Unlock the transformative wisdom of Psalm 119 and learn the secrets to becoming a godly business leader with a heart for God's vision. We dive into the five essential principles every faith-driven entrepreneur should embrace to cultivate a business that's in perfect harmony with your divine calling.
Enjoy!
Unlock the transformative wisdom of Psalm 119 and learn the secrets to becoming a godly business leader with a heart for God's vision. We dive into the five essential principles every faith-driven entrepreneur should embrace to cultivate a business that's in perfect harmony with your divine calling.
Enjoy!
So Jason and I are in the hotel at Louisiana Christian University. We've been asked to come out here and speak. They're using the expert ownership book for their master's degree in the entrepreneurship school of business, which is exciting, so we love this. So this is the reason why we're not on these amazing microphones we're actually in our hotel. We are going to talk about Zoom. Can I just tell you that we do. We're going to talk today about five keys to a godly business leader and we're going to take them right out of Psalm 119, where King David is pouring out his heart to the Lord and he's talking to us about the keys to his success. So we're going to give you five keys to a godly business leader, and I'm going to start off by reading the passage of Scripture. It's Psalm 119, 57 through 63. Hey, well, hold on, we'll get to the passage. This is Jason. I'm cutting David off. You guys love this because David's going to have to do what I tell him to do.
Speaker 1:But let me say this real quick, because we're talking to faith-filled entrepreneurs. So you are a faith-filled entrepreneur right now. You want to use the principles of the scripture to help you increase your income and give you the ability to make an impact, a kingdom impact. That's what we all want, and so we have a business partner. God is our heavenly business partner, and you know what. He is the majority owner and we, as humans, are the managing partners. So, as a managing partner, one of the most important things that you need to do is listen to your business partner. You need to listen to the majority owner every single day. Now we have a listening prayer journal that we're going to be releasing soon, but one of the things that I got in listening prayer one morning was Psalm 119, specifically 57 through 63, where I found these five keys to becoming a godly business leader. So a part of your listening prayer is reading scripture. So make sure that you're on a good Bible reading plan and that you are listening to God through the scripture every single day.
Speaker 1:And what we find in Psalm 119, it's got 176 verses. It's the longest chapter in the Bible and of those 176 verses, 171 of them refer to the word of God. They call it law, they call it precepts, they call it statutes, they call it law of God. It's basically saying and 171 of those 176 verses they're saying read your Bible. Yeah, yeah, study the law. Yeah, study it, know it, get to know it. Did you want to say something? No, I was just going to say that's actually rarely do I like to say this, but that was a good interruption because that's good context.
Speaker 1:Let me start with the five keys. Okay, I'm not going to give you all five keys. I'm not going to give you all five keys. I'm going to give you key one, and then David is going to read the scripture associated with that key. Okay, so do you want to be a godly business leader? If so, raise your hand. Yes, okay, you've raised your hand. Thank you for doing that.
Speaker 1:Number one be fully committed to God. Verse 57 through 58 of Psalm 119. The Lord is my portion. I promise to keep your words. I entreat your favor with all my heart. Words. I entreat your favor with all my heart. Be gracious to me according to your promise. But just look at that. The Lord is my portion. So David was fully committed to God.
Speaker 1:Imagine this Imagine going out to a restaurant and you ordered something and then they brought you something completely different and there was hardly any of it or whatever. You'd be like I'm not going to eat that. That's not my portion. My portion is what I ordered. My portion is that good thing that I'm really looking forward to.
Speaker 1:David was fully committed to God. Just think about that in terms of your own marriage. Think about that in terms of your commitment to your kids. Can your spouse or kids do anything that's going to change your commitment to them? You want to be fully, fully committed to the God that you say is your business partner. You want to be fully, fully committed to the God that you say that is your business partner. You know one of the interesting things David doesn't say here the Lord is my proportion. I will be perfect before God, or I will make sure that I do not screw up or mess up or transgress your way. He said I'm fully committed to you. He says I entreat your favor with all my heart.
Speaker 1:God isn't looking for perfection, he's looking for commitment, like your whole heart. You know, in the book of Luke I was reading this morning where Jesus was talking about the Pharisees and he's saying they do a lot of right things, but their hearts are far from me. So God's looking for us to be fully committed, not to necessarily do everything perfectly. So if you've screwed up in business, you've messed up. Maybe you've messed up on your taxes, you didn't report enough income, or whatever. Look, god is looking. He wants you to be committed to the best of your ability to honor and obey Him at every level. But he's looking at your heart, which is an amazing thing. So, number one be fully committed to God. Okay, number two, which is an amazing thing. So, number one, be fully committed to God. Okay, number two be self-aware. David says you need to be self-aware. In verse 59 and 60, he says when I think actually it's verse 59, when I think on my ways, I turn my feet to your testimonies.
