Do you want to be treated fairly in your business dealings? Do you want a fair wage, to be paid regularly, and to have people treat you right in all things?
If so, you must first start by asking yourself: “Am I fair in my business dealings?”
Proverbs 1:1-3 says:
The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel: To know wisdom and instruction, to understand words of insight, to receive instruction in wise dealing, in righteousness, justice, and equity …”
I think it’s pretty interesting that the whole purpose of the book of Proverbs is to teach wisdom and instruction … and to provide instruction in wise dealing, justice, equity, etc. Have you ever noticed that before?
The Lord convicted me about this a long time ago. I don’t handle our household finances very much because my husband does that. However, I do handle our ministry’s finances. And long ago, the Lord began to teach me about fair business. He showed me:
If I expect to get paid for my work, including the work of the ministry …
… which I most definitely DO expect; a worker is worthy of their hire …
… then I need to treat others the way I want to be treated.
This means I have to pay other people who help me. I have to pay people for their work, even though it’s a ministry, and even though people would probably volunteer if I asked.
Seriously. I’ve had tons of people volunteer to help for free, but I don’t feel right about it. At the very beginning, I accepted a little bit of volunteer help, but now I don’t. And, Lord willing, I believe I will always be able to pay people for their work.
Because as soon as I started paying people, the money to continue paying them just showed up.
The money I needed to pay people’s wages–instead of letting them volunteer–began to flow in. I had to prime the pump by paying people when it was sacrificial. But after I sowed into that–sowing into justice, equity, and wise dealings–the Lord opened up His river for us.
Oh, I could have kept the money. I don’t get a salary, per sé; my husband and I live by faith on whatever comes in after overhead, ministry expense, taxes, etc. So any money I received could have been a blessing to us personally at any time.
But that’s not how the Lord told me to use that money. He told me I have to sow into wise dealings–into justice and equity–if I want to get paid well and amply rewarded myself.
So, I did.
And when I did, people continued to give generously into our ministry. And, as you may know if you read our main blog (FromHisPresence.com), I was able to step out of my corporate job and become a full-time missionary.
God is good.
But the money to do what we do really started coming when I determined I would obey God and have fair business dealings.
I’m still navigating ministry finance and learning about IRS requirements, etc, all the time. I am pretty new at non-profits and I have a lot to learn. But, we are doing what we can to ensure we are dealing fairly. And in our personal finances, same thing. We want to be fair and equitable.
If we mess up, we try to make it right. There’s grace, and we’re learning. I’m not claiming to be perfect at all. But fair business dealings matter to God, and they should matter to us too.
Is there any area in which Holy Spirit is convicting you about fair business dealings?
If so, don’t beat yourself up. But listen to Him, and do whatever you have to do to make things right with God and men. That’s what I try to do also. And as we all strive together for justice, equity, and wise dealings, the Lord will bless us.
Does this message speak to your heart today? If so, please leave a comment below. I’d love to hear from you!
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