Your Business is your Ministry
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God has truly refreshed my heart and taught me so much after attending the Narrow conference with Michelle Myers. Through this event, I got to hang out with amazing colleagues such as Rachel McMichael, Somer Phoebus, and of course the creator of She Works His Way herself - Michelle Myers. One of the most important ideas I walked away with is this: Your business IS your ministry! I know this is a truth bomb, but let me pick apart a few pieces to help you think through this freeing idea without setting off any explosives.
It’s important how we run our businesses, because as a ministry, it is work that represents and is for the Lord
A few questions to ask yourself to truly gauge where you’re at:
How is your customer service?
How are you treating your people?
What do your social media posts/emails/blogs say about Jesus?
If you mention nothing about Jesus, would your audience sense/know you love the Lord?
Do you compartmentalize family, church ministries, and business as all separate categories?
Do you think of church ministry as your only ministry?
Realizing your business is a ministry, turns it from grind to grace
Your ministry is an opportunity given to you, to use your gifts for the Lord. It is not an opportunity you stumbled upon that you MUST succeed at, or else! In your ministry, God will provide what you need, in His perfect timing and in His perfect way. Are you starting to see all of the grace in this? Refocusing on this truth has helped me slow down my pace and reflect to see lately I have been rushing, hurrying, and moving at a pace much too fast to be pleasing to the Lord. . I have said this before, but it deserves repeating: Stop going 100 miles a minute, hustling and grinding, trying to get ahead in your business. Let His grace carry you through your business through prayer and being in fellowship with other Christian entrepreneurs. {One of my favorite ways to do this is through my course, the Proverbs 31 Entrepreneurs Mastermind group!}
We must take His work seriously
If you’re like myself, and most female Christian entrepreneurs, your priorities fall in the order of: God, family, and then work. However, just because work is last on the list,doesn’t mean work gets put on the back burner and completed at half-par. If God has called you to do something, {which I’m hoping He has} to your business ministry, you’d better do it, and do it well.
Total transparency: My husband and I were just having this conversation today as this truth slapped me in the face. Sounds juicy, right? Here it is..., My sister-in-law is here, and my entire family had planned to take a trip to our state’s capital to explore.. We don’t get the chance to take my daughter there to explore and see the sights very often(not to mention, I haven’t seen her in about 5 days due to a conference!), But based on the amount of work I woke up with and the number of clients that needed my all today,I stayed home to serve my clients,instead of tagging along. And because of the understanding we have in our family about my business ‘ministry’ I wasn’t even the member to suggest this change in plan. My husband reminded me that just because family is above ‘business’ on the priority list, doesn’t mean my clients and everyone else impacted by the ministry God has called me to take second place as far as the amount of effort I give. Sweet sister, when God gives us a calling and asks that we go, our priorities shift, but not one priority should take the backseat.