Speaker 1:The Harvard Business Review published an article on the top five things that made entrepreneurs successful and business leaders successful, and number one, by and large, was the ability to be self-aware, where you know why you do what you do and you recognize the emotions that you're having inside of you and how they fuel you into action through your words and deeds. That self-awareness is extremely important. King David says when I think on my ways, think about that. You have to get quiet before the Lord and think about your ways. Think about the way that people react when you're in the room. Think about the way that your interactions were at the job yesterday, or the way that your interactions are with your kids, or with people that anger you, or personality conflicts, or whatever. Think on your ways.
Speaker 1:I love the scripture in 2 Corinthians 13, 5, where the Apostle Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he says this to believers examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you? Unless, of course, you fail the test? Look, examine yourself. Are you producing the fruits Christ Jesus is in you, unless, of course, you fail the test? Look, examine yourself. Are you producing the fruits of the Spirit in business? Are you falling in love with money? The Bible teaches us that the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Do you love the money? Are you making compromises with your service level because you're making a little bit more money that way? So we have to truly think on our way.
Speaker 1:So that's the second key to a godly business leader is you have to be self-aware. So, number one be fully committed to God. And let me say this real quick about being fully committed to God you know God is really good at testing your commitment and he'll put you in situations that will really test your commitment. And so just pass the test. I can promise you, when God puts you in that position where he's testing that commitment, just know that it is a test. Choose him and he will take you further than you could ever go on your own. And I forgot to give you this example on that full commitment, that test.
Speaker 1:When David and I first started building our franchise, we were getting ready to market it, advertise it, and the Lord told us specifically, we really felt we heard God tell us don't advertise and don't market it. We're like, well, man, how in the world are you going to build your business? And we just felt like God was like just trust me. And so we did. And we told two people, two different guys who were in ministry, about it. And then they ended up being franchises of ours. And then word spread and literally we built to 100 offices in three years by word of mouth, did not spend a dollar on advertising or marketing.
Speaker 1:So only God can do something like that.
Speaker 1:So be fully committed to God.
Speaker 1:Number two you got to be self-aware. Number three quick to obey. Quick to obey, verse 60. Okay, verse 60 of Psalm 119. I hasten and do not delay to keep your commandments. When God does prick your heart and he does impress on your spirit to do something, do it immediately. Don't sit back and start to strategize. Just remember the Spirit always has to lead the strategy. Strategy is great, but don't let strategy jump out front. When the Lord told David and I, don't market, don't advertise your franchise, that was very spiritual, but that was not strategic and my strategic mind was like screaming. And yet, by God's grace, in that moment we followed the Spirit and now we have a story to tell you. God is in the business of building your testimony, but you have to be willing and quick to obey, with no procrastination. Well, the procrastination is where the devil gets his toehold. You know King David, earlier in Psalm 119, verse 32, he says I will quickly obey your commands. I love that. And then later, you know, in verse 60, we see here he says without delay, I hurry to obey your commands. That's the reason why is because our flesh takes over very fast.
Speaker 1:When I was all of my kids so I've got five kids, jason only has four but when my youngest, all of my kids, were really young, I would say obey right away, all the way with a happy heart. You know, don't sit there, hey, buddy, it's time to come. Come on, let's go. It's time to leave. Don't sit there in the pool any longer. You got to get up right away, all the way, not halfway Like you still got one foot in the water and you still like you leave your goggles in the water because you have to dive back in. I tell my boys I see what you're doing. You got to obey me right away, all the way, and with a happy heart. Yeah. So that's key Submission, that whole idea. It's the idea of being fully submitted to your authority. And so, for God, it's quick to obey means I'm fully submitted. Yep, so quick to obey. So, number one, be fully committed to God. Number two, be self-aware. Number three, be quick to obey. And number four, the fourth key to a godly business leader always be thankful. This is so incredibly important Gratitude.
Speaker 1:Read the verse David, verse 62. At midnight I rise to praise you because of your righteous rules. Oh man, that is so incredible. In Psalm 100, we learn David says enter his gates, god's gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise. Enter his gates, god's gates, with thanksgiving and his courts with praise. And that scripture is so powerful because it's a picture of the temple of God, where God's presence was, and it had a gate around it and then it had inner courts.
Speaker 1:And what David is showing us is that if you want God's presence, you have to start with thanksgiving and then you move into praise Thank God for what he's done, praise him for who he is, and when you do that, you have God's presence. And guess what comes with God's presence His power. Do you want power as a business leader? You need God's presence. Well, how are you going to get it? Start with gratitude.
Speaker 1:Gratitude is the most important thing. Yeah, 1 Thessalonians 5, 16 to 18,. The Lord is very clear. When God says something's the will of God, this is the will of God for you, then we need to pay very close attention to what he says. Check out what. 1 Thessalonians 5, 16.
