People before profit

Following the Lord in business can sometimes be costly if we are to be effective witnesses for Him.

The great commandment is to love God with everything we have, and our neighbour like ourselves. Loving our neighbour can mean using money or our business assets to help people solve their problems – even our competitors! Jesus told the parable of the Samaritan who helped someone who he was supposed to dislike – a Jew. He used his time and money to help the injured man. He paid for the care of the injured man and gave the innkeeper a blank cheque to take care of the victim. A financial disciple uses his resources to help those in need.

Following God and His principles of doing business could cost you. However, the joy of seeing God work in the lives of others is wonderful! We must put the Lord’s command to be faithful witnesses to His grace and love before our financial or business requirements. Jesus promised that if we acknowledge Him before others, He will also represent our needs before the Father. Put God first, and you’ll never be last!

I often tell the true story of Richard, an owner of a large manufacturing company. John, his plant manager, resigned. Richard was devastated; for the past five years he had been grooming John to become CEO of the company. Richard couldn’t understand why John would leave. He paid John more than anyone else in the company, but nothing would change John’s mind.

Three months later, it appeared that John had opened his own company and copied Richard’s best-selling product. John’s company grew, becoming Richard’s leading competitor.

Later, Richard learned that there was a design problem with one of John’s new products and John’s company was being sued for negligence. Richard had forgiven John years before and prayed regularly for him.

He felt strongly that the Lord wanted him to reach out to John, so he bought one of John’s products, tested it, and discovered the problem. Then he told his engineers to find a way to fix it. After making and testing the necessary modifications, Richard called John and told him how to solve his problem. John was thankful to God for Richard’s generosity.

Question for the day
How can you ‘love your neighbour’ in business, and so bring glory to God?