Tuesday 19 June 2012
Thursday 7 June 2012
Christian Leadership pt.5- Spiritual Ethics
Spiritual ethics are very important in the church. Learn to give honour to the one who invited you or who handed over to you.
Do not talk behind the back of people. As a visiting speaker, don’t start taking phone numbers of church members and then call them as if you can pastor them better than their own pastor. As a church member, there is the temptation to think that a visiting Pastor is far better than your Pastor because he just ministers occasionally in your church. The bible says “a prophet has no honour in his house”.
Finance: Matthew23:23 “Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cumin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgement, mercy and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone”.
Jesus Christ sanctions the fact that we should pay tithe. It was practiced in both the Old Testament and the New Testament.
Malachi 3:8-10 God required the people of Israel to give to his store house.
What was the store house used for?
The reason why God wants you to tithe is for there to be meat in the storehouse for the priest and the poor. Numbers 18:21-24-The Levites had no inheritance.
Deut 14:27-29 For the Priest, the stranger, the fatherless, the widow which are within thy gates shall come and eat and be satisfied that the Lord thy God may bless the work of thy hand which thou doest.
1Cor 4:2,7b. “Moreover it is required in stewards that a man be found faithful. And what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?
Our motivation is as it’s stated in 2Cor.9:7-8 Everyone has to be a cheerful giver not out of compulsion, it shouldn’t be as if it’s a tax, but it should be from the heart.
Don’t be greedy giver where you have a lot but give very little but give freely and willingly
So let’s see how the New Testament Church did give:
Acts 4:32-35, 1 Cor. 9:7-10,14
1. None among them lacked, and as many as were possessors sold what they had and brought it to be redistributed among them.
2. This means they took care of the Priests and the needy among them. Every one was ministered to according as he had need.
3. No one gave out of compulsion. They all gave willingly, freely and cheerfully. No one withheld what he or she had. No one was a greedy giver. Every one helped minister to the need of the whole congregation.
You will realise that the New Testament church was not restricted to just 10% but they gave their all and their best. Jesus gave us an example of giving. He gave himself for us. He gave his all. He left his throne and came down to sacrifice his life for us.
2 Cor. 8:8-9, 13-15
Even though he was rich, he became poor for us and so does he expect us to do the same to others.
The rewards of giving:
Matt19:29-30, Mark 10:29-30 “And every one that has forsaken houses or brethren or Sisters, or father or mother or wife or children or lands for my sake, shall receive an hundred fold now in this life and the life after”.
Luke 6:38 “Give and it shall be given unto you, pressed down shaken together, running over shall men give unto you. For with the same measure that ye mete withal shall, it shall be measured to you again”.
Prov3:9-10”…So shall thy barns be filled with plenty and thy presses shall burst out with new wine”.
Ps 126:5-6 “They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him”.
Philp 4: 15-19 “…But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus”.
Do not talk behind the back of people. As a visiting speaker, don’t start taking phone numbers of church members and then call them as if you can pastor them better than their own pastor. As a church member, there is the temptation to think that a visiting Pastor is far better than your Pastor because he just ministers occasionally in your church. The bible says “a prophet has no honour in his house”.
Finance: Matthew23:23 “Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cumin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgement, mercy and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone”.
Jesus Christ sanctions the fact that we should pay tithe. It was practiced in both the Old Testament and the New Testament.
Malachi 3:8-10 God required the people of Israel to give to his store house.
What was the store house used for?
The reason why God wants you to tithe is for there to be meat in the storehouse for the priest and the poor. Numbers 18:21-24-The Levites had no inheritance.
Deut 14:27-29 For the Priest, the stranger, the fatherless, the widow which are within thy gates shall come and eat and be satisfied that the Lord thy God may bless the work of thy hand which thou doest.
1Cor 4:2,7b. “Moreover it is required in stewards that a man be found faithful. And what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?
Our motivation is as it’s stated in 2Cor.9:7-8 Everyone has to be a cheerful giver not out of compulsion, it shouldn’t be as if it’s a tax, but it should be from the heart.
Don’t be greedy giver where you have a lot but give very little but give freely and willingly
So let’s see how the New Testament Church did give:
Acts 4:32-35, 1 Cor. 9:7-10,14
1. None among them lacked, and as many as were possessors sold what they had and brought it to be redistributed among them.
2. This means they took care of the Priests and the needy among them. Every one was ministered to according as he had need.
3. No one gave out of compulsion. They all gave willingly, freely and cheerfully. No one withheld what he or she had. No one was a greedy giver. Every one helped minister to the need of the whole congregation.
You will realise that the New Testament church was not restricted to just 10% but they gave their all and their best. Jesus gave us an example of giving. He gave himself for us. He gave his all. He left his throne and came down to sacrifice his life for us.
2 Cor. 8:8-9, 13-15
Even though he was rich, he became poor for us and so does he expect us to do the same to others.
The rewards of giving:
Matt19:29-30, Mark 10:29-30 “And every one that has forsaken houses or brethren or Sisters, or father or mother or wife or children or lands for my sake, shall receive an hundred fold now in this life and the life after”.
Luke 6:38 “Give and it shall be given unto you, pressed down shaken together, running over shall men give unto you. For with the same measure that ye mete withal shall, it shall be measured to you again”.
Prov3:9-10”…So shall thy barns be filled with plenty and thy presses shall burst out with new wine”.
Ps 126:5-6 “They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him”.
Philp 4: 15-19 “…But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus”.
Let’s Reflect – (Divorce)
1 Corinthians 7:10-11 "And unto the married I command, yet
not I, but the Lord, Let not the wife depart from her husband: 11 But and if she depart, let her
remain unmarried, or be reconciled to her husband: and let not the
husband put away his wife."
Luke 16:18 "Whosoever putteth away his
wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and whosoever marrieth her
1 that is put away from her husband committeth
adultery."
If this is the case then could we lose our eternal life through
divorce and remarriage?
Check this quotation: Galatians 5:19-21
"1 Now the works of the
flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication,
uncleanness, lasciviousness,
20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath,
strife, seditions, heresies,
21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like:
of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do
such things shall not inherit the kingdom of
God."
1 Peter 4:17-18 "1 For the time
is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and 2 if
it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that
obey not the gospel of God?
18 And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and
the sinner appear?"
We are in serious times. A
time for serious and sober reflection; A time to turn and make the right
decisions; A time to do God’s will; A time to do what the Bible says without
putting our own twist to it to suit our desires. The time to make God the ultimate in
everything we do is now.
Stay Blessed.
Helen
Kotey
Tuesday 20 March 2012
ENTREPRENEURSHIP 2
First, have a financial plan. The first year and a half involves a lot of sacrifice where every penny earned will have to be reinvested in the business, the owner may not be able to take a salary. Plan to draw less on salary so that more money can be reinvested.
Plan ahead on how you are going to fund the business. You can take loans if the turnaround time of your business is very short so that you can pay back the loan quickly
Plan to keep costs as low as possible. You must know your cash flow, know what you have in cash and plan for contingencies. Cut your initial budget to the barest minimum- second hand computers, printers etc. work with volunteers at the beginning. You can even hire them as and when you need them. Strip your expenditure to as low as possible.
Secondly have a marketing plan. You may have the best product or service or you may be good at what you do in the world but that does not guarantee that people will patronise your product. It will depend on how good you are at marketing and sales.
McDonald’s don’t make the best burgers but they sell most in the world because they know how to market it. It takes money to make money but word of mouth is the best and cheapest form of advert. Work hard to beat the expectation of first few customers, do some networking, take advantage of free press etc.
Above all have a marketing strategy to target your advert at your intended recipients so that you can focus on the job/business.
"Marketing is really not about telling [people] how great your products are. Good marketing is based on a deep understanding of the problem your customer has and doesn't want, or the result they want and don't have. When you focus your marketing message on the customer's problem and desired result, they notice and come over and ask for more."
Importance of relationships in business: Play to your strengths: Bring your strengths to bear in the business. Where you are weak, let those who are strong in that area help you. No one is good at everything, if you partner with someone, you build synergies with your strengths. You partner with someone who compliments you. Working alone can paralyze many would-be entrepreneurs, so consider getting a partner or two to share the workload and the risk.
2 Chronicles 2:7 Send me now therefore a man cunning to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and crimson, and blue, and that can skill to grave with the cunning men that are with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father did provide.
Learn from your mistakes: One of the things young entrepreneurs should learn is to learn from their mistakes. As you go along, don’t let your mistakes bring you down but rather use it as a learning curve.
Start: Start whatever God is laying on your heart no matter how small it is.
Job 8:7 “Though thy beginning was small, yet thy latter end should greatly increase.” Do not despise small beginnings. It is said that taking advantage of small opportunities will get you there faster than waiting for one big opportunity.
The grace of God will always be there with you so don’t be worried about how you start.
Ecclesiastes 7:8 “Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.”
Many great businesses started small. Many started when the owners went through die financial situations and crises. Many started out of necessity. Many started as ideas without any capital. Start no matter what. You may think that you are going through a difficult time but God at times allows you to go through that so that He would glorify Himself. Joseph told his brothers that “ye meant it for evil but God meant it for good. Things are not going to get any better so start. The best time to start is now.
May whatever you are experiencing now turn out for your good.
Plan ahead on how you are going to fund the business. You can take loans if the turnaround time of your business is very short so that you can pay back the loan quickly
Plan to keep costs as low as possible. You must know your cash flow, know what you have in cash and plan for contingencies. Cut your initial budget to the barest minimum- second hand computers, printers etc. work with volunteers at the beginning. You can even hire them as and when you need them. Strip your expenditure to as low as possible.
Secondly have a marketing plan. You may have the best product or service or you may be good at what you do in the world but that does not guarantee that people will patronise your product. It will depend on how good you are at marketing and sales.
McDonald’s don’t make the best burgers but they sell most in the world because they know how to market it. It takes money to make money but word of mouth is the best and cheapest form of advert. Work hard to beat the expectation of first few customers, do some networking, take advantage of free press etc.
Above all have a marketing strategy to target your advert at your intended recipients so that you can focus on the job/business.
"Marketing is really not about telling [people] how great your products are. Good marketing is based on a deep understanding of the problem your customer has and doesn't want, or the result they want and don't have. When you focus your marketing message on the customer's problem and desired result, they notice and come over and ask for more."
Importance of relationships in business: Play to your strengths: Bring your strengths to bear in the business. Where you are weak, let those who are strong in that area help you. No one is good at everything, if you partner with someone, you build synergies with your strengths. You partner with someone who compliments you. Working alone can paralyze many would-be entrepreneurs, so consider getting a partner or two to share the workload and the risk.
2 Chronicles 2:7 Send me now therefore a man cunning to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and crimson, and blue, and that can skill to grave with the cunning men that are with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father did provide.
Learn from your mistakes: One of the things young entrepreneurs should learn is to learn from their mistakes. As you go along, don’t let your mistakes bring you down but rather use it as a learning curve.
Start: Start whatever God is laying on your heart no matter how small it is.
Job 8:7 “Though thy beginning was small, yet thy latter end should greatly increase.” Do not despise small beginnings. It is said that taking advantage of small opportunities will get you there faster than waiting for one big opportunity.
The grace of God will always be there with you so don’t be worried about how you start.
Ecclesiastes 7:8 “Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.”
Many great businesses started small. Many started when the owners went through die financial situations and crises. Many started out of necessity. Many started as ideas without any capital. Start no matter what. You may think that you are going through a difficult time but God at times allows you to go through that so that He would glorify Himself. Joseph told his brothers that “ye meant it for evil but God meant it for good. Things are not going to get any better so start. The best time to start is now.
May whatever you are experiencing now turn out for your good.
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Every business starts with a gift or identification of a need. You either have a gift or identify a need which results in producing a product or a service.
The Bible says Proverbs 5:15 “Drink waters out of thine own cistern and running waters out of thine own well”.
The word cistern, according to the Collins English dictionary means a water tank or an underground reservoir. This means tap into your own resources, tap into your God given reservoir of gifts, tap into your underground, unseen talent, tap into your skills and tap into your talent. It is a resource that God has given you so make the best out of them. Use what God has given you.
Use your skills to identify opportunities, cease them and make the most of the opportunities. Be influenced to take action. Don’t just identify them and sit down.
Proverbs 18:16 A man's gift maketh room for him, and bringeth him before great men. Identification of a need helps you spot an opportunity that you can take advantage of.
But having the gift alone or spotting an opportunity is not good enough.
You set objectives: Objectives are goals that you want to achieve. These are the reasons why you are putting your talent to use.
Proverbs 31:16 She considereth a field, and buyeth it: with the fruit of her hands she planteth a vineyard.
They are the set SMART targets.
S - specific, significant, stretching: i.e. well defined, clear to anyone that has a basic understanding of the project
M - measurable, meaningful, motivational: Know if the goal is attainable and how far away completion is, Know when it has been achieved.
A - agreed upon, attainable, achievable, acceptable, action-oriented: Aim for results
R - realistic, relevant, reasonable, rewarding, results-oriented: Within the availability of resources, knowledge and time
T - time-based, timely, tangible, trackable: enough time to achieve the goal, Not too much time, which can affect project performance.
A goal may be what you want to achieve in two, three or five years time
Get organized: Plan effectively. Planning is necessary to achieve those goals you have set for yourself. If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail. Have a plan of action. Have a plan that is clear, concise, compelling and consistent. Have a plan in place how you intend to achieve those targets set above.
Proverbs 21:5(NLT) Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty.
Prov. 24:3-4 “An enterprise is built by wise planning, it becomes strong through common sense and profits wonderfully by keeping abreast of facts.” (Living Bible)
Write your plans down. Hab.2:2-3. Only 3% of people write their purpose, plans and goals down. 10% keep them in their head. The remaining 87% just drift through life. They have “the whatever will be will be syndrome”. Research shows that the 3% achieve 50 to hundred times what they write down.
The Bible says Proverbs 5:15 “Drink waters out of thine own cistern and running waters out of thine own well”.
The word cistern, according to the Collins English dictionary means a water tank or an underground reservoir. This means tap into your own resources, tap into your God given reservoir of gifts, tap into your underground, unseen talent, tap into your skills and tap into your talent. It is a resource that God has given you so make the best out of them. Use what God has given you.
Use your skills to identify opportunities, cease them and make the most of the opportunities. Be influenced to take action. Don’t just identify them and sit down.
Proverbs 18:16 A man's gift maketh room for him, and bringeth him before great men. Identification of a need helps you spot an opportunity that you can take advantage of.
But having the gift alone or spotting an opportunity is not good enough.
You set objectives: Objectives are goals that you want to achieve. These are the reasons why you are putting your talent to use.
Proverbs 31:16 She considereth a field, and buyeth it: with the fruit of her hands she planteth a vineyard.
They are the set SMART targets.
S - specific, significant, stretching: i.e. well defined, clear to anyone that has a basic understanding of the project
M - measurable, meaningful, motivational: Know if the goal is attainable and how far away completion is, Know when it has been achieved.
A - agreed upon, attainable, achievable, acceptable, action-oriented: Aim for results
R - realistic, relevant, reasonable, rewarding, results-oriented: Within the availability of resources, knowledge and time
T - time-based, timely, tangible, trackable: enough time to achieve the goal, Not too much time, which can affect project performance.
A goal may be what you want to achieve in two, three or five years time
Get organized: Plan effectively. Planning is necessary to achieve those goals you have set for yourself. If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail. Have a plan of action. Have a plan that is clear, concise, compelling and consistent. Have a plan in place how you intend to achieve those targets set above.
Proverbs 21:5(NLT) Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty.
Prov. 24:3-4 “An enterprise is built by wise planning, it becomes strong through common sense and profits wonderfully by keeping abreast of facts.” (Living Bible)
Write your plans down. Hab.2:2-3. Only 3% of people write their purpose, plans and goals down. 10% keep them in their head. The remaining 87% just drift through life. They have “the whatever will be will be syndrome”. Research shows that the 3% achieve 50 to hundred times what they write down.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