Speaker 1:It says this Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you. In Christ Jesus. Give thanks Always, be thankful, even in difficult times, even in times when the revenue is getting hit, or even in times when the expenses are rising, or even in times when things are shifting that are outside of your control. There are things that you can be thankful for. And when you become thankful, you become that God actually has created gratitude to release dopamine in our brains. It actually brings peace. The peace of God that surpasses all understanding comes through the power of the Holy Spirit and through you choosing to be grateful and grateful in all things. That is God's will for you. And it releases oxytocin as well. Oxytocin is that bonding chemical. So when you're grateful to God, it draws you close to him. And guess what? It draws him close to you. And as I talk about this is Jason speaking, as I talk about on my marriage podcast, beauty in Battle, that if you feel grateful thoughts towards your spouse, it'll draw you close to your spouse. If you verbalize those thoughts, it draws your spouse close to you.
Speaker 1:So gratitude is so key if you want to be a godly business leader, okay. So number one, be fully committed to God. Number two, be self-aware. Number three, be quick to obey. Do not procrastinate when God tells you to do something. Number four, always be thankful. And number five, walk with the wise Verse 63, I am a companion of all who fear you, of those who keep your precepts. You've got to pay close attention to the people that you surround yourself with. Okay, I'm talking about your inner circle, I'm talking about people that you hang with, I'm talking about your managers that you've got, that you're around on a consistent basis, your colleagues, your friends, people that you work out with Not always people you work out with, but it just depends. So the key is, you want to walk with the wise. Why? Because they will help you grow wise.
Speaker 1:I think about, by God's grace, the Lord put us in a college class at Liberty around some really wise people, put us in a college class at Liberty around some really wise people. And I look at some of the folks that we were in school with and our closest friends and all of us, by God's grace, have written books, started businesses and now have speaking careers Not every single one, but our closest companions do. And I started thinking about that. I was like you know, it is weird that all of us in this inner circle, we kind of all have gone that route. And why is that? I think we've fed off of each other. You know, I'm hearing Ken Coleman just released his third book and Gabe Lyons just, you know, released his hundredth podcast, or whatever, and it's like there's just something about that where there's some healthy level of hey that inspires me and I want to do that as well. And all of us are now. We're all rolling into celebrating our 25th, 26th, 27th wedding anniversaries, with kids that are now getting married and all of this.
Speaker 1:But I thank God, we, we chose to walk with the wise, that God brought good, wise friends around us, and that can be a prayer for you. It's just like Lord, bring wise friends around me. God. Like there are two types of people people that draw you close to God and people that push you away from God. You know, and then the rest is just the mission field. It's just neutral. They're a mission field. It's like the people you work out with at the gym.
Speaker 1:Proverbs 13, 20 says this walk with wise men and you will be wise. But a companion of fools suffers harm. Like think about well, what is a fool? A fool is a person who doesn't consider God, who's just considering, like the world, just we're in business, we're making money. It's like you know, I just sell my soul to whatever the idolatry of athletics or whatever the idolatry might be, and that can easily creep into all of our lives, especially when we're hanging out with fools. He says a companion of fools suffers harm. It doesn't mean you're around fools. You're going to be around fools all the time, and even before Jesus, jason and I were fools. But then when we come to know the Lord, we walk in wisdom by the power of the Holy Spirit and we get into the word of God, like who? Who in your life is reading the scripture too, where you guys aren't just talking about the weather or sports, you can actually talk about something you learned in the Bible. Like that's the kind of people you want to be around.
Speaker 1:So the five keys to a godly business leader number one be fully committed to God with your whole heart, that's it. Be fully committed to all in love God, with all your heart, mind, soul and strength. Whole heart, that's it. Be fully committed, all in Love God, with all your heart, mind, soul and strength. Number two is to be self-aware. Think about your thoughts. What are my thoughts like? How do I think about other people? How do I think about money? How am I thinking? How am I acting? What is the fruit that's coming out of my life? So you want to be self-aware.
Speaker 1:Number three you want to be quick to obey. Don't ponder, don't procrastinate, don't just sit there and be like, oh, should I do this, should I not do this? No, when God tells you something, especially when you read it in his word, and it's just boom, it's right there. Be quick to obey. And number four is to always be thankful. Be thankful in all things, because we know that's the will of God in Christ Jesus is to be thankful. And then the last one is to walk with the wise, because we know that he who walks with the wise becomes wise himself, but a companion of fools suffers harm. Those are the five keys to a godly business leader.
Speaker 1:And that is a wrap. How about that? That is a wrap. Our goal, david, our goal is always to keep it under 20 minutes for you guys. Obviously, sometimes our interviews we can't do that, but because we know you're all entrepreneurs and you're all busy. So, hey, listen, don't forget. Rate, review, subscribe, come hang out with us next week. We love hanging out with you guys and we just want to say we love you. How about that? How about that wrap?