Last weekend, my family and I spent the day on the water with some awesome friends of ours. We met 17 years ago when my wife used to take our eldest child for a walk in the pram while she walked the dog. There she met another woman in the same position and they were to go on and become very close friends.
“What does your husband do for work?” my wife casually asked 17 years ago. She replied about the line of work her husband was in, and that was the end of the conversation.
As we got to know them and started socializing together, we later found out that the company had close to 400 employees and her husband was in fact the CEO their family company that turns over some $100 million. In fact just last Saturday, the day before we caught up, news broke on one of the major financial websites that their company is close to being acquired for $500 million. We knew this, as they shared it with us a few nights prior over dinner, but somehow it was leaked to the media. (and not by me!)
I am not sure why, but my wife and I have often made friendships with non-Christian people who are not only in business, but are wildly successful. We don’t position ourselves to do so and we don’t go out of our way to find such people. However, it is fantastic for two reasons. One reason is that we get to share our faith with people who generally don’t know any Christians, and if they do, they are potentially not business people. And secondly, I am always so inspired by what they have achieved that it allows me to come back into our marketplace with a very big vision, deeply inspired by how big some people dream.
My goal though in writing about business is not to keep all of the information that i have acquired to myself. Instead, I want to encourage other Christians in business to dream big, to set big goals, and to really make a difference. Hence writing this article to hopefully nspire you to greatness too.
As a Christian in business, your line of work is a massive ministry opportunity. We are only in church for 90 minutes or so a week, and most are lucky if they even turn up every week. Outside of this, our ministries are our family, our work, and the talents we are given. Our talents are not to be taken lightly. These are God-given, and we all know that God expects us to use them. Just take a read of Matthew 25:14-30 and you’ll see that God really does expect us to do something with our talents. He’s not in any way cheering for the under-achiever and disappointed with the high achievers.
If you have a talent for business, you can use this to employ people, to give money to your church and charities, and simply be excellent in what you do. There is so much need in the world that it is a tragedy when talented Christians hide their talents away.
As I have said before, if you’re worried that you shouldn’t be making too much money, then don’t fear. There are too may charities to mention here who could desperately do with your excess money. Their needs, including probably those of your local church, are way greater than the working capital they have to serve the needs of others. Go and make a billion dollars and give it all away if you are worried you’re going to become rich and think you may no longer rely on God.
So if you’re in business – whether it’s yours or you’re in a position in someone else’s – maximize your talents. Dream big, do something worthwhile with your life this year, and be inspired by the fact that you are privileged to have one life on this earth where you can make your mark. Show the world around you that as a Christian, you’re also excellent at what you do. That alone is a major witness to a world desperate for an answer, but also looking at the lives of yours and mine to see if we are worth following.
I am aiming super big for 2022; hopefully you are too.
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Matt Danswan is the CEO of Initiate Media, publishers of Entrepreneur Daily. He is also the author of NOT Business As Usual.
