like an escape through fire.
1 Corinthians 3:14-15
We are to be using the wealth WE ALREADY HAVE to be rich in good works, generous, and willing to share. We are to use this wealth to store up a reserve of reward that will last into eternity – eternal impact!
As I have said before, we are to be multiplying silhouettes – adding to the kingdom. In this way, we give God the only currency he wants – more souls to spend eternity with Him.
We have to take a look at our current “lottery” income and resources. We have to do a deep search into our hearts to make sure we are using what He has given us for His purposes.
What comes to mind when you think about your situation?
What do you wish you had done differently in the past?
What do you need to change now?
My Dad’s advice is still coming in handy after all these years! You likely remember similar words of advice in your life, whether it was from your father, a teacher, or even an Andy Griffith show! Even after many years, some advice continues to apply in our everyday lives.
I still remember it like it was yesterday. I was heading out on a date in high school and Dad wanted to give me some final advice. His wise words still ring in my head some 25 years later.
Son, make your decision about what you will and won’t do right now. Whether is it drugs, alcohol, or sex, you cannot wait until the heat of the moment to decide. It will then be too late.
Of course, then I was too cool to let him know that I was listening! Fortunately, I was listening and made (mostly) wise decisions during those years. I knew he was wise then, but I had no idea I would still be following (and giving!) that advice these many years later!
What makes this advice so good?
Well, in my mind it is ALL about timing. If we go through life waiting to make decisions until we face certain circumstances, then, as my Dad said, it will be too late. The emotions of the circumstances will override our logic and cause us to lean toward immediate gratification rather than deferred gratification. Making these decisions ahead of time allows us to think more clearly and to consider all consequences.
I think the picture was fairly clear in the high school example. Let me give you some examples of situations we may face as adult Christian business owners and leaders to illustrate what I am talking about.
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As you read through these examples, one or two of them probably stood out to you. You may have already faced these circumstances. If so, whether you made the right choice or not, you know what I am talking about. You also know that the likelihood of a good decision without advance planning is very low.
So how do you make the right decisions in advance?
You may be thinking that you cannot possibly be expected to anticipate EVERY potential circumstance when you would have to make such decisions. If so, you are right. I do not expect you to do that at all. In fact, that would be ridiculous.
No, I have a few simple thoughts that should put you on the right track. Take a look at these and see what you think.
1. Ask God to search your heart and show you where you are vulnerable. (Psalm 139:23-24)
You do not need to worry about EVERY possible scenario in these areas. Take the most likely decisions you could face in each area and start with those.
2. Take these weaker areas and plan out your responses. (Proverbs 12:5)
Make the decisions in these areas NOW so that you do not have to try to think about it when it is too late and you are under pressure (Proverbs 1:10-19)!
3. Use Scripture as the strong foundation for these decisions. (Psalm 119:11)
You get the idea. The point is to use an easy-to-remember verse from which to rally when put in a tough spot. Memorize the appropriate Scripture and call on it when challenged.
Do you remember similar advice from years back?
How does this advice apply to your work today?
What advice would you give to someone else today?
This post on having an eternal perspective is the first in a series of posts that come from the material I recently used in a presentation I made to a small group of Christian business owners and leaders in Chandigarh, India.
The focus of this material is also the focus of this blog – God’s call for us to run our businesses as a platform for Christian ministry. Hopefully, after reading this series, you will agree that it is God’s will that we run His businesses as stewards with an eternal perspective. You should also have a better understanding of what this looks like in today’s marketplace.
For the next minute or two, I want you to forget about work, business, etc. and concentrate instead on the Scripture I will highlight below. This post will have the greatest impact on you if you will read each passage in full as you go. If you need to come back to this later to do that, so be it.
However, if you are like me, you will likely never come back to this. You will put it off repeatedly and then finally delete it. If that is the case, please stop now and take the time to do it right.
Let’s start with these passages below. You can follow along in your Bible or just click on the Scripture links.
From these verses, it is crystal clear that as humans, our life is extremely short. The Psalmist calls our life a vapor. Job calls it a shadow that does not last.
Question # 1 – Do you TRULY BELIEVE that our lives are short and not guaranteed?
Next, let’s read the following passages:
It is easy to see from these verses that a day is coming when everything on earth will be tested by fire. Only those things we have done that survive this fire will bring us reward. Everything else will burn.
Even between now and that day, we can expect rust, moths, and thieves to destroy or steal anything temporary we possess. Nothing we think we own today is guaranteed to survive intact for our entire lives, much less for eternity. It is all subject to the elements or theft.
Question # 2 – Do you TRULY BELIEVE that all of your earthly possessions will deteriorate and eventually be destroyed on this side of eternity?
Finally, take a look at these verses:
In these verses, God promises us that we can store treasure in heaven that will survive the fire. He promises that, in effect, we can make deposits into an eternal savings account for future use! The only requirement is that we understand the difference between temporal and eternal value.
Question # 3 – Do you TRULY BELIEVE that we can store treasure in heaven through our actions here on earth?
I want you to read back over the three questions listed above. If you answered any of these questions with a “No,” then I recommend you do further study on the infallibility of Scripture. You are certainly welcome to disagree, but, if so, the rest of this post will pretty much be meaningless to you.
IF, and I mean only IF, you answered “Yes” to all three of these questions, then I want you to answer two final questions.
Final Question #1 – Does your personal life (decisions, actions, focus) reflect the fact that you believe these three truths?
Final Question #2 – Does your business life (decisions, actions, focus) reflect the fact that you believe these three truths?
For a great visual illustration of this idea, watch this Francis Chan video on eternal perspective: